Animals learn to ignore a harmless repeat
- The idea
- Predict
- See it
- Why
- Check
The idea
“If an animal stops reacting, it must be worn out or its senses must be damaged.”
After twenty reactions in a row, the animal seems worn out. It can still respond. It has learned the stimulus doesn't matter.
The short version
The mistake: If an animal stops reacting, it must be worn out or its senses must be damaged.
What's actually true: In habituation, an animal learns to ignore a harmless stimulus that keeps repeating, though its muscles and senses still work.
- Habituation is a simple form of learning. An animal responds less and less to a stimulus that keeps repeating with no harm attached.
- It's specific to the repeated stimulus. A new stimulus still gets a strong response, so the muscles still work.
- It wears off with rest, and the old stimulus works again. Permanent damage to the senses could not do that.
On the exam: If a new stimulus still gets a strong response, the animal learned to ignore the old one.