Blocking effect

High school (ages 12+)
Thinking & Learning

Name:

Date:

Step 1 · Read the article

Open the article and read it at the level above. Then answer the questions below in your own words.

https://smallwhale.org/articles/blocking-effect

Write what each word means, using the article.

Do not copy the article. Write two things you learned, the way you would explain them to a friend.

Answers below are taken from the article’s stored facts, so they match what the student read.

1. What is the theoretical framework?The Rescorla-Wagner model explains blocking through the concept of prediction error minimization
2. Why does the brain ignore new things when it already knows something?Because the brain is very good at spotting patterns, it focuses on new clues that help it guess better. If something is already a perfect guess, extra clues are ignored to save brain power.
3. How does the blocking effect happen in experiments with rats?In experiments, scientists first taught rats that a sound (CS1) meant a treat (US). Then they played the sound with a new light (CS2). The rats didn't learn that the light predicted the treat because the sound already did.

Conditioned Stimulus (CS): A previously neutral stimulus that, after association with an unconditioned stimulus, triggers a conditioned response.
Unconditioned Stimulus (US): A stimulus that naturally and automatically triggers a response without any learning required.
Associative Strength: The learned strength of the connection between a stimulus and a response or outcome.