Classical Conditioning Flashcards
Classical Conditioning (CC)
A simple form of learning which occurs through the repeated association of two (or more) different stimuli.
Learning is said to have occurred when a particular stimulus consistently produces a response that it did not previously elicit
Learn to associate two events/stimuli, and eventually one stands for another in our minds.
What happened with Ivan Pavlov and his dogs
The discovery of CC was an accident
He wanted to study digestion and the role of saliva
Rerouted saliva ducts to a test tube so measurements could be taken
The research ran into trouble when the dogs began to fill the tubes before the food was presented
The dogs were learning to anticipate food at the sight of the lab tech guy
The Neutral Stimulus (NS)
The name given to the conditioned stimulus before it becomes conditioned.
NS = BELL OR LAB TECH
The Conditioned Stimulus (CS)
Any stimulus that consistently produces a particular response
UCS = FOOD
The Neutral Stimulus (NS)
The name given to the conditioned stimulus before it becomes conditioned.
NS = BELL OR LAB TECH
The Unconditioned Response (UCR)
A response which occurs automatically when the Unconditioned Stimulus is presented
UCR = SALIVATION
The Conditioned Response (CR)
The behaviour which is identical to the UCR but is caused by the CS after conditioning.
CR = SALIVATION IN RESPONSE TO BELL (CS)
What happened in the Little Albert Experiment
Watson and Rayner (1920)
They intentionally conditioned an emotional response.
Aim: To test the belief that fears can be acquired through classical conditioning.
Participant: Little Albert was 11 months old.
Initially - the fear response was not shown when the white rat was in Little Albert’s reach.
First procedure:
Experimenters struck a hammer on a steel bar making a loud noise, causing a startle response.
This was repeated until Little Albert was crying uncontrollably.
They repeated this procedure randomly over 17 days.
Second procedure (one week later):
Loud noise was sounded every time Little Albert went near the rat.
After seven pairings Little Albert would cry, show fear and try to move away as soon as the rat was near.
Conclusion was made that a conditioned response had been successful.
Ethical Considerations of the Little Albert Experiment
Debriefing - this did not occur as the mother left her job, others have stated they had the opportunity but did not use it.
Voluntary participation - The mother was not given an explanation of the experiment, and she may not have volunteered her son.
Confidentiality - His face is in videos and textbooks, however, his actual name has not.
Informed consent - mother was not fully aware of the aims of the experiment.
Withdrawal rights - mother may not have been aware of these rights; again, this is not clear. No one was able to advocate for his well-being.
Lasting physiological or psychological harm - May have been more vulnerable to psychological harm (due to obsessive thumb sucking), and the response was never extinguished; it is reasonable to assume he suffered long-term. Mother noticed he cried about tissues and white blankets.
**Note: the ethical guidelines were not yet established at this time, though arguably, all ethical implications would have been breached in some way.
Role of the Learner in CC
The learner is passive. They have no control over the learning process.
Timing of the stimulus in CC
The response depends on the presentation of the UCS occurring first.
Two stimuli must be presented very close together.
Nature of the response in CC
Reflexive, involuntary.
