Classical conditioning Flashcards
Key assumptions of classical conditioning
- Concerned with observable behaviour that can be objectively and scientifically measured.
- All behaviour is learned from the environment and can be reduced to a stimulus-response association.
- There is little difference between the learning that takes place in humans and non-human animals. Therefore, research can be carried out on animals as well as humans.
Classical conditioning
The behaviourist approach suggests that all behaviour is learnt rather than being innate or inherited from parents. One way in which behaviour can be learned is via classical conditioning, which is learning through association. A stimulus produces the same response as another stimulus because they have been consistently presented at the same time.
Pavlov A01
Ivan Pavlov was a Russian physiologist; he is credited with discovering the process of classical conditioning. He was investigating the salivating reflex in dogs when he noticed that dogs would not only salivate when food was placed in their mouths, but also when certain stimuli appeared, such as their dog bowl or the person who usually fed them. This led Pavlov to explore how the dogs had learnt that these stimuli meant food was on the way. He decided to see if he could teach the dogs to salivate when he rang a bell
Before conditioning
Food was an unconditioned stimulus that produced the reflex of salivating, which is an unconditioned response. The bell was a neutral stimulus that produced no conditioned response.
During conditioning
The unconditioned stimulus (food) was repeatedly paired with the neutral stimulus (bell). Eventually the dog associated the bell with food.
After conditioning
The bell was a conditioned stimulus that produced salivating in the dogs as a conditioned response
Principles of classical conditioning
1) Generalisation: Stimuli similar to the original conditioned stimuli (bell) will cause the conditioned response (salivation) e.g. a bell with a different pitch or sound will cause salivation
2) Discrimination: Stimuli similar to the original conditioned stimuli (bell) will not produce the conditioned response (salivation). This can be done by withholding the unconditioned stimulus (food). For example a similar sounding bell is rung but food is not presented at the same time. Therefore salivation will not occur
3) Extinction: The conditioned response (salivation) is not produced because of the bell being rung. This occurs when the conditioned stimulus (bell) is presented without the unconditioned stimulus of food
Advantages of Classical conditioning
1) There is research evidence to support the idea of classical conditioning being able to explain the development of learning and phobias. Evidence comes from Pavlov and his research on dogs, as well as the Little Albert study by Watson and Rayner. However, we must be cautious when using the research findings from Little Albert because the study was conducted in a laboratory setting and we might find that different results might be gained from a different setting. Therefore the findings might be quite weak and might lack ecological validity when considering how important and effective classical conditioning actually is (+)(-)
4) A strength of the behavioural model is that it is a model that can be easily tested and measured in a scientific way by using observations in a laboratory. The behavioural model relies on observing behaviour that can be directly seen and measured in a highly controlled setting. This helps aid objectivity and replication (+)
6) A strength of Pavlov’s research is that it has helped apply classical conditioning to treatments of psychological disorders. For example, classical conditioning has helped form treatments such as flooding and systematic desensitisation which are based on the components of classical conditioning and association (+)
Disadvantages of Classical conditioning
1) There is research evidence to support the idea of classical conditioning being able to explain the development of learning and phobias. Evidence comes from Pavlov and his research on dogs, as well as the Little Albert study by Watson and Rayner. However, we must be cautious when using the research findings from Little Albert because the study was conducted in a laboratory setting and we might find that different results might be gained from a different setting. Therefore the findings might be quite weak and might lack ecological validity when considering how important and effective classical conditioning actually is (+)(-)
2) Classical conditioning is successful in explaining how learning can occur in animals and young children. However classical conditioning might not be very strong in explaining how adults learn new behaviours. Therefore classical conditioning is limited to only explaining learning in young children and animals only (-)
3) The psychologist Menzies criticises the behavioural model, especially the idea of classical conditioning. He studied people that had a phobia of water (hydrophobia), and he found that only 2% of his sample had encountered a negative experience with water (due to classical conditioning and learning). Therefore, 98% of his sample had a phobia of water but had never had a negative experience involving water, which means that they had not learnt to become frightened of water. Therefore; how did these people get their phobia of water if they had not learnt it? Other findings include 50% of people who have a dog phobia have never had a bad experience involving a dog, so therefore learning cannot be a factor in causing the development of the phobia (-)
5) The behaviourial model can be criticised because it views humans and animals as passive recipients who have machine like responses to stimuli in the environment. Animals and humans can easily learn new behaviours unquestionably and apparently have little or no conscious thought at all. This minimises their free will. (-)
7) The behavioural model would be criticised by the biological approach in Psychology. The behavioural model would ignore the role of genes, hormones, evolution and neural mechanisms that are responsible for behaviour. There is very strong research evidence from a range of psychologists that behaviour is caused and determined by genes, a key example is schizophrenia, whereby genetics have been identified as the main cause of the illness (this has been identified by gene mapping). The biological approach would criticise the behavioural approach and state how it is very unlikely that someone could learn to be schizophrenic (via classical conditioning). Therefore other models in psychology should also be considered when looking at how behaviours develop (-)
8) A disadvantage of classical conditioning is that is can be viewed as being deterministic because it ignores the role of free will in people’s behavioural responses. Classical conditioning anticipates an individual will respond to a conditioned stimulus with no variation, which is not accurate. People are not passive states and they do have some control over how they might respond to an association between two stimuli. This can lead to explanations for behaviour that are incomplete and inconsistent. (-)
