Learning Theories classic study- Watson and Rayner

Learning Theories classic study- Watson and Rayner

1. aim

   • Whether they could condition a fear of an animal by simultaneously presenting the animal and striking a steel bar to make a loud noise to frighten the child
   • whether fear would be transferred to other animals and objects (stimulus generalisation)
     • the effect of time on the conditioned response

2. sample

   • The only participant was a baby called Albert B (this was a pseudonym)
   • The baby was healthy, well-developed and unemotional
     • his mother was a wet nurse so he was brought up in a hospital setting

3. procedure

   • Watson and Rayner tested Albert for fear reactions when he was about 9 months old. they introduced a white rat, a rabbit, cotton wool and other stimuli and filmed his reaction. he showed no fear whatsoever
   • The researchers also banged a hammer against a suspended steel bar to make a loud noise- this is when they found a fear response

4. procedure and results

   • they waited until he was 11 months old and checked again that he had no fear. when the white rat was presented, he reached for it with his left hand. as his left hand touched the rat, the bar was struck, he did not cry, but he fell forward. when he touched the rat again, they struck the bar and he started to cry
   • They waited a week before continuing the experiment. the rat was then presented suddenly to Albert without a sound. he reached out but did not touch the rat. he was then given blocks to play with. it was concluded that the conditioning did have an effect.
   • 11 months and 10 days: rat+sound= falling over, no crying. Rat+sound= still no crying, fell to the right. Rat+sound= fell to the right, did not cry. Rat alone= whimpering, withdrawing to the left. Rat+sound= fell to the right, whimpering. Rat+sound= started to cry, did not fall. Rat alone= crying, turning away
   • the researchers then continued with the study to see if there was a transfer to other objects. at 11 months and 5 days old: Blocks alone= played well. Rat alone= whimpered, turned away. Blocks= played and smiled. Rat alone= leaned to the left and crawled away. blocks= smiling and happy.
   • they concluded that the conditioning of the rat with fear had lasted for five days. the experiment continued with different stimuli. 11 months and 15 days: Rabbit alone= immediate negative response, crying. Blocks= played with. Dog alone= tried to crawl away, slightly negative. Blocks= played with. Fur coat= began to fret, cried when coat was brought closer. Cotton wool= played with the paper around the cotton wool, withdrew from the cotton itself. Hair= negative response. Santa mask= negative response
   • at 11 months and 20 days, when the researchers introduced the rat alone. Little Albert's response was less marked than previously. the researchers decided that association had weakened so they renewed it. Rat+sound= violent reaction. Rat alone= strong reaction, fell to the side. Rat alone= crawled away, no crying and gurgled happily. Rabbit alone= leaned to the left, whimpered. Blocks=played well
   • The researchers then tried to condition the response to the dog and rabbit. 11 months and 20 days: Rabbit alone= whimpered. Rabbit+sound= violent reaction. Rabbit alone= whimpered. Rabbit alone= whimpered but leaned to touch it. Dog alone= whimpered. Dog+sound= violent reaction. Blocks=played well. Fear could, therefore, be transferred to other objects.
   • The experiment was then moved from the dark room where the previous studies had taken place to a lecture room in the presence of four other people, this was to study the effect of different surroundings. at 11 months and 20 days: Rat alone= no reaction. Rabbit alone= Slight fear reaction. Dog alone= turned away, cried. Rat alone= slight negative reaction. Rat+sound= jumped but did not cry. Rat alone= whimpering. Blocks= positive reaction. Rat alone= withdrawal and whimpering. Blocks= positive reaction. Rabbit alone= pronounced reaction. Dog alone= did not cry until dog barked.
   • Little Albert aged 1 year and 21 days: Santa mask= negative. Fur coat= negative. Blocks= played. Rat= Negative. Blocks= Played. Rabbit= somewhat negative. Dog= cried. the researchers concluded that conditioned emotional reactions lasted longer than one month, though became a little weaker
   • to summarise, each time blocks were given to Albert, he played with them happily and each time the rat was presented, after it had been paired with the noise, there was a negative response. UCS (loud noise) = UCR (startle response). UCS + CS (white rat) = CS (white rat) + CR (startle response)

5. conclusions

   • when objects similar to the white rat, such as a rabbit was presented, Albert responded negatively. Therefore, there was a conditioned emotional response, as the researchers thought there would be. it was generalised to other similar objects. a conditioned response can occur in humans after only a few pairings of stimuli, but the pairings may have to be repaired. the conditioned response can be transferred to other similar objects

6. evaluation

   • The little albert study was carefully documented, there was also strict controls and only one variable was changed at a time. it could have been repeated with similar results so very reliable. the study supports the idea of classical conditioning and is backed up by Pavlov's experiments
   • The study is not ethical. the researchers made sure that Albert was not easily frightened and thought the experiment was acceptable, however there was little doubt that he was distressed as he had regular breaks inbetween, although even when he was distressed, they continued with the study. the study is not valid- the setting and tasks were artificial (laboratory setting)