Classical conditioning

Classical conditioning

1. First demonstrated by Pavlov in 1890s

   • Studied learning by association and used naturally occurring reflexes in animals
   • Dog salivation in response to bell
     • Food (UCS) - dog - salivation (UCR)
       • Bell - dog - no response
         • Bell and food (UCS) - dog - salivation (UCR)
           • Bell (CS) - dog - salivation (CR)
   • Learn by making associations between responses and stimuli
     • Stimuli have to be close together for association to be learned
       • Best if stimuli presented together
     • Behaviour can be extinguished: e.g. if bell (CS) repeatedly rung without food (UCS), salivation (CR) slowly disappears
     • Stimulus generalisation: tendency to respond to stimuli that are similar to original CS, e.g. bell with different tone, Little Albert (Watson and Rayner (1920)
     • Stimulus discrimination: responding only to original stimulus and not similar ones (can be learned)

2. 1st step is to pair 2 stimuli

   • Can explain many human behaviours, e.g. fear of dentist
     • Dentist touches nerve with drill (UCS) - pain (UCR)
       • Associate sound of drill (CS) with pain of nerve (UCS)
         • Nervous because associate sound of drill (CS) with pain (CR)
     • Can be used to treat phobias with systematic desensitisation
       • Aversion therapy for alcoholics: giving people a drug that has unpleasant effects at the same time as alcohol until the 2 become associated

3. Animal already possesses behaviour, e.g. salivation

4. CC shows how a new association can be made between a neutral stimulus and an already existing response