Transcript CLASSICAL CONDITIONING

Learning by association
Classical conditioning is learning by association
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it is sometimes called “reflexive learning”
Classical Conditioning was discovered by the
Russian physiologist Ivan Pavlov in the early
1900’s
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He received the Nobel Prize in science for discovery
 Association: the
conditioning
KEY element in classical
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Pavlov considered classical conditioning to be a
form of “learning through association”, of a neutral
stimulus and a stimulus that incites a response.
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Any stimulus can be paired with another to make
an association if it is done in the correct way
(following the classical conditioning paradigm)
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Unconditioned Stimulus (UCS): any stimulus that
will always and naturally cause a response to occur
Example: A flashlight shined into your eyes
Unconditioned Response (UCR): any response that
always and naturally occurs at the presentation of
the UCS
Example: Your pupils contracting from the
flashlight shined into your eyes
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Neutral Stimulus (NS): any stimulus that does not
naturally elicit a response associated with the UCR
Example: Anything in the environment that
does not affect you in any way
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 Conditioned Stimulus (CS): any stimulus that
will, after association with an UCS, cause a
conditioned response (CR) when presented to a
subject by itself
Example: Seeing a doctor holding a
flashlight near your face
 Conditioned Response (CR): any response that
occurs upon the presentation of the CS
Example: Your pupils contract without the
flashlight shining in your eyes
Acquisition
Repeatedly pairing a CS with a US will produce a CR.
1 pairing = presenting the CS and then quickly presenting the US:
Extinction
After conditioning has taken place, repeatedly presenting the CS without the US
will make the CR weaker and eventually make it disappear.
X
Spontaneous Recovery
Following extinction, the CR reappears at reduced strength if the CS is
presented again after a rest period.
Stimulus Generalization
After a CR has been trained to a CS, that same CR will tend to occur to
similar stimuli without further training;
The greater the similarity, the stronger the response will be.
Conditioning:
Test for
Generalization:
Stimulus Discrimination
A subject responds to the CS but not to a similar stimulus because the CS was
paired with a UCS but the similar stimulus was presented without the UCS.
X
 Classical conditioning is involved in many of our
behaviors
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wherever stimuli are paired together over time we
come to react to one of them as if the other were
present
a particular song is played and you immediately
think of a particular romantic partner
a particular cologne is smelled and you immediately
think of a romantic partner
A particular food you ate, then got sick, creates an
ill feeling in you by just thinking of that food (Taste
Aversion)