Classical (Respondent) Conditioning

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Back to Main Table of Contents Educational psychology

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Contents

Introduction

Respondent Conditioning, also known as Pavlovian or Classical conditioning[1], can be defined as a type of learning in which "a behavior (conditioned response) comes to be elicited by a stimulus (conditioned stimulus) that has acquired its power through an association with a biologically significant stimulus (unconditioned stimulus)" (Gerrig and Zimbardo, 2002).[1] More simply put, respondent conditioning is the association of automatic responses or respondents, with new stimuli. People can be trained to react to stimuli that previously had no effect. Animals are also able to learn by this type of conditioning. In fact, what is now called respondent conditioning was actually discovered by using dogs, food, and their salivation. Classical Conditioning falls under the branch of psychology known as behaviorism. Two of the best known psychologists to study this type of conditioning are Ivan Pavlov and John Watson. It is important to note that if someone is looking to use this technique for something such as classroom management, the conditioning must be reinforced. If a teacher has taught his or her students that they should be quiet when she turns the light off, this could be considered a conditioned response. This method is can be very useful, especially in classrooms where more then one language is spoken.Teaching Bilingual Students A universal signal such as turning the lights off can be understood by every student regardless of their language. However, if the teacher ceases using this technique, it will slowly lose its effectiveness. This is known as extinction. Another common side effect of classical conditioning is known as generalization. An example of this is when someone is attacked by a dog. Usually the person does not just develop a fear of that particular dog, but rather a fear of dogs in general.

Ivan Pavlov & His Dogs

The first major study of classical conditioning was conducted by Russian physiologist Ivan Pavlov[2] in 1904. However, the original experiment was not designed for psychological research. It was in reality an effort by Pavlov and his laboratory assistants to study and analyze the processes of digestion.

Pavlov's team implanted tubes inside dog's saliva glands and digestive organs, which, once the dogs were given food, would activate. The saliva secreted would then be collected in outside containers to be analyzed.

This procedure quickly uncovered a set of physiological responses in the dogs that would have lasting effects on learning. To produce the needed secretions, Pavlov's assistants put meat powder into the dog's mouths to make them salivate. After repeating this, Pavlov noticed the dogs would start salivating before the powder was given. At first, the sight of the food would be enough for salivation to occur. Further still, after time all that was needed for salivation was the presence of the lab assistants.


To further his research, Pavlov then created a new experiment in 1927 uncovering processes now known as Stimulus and Response (Seifert and Sutton, 2007): [2].


Stimulus and Response

To fully understand Pavlov's experiment, you must first understand the terminology used for the experiment. A brief section defining the required terms will be followed by a description of the steps that Pavlov and his team took in order to conduct this experiment. Also see the included diagram.

Important Terms

Neutral Stimulus: Stimulus not connected to a response (Woolfolk et. al., 2006).[3] In his experiment, Pavlov would ring a tuning fork near the dog, as it would bring no salivation (Response).

Unconditioned Stimulus (US): Stimulus that automatically produces an emotional or physiological response (Woolfolk et. al., 2006).[4] Pavlov would use food as his US, as no conditioning would be required to form a connection between food and salivation.

Unconditioned Response (UR): Naturally occurring emotional or physiological response (Woolfolk et. al., 2006).[5] The dog's salivation was the UR, as no training was needed; it occurred automatically upon the arrival of food.

Conditioned Stimulus (CS): Stimulus that evokes a response after training or conditioning occurred (Woolfolk et. al., 2006).[6] At the beginning of his experiment, Pavlov sounded the tuning fork and then fed the dog. After repeating this, the dog would salivate after the fork was used, but before any food was given. The tuning fork became the CS.

Conditioned Response (CR): Learned response to a previously neutral stimulus (Woolfolk et. al., 2006).[7] Salivation became the response after the use of the tuning fork (Woolfolk et. al., 2006).[8]

Conducting the Experiment

When conducting this experiment, one of the first things that Pavlov set out to do was to determine how much time should elapse between when a subject was presented with a neutral stimulus and when they are presented with the unconditioned stimulus.[9] Pavlov discovered that in order for conditioning to occur, the neutral stimulus should appear only moments before the unconditioned stimulus. The neutral stimulus now becomes the conditioned stimulus. The process of learning a stimulus-response relationship is known as acquisition. He also discovered that if the unconditioned stimulus was presented before the neutral stimulus, conditioning would not occur.[10] As with Pavlov's experiment with the dog, it was found that once the neutral stimulus has become the conditioned stimulus, it will invoke the same response that the unconditioned stimulus once did. This stimulus is now known as the conditioned response because it is now caused by the conditioned stimulus.

This figure displays the concepts of stimulus and response as they pertain to Pavlov's experiments. (Gerrig and Zimbardo, 2002).[11]

Image:Pavlov22.jpg



Can you get the dog to salivate?? Play the Pavlov's Dog game at: http://nobelprize.org/educational_games/medicine/pavlov/.[12]

Little Albert

Little Albert is probably the best known example of classical conditioning being used on a human being, in this case a young boy. While this type of experiment would be considered unethical by today's standards, it proves just how effective classical conditioning can be. In the experiment Watson, and his assistant Rosalie Rayner, set up an experiment in which they made a young child, Albert, fear something he had once played with without hesitation. In this case, they made Little Albert fear a white rat that he had once played with. Once they had established that Little Albert did not fear the rat, they could begin their quest to get Albert to fear the rat. To accomplish this they needed to bring in an unconditioned stimulus that would cause Little Albert to become fearful(unconditioned response),they chose a loud sound. The next time Little Albert was playing Watson paired the arrival of the rat with a loud noise that frightened Little Albert.[13] Eventually, this led to Little Albert associating the fear he felt with the rat. The rat was now the conditioned stimulus and fear was the conditioned response. It is important to note that while this is not an example applicable to the real world, it does show the strong implact that conditioning can have on children.


Next Section: Respondent Conditioning in the Classroom


References

  1. ↑ Gerrig, R. and Zimbardo, P. (2002). Psychology and Life, Sixteenth Edition. Boston: Pearson Education Inc., 183.
  2. ↑ Seifert, K. and Sutton, R. (2007). Contemporary Educational Psychology [CD]: Chapter 2: The Learning Process.,12.
  3. ↑ Woolfolk, A. et. al. (2006). Educational Psychology:Third Canadian Edition. Toronto: Pearson Education Inc., 200.
  4. ↑ Woolfolk, A. et al. (2006). Educational Psychology:Third Canadian Edition. Toronto: Pearson Education Inc., 200.
  5. ↑ Woolfolk, A. et al. (2006). Educational Psychology:Third Canadian Edition. Toronto: Pearson Education Inc., 200.
  6. ↑ Woolfolk, A. et al. (2006). Educational Psychology:Third Canadian Edition. Toronto: Pearson Education Inc., 200.
  7. ↑ Woolfolk, A. et al. (2006). Educational Psychology:Third Canadian Edition. Toronto: Pearson Education Inc., 200.
  8. ↑ Woolfolk, A. et al. (2006). Educational Psychology:Third Canadian Edition. Toronto: Pearson Education Inc., 200.
  9. ↑ Myers, David G. Psychology. (2003). United States. Worth Publishers., 314
  10. ↑ Myers, David G. Psychology. (2003). United States. Worth Publishers., 314
  11. ↑ Gerrig, R. and Zimbardo, P. (2002). Psychology and Life, Sixteenth Edition. Boston: Pearson Education Inc., 185.
  12. ↑ Pavlov's Dog. (2007). Retrieved September 23, 2007. http://nobelprize.org/educational_games/medicine/pavlov.
  13. ↑ LeFrancois, Guy. Of Children.(2001). United States. Wadsworth Group., 55
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