Pavlov

• Classical conditioning- a type of learning where an existing, involuntary reflex response is associated with a new stimulus
• Investigating classical conditioning:

  • Dog strapped into harness, apparatus on salivary glands to measure amount of saliva produced
  • Food presented, saliva measured
  • Bell and food presented, saliva measured, procedure repeated
  • Bell alone rung, saliva measured, testing the strength of the conditioned response
• Neutral stimulus (NS)- an event that doesn't produce a response
• Unconditioned stimulus (UCS)- an event that produces an innate, unlearned reflex response
• Conditioned stimulus (CS)- an event that produces a learned response
• Unconditioned response (UCR)- an innate, unlearned reflex behaviour that an organism produces to an UCS
• Conditioned response (CR)- a learned physical reflex behaviour that an organism produces when exposed to a CS
• Classical conditioning terms

  A) NS

  B) CS

  C) NS

  D) response

  E) UCS

  F) UCS

  G) UCR

  H) UCR

  I) CR

  
• Evaluation of Pavlov's research:

  • Low generalisability- animals behaviour cannot be compared to humans
  • Reliable- lab settings, high control of variables, standardised procedures which increases replicability
  • Application- understanding how phobias can be acquired, used to create treatments
  • High internal validity- high control of setting and variables, cause and effect established confidently
  • Unethical- painful saliva measurements, dogs starved before experiment which could be a confounding variable, lowering internal validity