Classical conditioning

• Unconditioned stimulus?

  • Something that triggers a natural reaction.
• Unconditioned response?

  • A response which is natural and does not need to be learned.
• Neutral stimulus?

  • Something that would not normally trigger a reaction.
• Conditioned stimulus?

  • Something that triggers a learned response; something we have to be conditioned to respond to.
• Conditioned response?

  • A response that has been learned through association.
• What is classical conditioning?

  • Learning through association.
  • Classical conditioning takes place when and unconditioned stimulus is repeatedly paired with a neutral stimulus, causing us to associate the two.
• Classical conditioning takes place in three parts:

  1. Before conditioning - the unconditioned stimulus produces and unconditioned response.
  2. During conditioning - the unconditioned stimulus and neutral stimulus are paired, this usually has to take place many times.
  3. After conditioning - the neutral stimulus now produces the same response as the unconditioned stimulus. The neutral stimulus is now the conditioned stimulus and produces a conditioned response.
• What is generalisation?

  • When the conditioned stimulus produces the same effect as a similar stimulus; the stimulus triggering the reaction does not have to be the same one used in learning.
• What is discrimination?

  • Over a period of time, learning only occurs in response to a specific stimulus; the the ability to differentiate between a conditioned stimulus and other stimuli that have not been paired with an unconditioned stimulus.
• What is extinction?

  • Removal of learned behaviour but not complete loss.
• What is spontaneous recovery?

  • Accelerated learning following extinction.