Download 185 Key Concepts in Classical Conditioning

341770_ch_05.qxd
6/4/02
12:29 PM
Page 185 mac 106 mac 106:211_sks:
MODU LE 5.1
185
CONCEPT CHART 5.1
Key Concepts in Classical Conditioning
Concept
Description
Example: Fear of Dentistry
Classical conditioning
A form of learning in which a response identical or
similar to one originally elicited by an unconditioned
stimulus (US) is made in response to a conditioned
stimulus (CS) based on the pairing of the two stimuli
The pairing of pain during dental procedures with
environmental stimuli in the dentist’s office leads to
the development of a fear response to the
environmental cues alone.
Extinction
Gradual weakening and eventual disappearance of
the conditioned response (CR) when the CS is
repeatedly presented without the US
The use of anesthetics and painless dental techniques leads to the gradual reduction and elimination of fear of dentistry.
Spontaneous recovery
Spontaneous return of the CR some time after
extinction occurs
Fear of dentistry returns spontaneously a few
months or a few years after extinction.
Stimulus generalization
CR evoked by stimuli that are similar to the
original CS
Person shows a fear response when visiting the
office of a new dentist.
Stimulus discrimination
CR not evoked by stimuli that are related but not
identical to the CS
Person shows a fear response to the sight of a
dentist’s drill but not to equipment used for cleaning teeth.
Higher-order conditioning
CR evoked by a new stimulus that is paired with a
CS that already elicits the response
Person cringes upon hearing the dentist’s name.
higher-order conditioning The process
by which a previously neutral stimulus
comes to elicit a conditioned response as
a result of its being paired with a conditioned stimulus that already elicits the
conditioned response.
(US) that were preceded by a tone (CS) either on all occasions or on most, but
not all, occasions. The rats whose shocks were always preceded by the tone learned
a conditioned response of fear to the tone alone, whereas the rats whose shocks
were usually, but not always, preceded by the tone did not. Rescorla argued that
classical conditioning depends on more than the simple pairing of stimuli; it requires that the CS come to reliably predict the occurrence of the US.
Rescorla’s perspective on classical conditioning is a cognitive one. In his view,
humans and other animals actively seek information that helps them make predictions about important events in their environment. Conditioned stimuli are
cues that organisms use to make these predictions. Rescorla’s model, which has
been supported by other research (R. R. Miller, Barnet, & Grahame, 1995), has
important survival implications. Dogs and other animals may be more likely to
survive if they learn to respond with salivation to cues that food is present, since
salivation helps them prepare to swallow food. Animals are also more likely to
survive if they learn a fear response (heightened bodily arousal) to cues that signal the presence of threatening stimuli. Bodily arousal helps the animal prepare
either to fight off a potential threat, or to flee from it. Consider an animal that
hears a sound or gets a whiff of an odor (a CS) previously associated with the
presence of a particular predator (a US). By responding quickly with heightened
arousal to such a stimulus, the animal is better prepared to take defensive action
if the predator appears. Thus, classical conditioning serves as a kind of built-in
early warning system.
Rescorla’s model also explains why you are likely to develop a fear of dentistry more quickly if you experience pain during each dental visit than if you
have pain only every now and then. In other words, the more reliably the CS
(dental cues) signals the occurrence of the US (pain), the stronger the conditioned
response is likely to be.