Classical Conditioning

Classical conditioning was proposed by the Russian physiologist Ivan Pavlov. He studied classical conditioning through detailed experiments with dogs and published the experimental results in 1897. So, he described classical conditioning as a learning process where pairing a neutral stimulus with an unconditioned stimulus triggers a response. Gradually, the neutral stimulus becomes the conditioned stimulus and evokes a conditioned response.

• Unconditioned Stimulus: An unconditioned stimulus is a stimulus that triggers an automatic response. E.g. the hot pan made you flinch in pain, so the hot pan is an unconditioned stimulus that produces an involuntary response (the flinching).   
• Neutral Stimulus: A neutral stimulus does not initially trigger a response independently. E.g. your child would not be very excited the first they saw you putting on your shoes. The conditioning takes time to transform a neutral stimulus (putting shoes) into a conditioned stimulus which will evoke a conditioned response ( getting excited ). The neutral stimulus triggers a response after repeatedly getting paired with an unconditioned stimulus (going outside after wearing shoes).
• Conditioned Stimulus: A conditioned stimulus is a stimulus that triggers a conditioned response. But, before triggering that response it acts as a neutral stimulus only.  E.g. touching the hot pan made you flinch in pain but, before that the pan was a neutral stimulus to you.
• Unconditioned Response: An unconditioned response is an automatic response that occurs without any triggering by the unconditional response. E.g. you met with your friend after a long time and it made you cry so, it came automatically i.e. you didn’t think about crying upon meeting her.
• Conditioned Response: A conditioned response is a result of triggering caused by the conditioned stimulus. So, it’s a learned response that is created by conditioning. E.g. your friend screaming at you in excitement, every time she meets you. Then, you get conditioned to it and it is learned that, didn’t exist before.

How Classical Conditioning Works:

One of the best–known experiments of Pavlov includes his classic experiment with dogs which is also the best example to explain classical conditioning. So, the following are the steps that will explain how classical conditioning works:

Phase 1: Before Conditioning

Firstly, the unconditioned stimulus is presented which elicits an unconditioned i.e. naturally or automatically occurring response. E.g. Presenting Food (UCS) automatically triggers saliva response (UCR). The neutral stimulus is present without eliciting any response. It’ll evoke a response after being paired with an unconditioned stimulus.

Phase 2: During Conditioning:

The ‘during conditioning’ phase involves the repetitive pairing of a neutral stimulus with an unconditioned stimulus. And then, gradually neutral stimulus becomes the conditioned stimulus. It is because of the association formed between the previously neutral stimulus and the unconditioned stimulus. E.g. the repetitive association of the bell (neutral stimulus) with food (UCS) made the bell a conditioned stimulus.

Phase 3: After Conditioning:

Now, that the association between the UCS and CS has been made during the conditioning phase. So, presenting the conditioned stimulus independently will elicit the conditioned response without the unconditioned stimulus.  E.g. the bell (CS) will now evoke salivation (CR) in the dog.

Key Principles of Classical Conditioning in Psychology:

• Acquisition: Acquisition is that stage of learning where you acquire a response initially and then it’s strengthened gradually. Also during the acquisition phase neutral stimulus transforms into a conditioned stimulus by repeatedly pairing it with an unconditioned stimulus.
• Generalization: A similar conditioned stimulus tends to elicit the same response as that elicited by the conditioned stimulus after the response has been conditioned. E.g. the response of salivation (CR) which is elicited by the sound of a bell (CS) can be elicited by some another similar sound.
• Discrimination: Discrimination is the ability to know the difference between the conditioned stimulus and other stimuli that have not been paired with an unconditioned stimulus. E.g. In Pavlov’s dog experiment, the dog should salivate only to the sound of the particular bell and not any other similar sound.
• Extinction: In classical conditioning, extinction happens when the pairing of a conditioned stimulus with an unconditioned stimulus is no longer done. It is when the eliciting of a conditioned response decreases or disappears. E.g. in Pavlov’s dog experiment, the sound of a bell (CS) elicits salivation (CR) after repeatedly pairing the sound of a bell (CS) and food (UCS). Now, if the sound of a bell (CS) is no longer paired with food (UCS), then the occurrence of salivation (CR) will gradually decrease and disappear.
• Spontaneous Recovery: When sometimes a conditioned response reappears suddenly after a long period of extinction. Then, it is called spontaneous recovery. E.g. in Pavlov’s dog experiment, the sound of the bell (CS) elicits salivation (CR) after repeatedly pairing the sound of the bell (CS) and food (UCS). Now, if the sound of the bell (CS) is no longer paired with food (UCS), then the occurrence of salivation (CR) will gradually decrease and disappear. If now, the sound of the bell (CS) evokes salivation (CR) then, that’s called spontaneous recovery.

Examples of Classical Conditioning :

• You always buy the same type of pedigree for your pet dog. So, whenever you pull the packet of pedigree out of the cupboard, your dog gets excited and reaches toward the packet because they associate the packet with snack time.
• Taste aversion: If you eat some junk food outside and fall sick. Then, you avoid eating the same food even from a good place. As you associated that food with your sickness.
• A certain flavour of ice cream reminds you of your friend. So, after she shifts to another city, you that same ice cream whenever you miss her.
• Every time you open the door of your house, your baby gets excited and points to the door. Your baby associates you putting shoes with a walk outside.

Practical applications:

Classical conditioning has a wide application in behavioural therapy, education, and advertising. In operant conditioning, the behaviourist approach is applied in the treatment of phobias, and systematic desensitization.

• Explaining involuntary behaviours: Classical conditioning has helped explain many involuntary behaviours like phobias, emotional reactions, and physiological responses. Therefore, classical conditioning has played an important role in the treatment of many mental disorders.
• Supported by substantial experimental evidence: There are many basic phenomena like acquisition, extinction, generalization, and discrimination which are explained by the experiments done under classical conditioning. And then these phenomena can be applied to human activities as well such as extinguishing conditioned responses like the eye-blink and galvanic skin responses.

Limitations:

• Ignores biological predispositions: Many of the human responses are innate predispositions that are meant to prepare us biologically. So, classical conditioning doesn’t take them into account and supports nurture (biology) over nature (environment).
• Lacks explanatory power: Classical conditioning has provided a limited explanation of cognitive processes underlying the association process. Also applying classical conditioning to cognitive processes like memory, thinking, reasoning, or problem-solving, has proved to be more problematic.
• Questionable ecological validity: Many of the applications of classical conditioning are based on the experiments that were done in lab settings.  So, it raises doubt on the ecological validity that whether its application will be similarly automatic and inevitable outside the lab setting or not.
• Ethical concerns: Classical conditioning involves ethical concerns while manipulating behaviour without consent in its application such as manipulation of choices while marketing and advertising, encouraging impulsive behaviours like impulsive shopping, unhealthy eating etc.
• Deterministic theory: The classical conditioning theory is a little deterministic. As it doesn’t allow much free willingness to the individual while acquiring the association between the two stimuli.  E.g. according to classical conditioning, an individual has no control over the reactions such as phobia.

Classical  Conditioning Vs. Operant Conditioning:

Stimuli vs. consequences: 

The primary focus of Classical conditioning is associating two stimuli together and the consequence remains the same E.g. Pairing a bell (neutral stimulus) with food (unconditioned stimulus), the consequence remains the same i.e. salivation. Whereas, in Operant conditioning the consequence differs and different behaviors are learnt to get the desired consequences. E.g. A child gets a chocolate when they complete their homework on time but, they don’t get it if they don’t complete the homework on time. So, now the child will learn and try to that behaviour which earns him a chocolate (reinforcement).

Passive vs. active:

In classical conditioning, the action of the organism is passive as it automatically responds to the conditioned stimulus whereas in operant conditioning, the reinforcement or punishment for the certain behaviour of an organism is given actively.

Involuntary vs. voluntary: 

Classical conditioning involves involuntary responses like salivation, blinking, etc. whereas operant conditioning shapes the behaviour of organisms which they perform voluntarily knowing either they’ll be punished or reinforced for their behaviour.

Association vs. reinforcement: 

Classical conditioning involves creating an association between the two stimuli to create a conditioned response whereas; operant conditioning works by using reinforcement and punishment to increase and decrease the behaviour respectively.

Take Away

Classical conditioning is a learning process where pairing a neutral stimulus with an unconditioned stimulus triggers a response. Gradually, the neutral stimulus becomes the conditioned stimulus and evokes a conditioned response. It involves three phases to form the association between two stimuli: ‘before conditioning’, ‘during conditioning’ and ‘after conditioning’. An example of conditioning involves Taste aversion: If you eat some junk food outside and fall sick. Then, you avoid eating the same food even from a good place. As you associated that food with your sickness.

Classical conditioning is one of the prominent theories of the learning process which has wide practical applications, explains involuntary human behaviour and is supported by substantial experimental evidence. But it is also criticized because it ignores biological predispositions, lacks explanatory power of cognitive concepts, is questionable to ecological validity, ignores ethical concerns and is a deterministic theory.

FAQs

1. Who discovered classical conditioning?

Classical conditioning was proposed by the Russian physiologist Ivan Pavlov. He studied classical conditioning through detailed experiments with dogs and published the experimental results in 1897.

2. What is classical conditioning?

Classical conditioning is a learning process where pairing a neutral stimulus with an unconditioned stimulus triggers a response. Gradually, the neutral stimulus becomes the conditioned stimulus and evokes a conditioned response.

3. What are the applications of classical conditioning in real life?

Taste aversion: If you eat some junk food outside and fall sick. Then, you avoid eating the same food even from a good place. As you associated that food with your sickness.

4. Why was classical conditioning criticized?

Classical conditioning was criticized because it ignores biological predispositions, lacks explanatory power of cognitive concepts, is questionable to ecological validity, ignores ethical concerns and is a deterministic theory.