Lecture 1

Classical Conditioning Overview

• Classical conditioning, also known as Pavlovian conditioning, was pioneered by Ivan Pavlov.
• The learned response is termed "psychic reflex," later known as the "conditioned response" (CR).
• The process of associating stimuli is referred to as "conditioning."

Key Terminology

• Unconditioned Stimulus (US): A stimulus that naturally elicits a response (e.g., food).
• Unconditioned Response (UR): A natural reaction to the unconditioned stimulus (e.g., salivation to food).
• Conditioned Stimulus (CS): A previously neutral stimulus that, after association, elicits a response (e.g., bell).
• Conditioned Response (CR): The learned response to the conditioned stimulus (e.g., salivation to the bell).

Conditioning Process

• "Stimulus substitution" describes how the brain substitutes the CS for the US without creating new behaviors.
• The CR may differ from the UR despite being a response to the same stimulus.

Second Order Conditioning

• Involves pairing an additional stimulus (CS2) with a previously conditioned stimulus (CS1) to elicit a CR.
• Example: The light (CS2) is presented alongside the bell (CS1) and food (US), leading to a CR when the light is presented alone.

Applications and Implications

• Classical conditioning is often viewed as a study of automatic reflexes but is crucial for understanding learning and behavior.
• It provides insights into how environments impact behaviors through both first-order and higher-order conditioning.
• Useful for analyzing maladaptive behaviors through its experimental applications (associative learning).

Examples of Classical Conditioning

• Appetitive Conditioning:
  • Influences food preferences and place preferences associated with positive encounters.
• Aversive Conditioning:
  • Can lead to conditioned fear responses, anticipatory nausea, conditioned taste aversions, and place avoidance.

Classical Conditioning in Advertising

• Advertising often uses classical conditioning by pairing a brand/product (CS) with positive emotional stimuli (US).
• The audience fails to distinguish the source of positive feelings, misattributing them to the product or brand.

Acquisition and Extinction

• Acquisition Phase:
  • Repeated pairing of CS and US strengthens the CR, shown as increased response levels when the CS is presented.
• Extinction Phase:
  • Presenting the CS alone after acquisition reduces the CR, indicating a decline in response strength over time.

Spontaneous Recovery and Renewal

• Spontaneous recovery can occur after a rest period following extinction, where the CR reappears upon re-exposure to the CS.
• Renewal refers to recovery of the CR when the CS is presented in the original context where conditioning occurred.

Explore the fundamentals of classical conditioning in this lecture. Delve into concepts like second-order conditioning and extinction, along with key terminology introduced by Ivan Pavlov. This quiz will help you strengthen your understanding of Pavlov's groundbreaking experiments and theories.