Often during this stage, the UCS must be associated with the CS on a number of occasions, or trials, for learning to take place. The most important aspect of the conditioning stimulus is the it helps the organism predict the coming of the unconditional stimulus. In some cases, conditioning may take place if the NS occurs after the UCS (backward conditioning), but this normally disappears quite quickly.

Thus, the conditioned stimulus acts as a type of signal or cue for the unconditioned stimulus. Also, perfume (UCS) might be associated with a specific person (CS).įor classical conditioning to be effective, the conditioned stimulus should occur before the unconditioned stimulus, rather than after it, or during the same time. 104).įor example, a stomach virus (UCS) might be associated with eating a certain food such as chocolate (CS). 'Give me a dozen healthy infants, well-formed, and my own specified world to bring them up in and I'll guarantee to take any one at random and train him to become any type of specialist I might select - doctor, lawyer, artist, merchant-chief and, yes, even beggar-man and thief, regardless of his talents, penchants, tendencies, abilities, vocations and the race of his ancestors” (Watson, 1924, p. Watson believed that all individual differences in behavior were due to different experiences of learning. Watson denied completely the existence of the mind or consciousness.

If you pair a neutral stimulus ( NS) with an unconditioned stimulus ( US) that already triggers an unconditioned response ( UR) that neutral stimulus will become a conditioned stimulus ( CS), triggering a conditioned response ( CR) similar to the original unconditioned response.Įverything from speech to emotional responses was simply patterns of stimulus and response.

Ivan pavlov classical conditioning