Classical Conditioning

Classical conditioning is perhaps one of the most basic psychological theories on learning . Developed by Pavlov in his experiment with dogs and certain animals , this theory of learning is founded upon associative learning . The basic theory is that the presentation of certain stimuli can be used to elicit fixed reactions that the mind has been conditioned to . Overt behavioral responses can be triggered by the presentation or exposure to certain stimuli that the mind has been condition to . This is what is commonly referred to as conditioned stimulus which also led to

the discovery of unconditioned stimulus (US ) and unconditioned response (UR . The pairing of the unconditioned stimulus with the conditioned stimulus creates a pattern that is the behavioral response to the conditioned stimulus and thus creating the condition response

In the experiment of Pavlov , he used the salivating of dogs as the unconditioned response to the food that was about to be served . He eventually realized that the dogs began to associate the appearance of the lab technician with food . Using this as his theory , he then developed an experiment wherein the paired his unconditioned stimuli with a conditioned stimuli to form a new conditioned response . In doing this , he used a metronome whenever the food was served . Over time , the dogs began to associate this with the serving of food . As such , the dogs would begin to salivate upon hearing the metronome , such being the conditioned reflex (response ) that Pavlov was able to elicit from the dogs

Using...