Classical Conditioning Is the First Term Paper

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The dogs had learned to associate the bell tone with food. The results of Pavlov's experiment indicate that responses to certain stimuli are learned, and that we make connections which can cause responses from a naturally occurring stimulus to be elicited by a neutral stimulus. In the above example, the food is the unconditioned stimulus, and the unconditioned response is salivating to the food, because food naturally results in salivating. A ringing bell does not naturally cause dogs to salivate, therefore before conditioning; the bell is the neutral stimulus. However, when the dog learns to associate the bell with food, the bell becomes the conditioned stimulus, and salivating to the bell is the conditioned response. This is called a conditioned relationship.

K-mart shoppers and the blue light special is a good example of classical conditioning in people. Shoppers will naturally buy sale items because they are sold at a lower price, and shoppers are getting more for their money. Many times, shoppers will purchase items on sale, which they wouldn't otherwise purchase because they have learned that they are buying something at a cheaper price, and getting a good deal. This results in shoppers feeling good about spending their money, and associating the good feeling with a sale.

Presenting a flashing blue light along with a sale is a way of conditioning shoppers to associate the blue light with buying something and feeling good. Essentially, needing an item is an unconditioned stimulus, and buying the item is an unconditioned response.

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We need something, and we buy it. However, when the item is on sale, shoppers feel good about purchasing the item, because they have gotten a "good deal."

K-Mart began announcing sales in their stores by flashing a blue light above the sale item, and announcing the sale over the store loud speakers. Shoppers would flock to the blue light and purchase the sale items. The shoppers would feel good about their purchase because they bought an item on sale. When K-Mart repeatedly presented a flashing blue light along with sale items, shoppers began to associate the good feeling of buying something on sale with the flashing blue light. Therefore, the flashing blue light is initially a neutral stimulus. However, after being paired with the sales many times, the flashing blue light becomes the conditioned stimulus, buying the items that are associated with the flashing blue light becomes the conditioned response. Shoppers are conditioned to buy the items that are associated with the flashing blue light, even though it may not be a good deal at all. In this example the conditioned relationship is the blue light special, and shoppers purchasing the sale items......

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