Classical Conditioning
PHASES OF LEARNING!
PHASES OF LEARNING: ACQUISITION PHASE
Consists of repeated trials in which the CS and
US are paired and the CR gradually develops
 Most efficient conditioning occurs when:

 CS
slightly precedes US
 CS comes to serve as a cue for the US
 (example: flicker lights just before saying “class, we
are going to have a pop quiz today”)
 HOWEVER, conditioning will still occur if the two
stimuli are presented simultaneously.
PHASES OF LEARNING: THE EXTINCTION PHASE

Presentation of the US is discontinued
 Immediately
following discontinuation of the US the
CR will still occur, but will eventually stop.
 After the CR stops, the behavior is considered
extinct.
 Example: If I condition you into thinking that
flickering the lights means we will have a pop quiz
and then I never give you the pop quiz, you will start
to disassociate the meaning.
PHASES OF LEARNING SPONTANEOUS RECOVERY
The spontaneous return of a conditioned
response followed by extinction.
 Example: All summer long, you do not operate
under a school bell schedule, but immediately
after your arrival back to SAHS, you remember
what to do when the bell rings!

PHASES OF LEARNING: RECONDITIONING
The process of relearning a conditioned
response following extinction—only one or two
pairings are needed.
 Similar to spontaneous recovery, but the
learning process is needed, just for a short
period of time. (Maybe upon arriving back to
SAHS, you need the entire day to remind you
what the bell schedule is all about).

STIMULUS GENERALIZATION
The transfer of a learned response to a
different, but similar stimuli
 Example:

 CS=
large black dog
 CR= fear
 Stimulus Generalization: Fear of small black dog or
large spotted dog or medium sized brown dog (aka
all dogs scare you!)
STIMULUS DISCRIMINATION
Learning to respond to one stimulus and to
inhibit the response to all other stimuli.
 Example:

 CS=
large black dog
 CR= Fear
 Stimulus Discrimination= No fear of a small brown
dog or large white dog (etc). Only large black dogs
scare you!
TASTE AVERSION: THE GARCIA EFFECT
The conditioned avoidance of “poisonous” foods
 Even if there has been a long interval between
eating the food and becoming ill
 Or even if there is only one pairing
 Examples from your life experiences?

PHOBIAS
Intense irrational fear of a particular thing
 Can lead to panic attacks
 You have no reasonable explanation as to why
you are afraid of this given thing.
 Examples?

DESENSITIZATION THERAPY
Conditioning technique to gradually reduce
anxiety of a particular object or situation
 Example: Peter’s fear of rabbits
 Usually the therapy gradually exposes you to
your fear until you learn there is no harm.
