Classical conditioning is a kind of learning in which an animal’s natural reaction to one purpose or sensory stimulus transfers to another stimulus. One of the two most important forms of conditioning (1) , being the progression of learning (1) through which an initially neutral stimulus (1) , such as the ticking of a metronome, comes to elicit a particular response , such as salivation, as a consequence of being paired repeatedly with an unconditioned stimulus , such as food. In addition called Pavlovian conditioning. Classical conditioning, in which an impulsive or automatic response transfers from one stimulus to another. For example, a person who has had painful experiences at the dentist’s office may become fearful at just the sight of the dentist’s office building. Fear, a natural response to a painful stimulus, has transferred to a different stimulus, the sight of a building. Nearly all psychologists believe that classical conditioning occurs when a person forms a mental association between two stimuli, so that encountering one stimulus makes the person think of the other. People tend to form these mental associations between events or stimuli that occur closely together in space or time. People learn to associate two stimuli that occur in sequence, such as lightning followed by thunder. In operant conditioning, people learn by forming an association between a behavior and its consequences (reward or punishment). People and animals can also learn by observation—that is, by watching others perform behaviors. More complex forms of learning include learning languages, concepts, and motor skills. (CLARKE, J. C., & HAYES, K. (1984)
On the whole, the findings support the initiative that we develop responses to certain stimuli that are not naturally happening. When we feel a hot stove, our response pulls our hand back. It does this instinctually, no learning involved..................
