Classical Conditioning and Phobias

Classical Conditioning and Phobias

Abstract

Classical Conditioning and Phobias are interlinked with each other. A phobia is an illogical and high level of fear which can arise for an object or a situation. In several instances, the phobia in a human has to do with a sense of fear or the sense of getting harmed.

In the research paper given below the problem identified was to understand the concept of classical conditioning thoroughly and provide a good detailed explanation about what Phobias are all about and how could they be classified and categorized.

. Table of Contents



Contents

Abstract3

Introduction5

The Unconditioned Stimulus5

The Unconditioned Response5

The Conditioned Stimulus5

The Conditioned Response6

Discussion6

Problem Statement and Research Question6

Significance of Research Question6

Report of Research Findings7

Symptoms of Phobias7

Types of Phobias7

Social phobias7

Agoraphobia7

Specific phobias8

Connection to Personal & Professional Goals8

Recommendations & Conclusion9

References10

Introduction

Behaviorism is a concept in psychology which is based on the theory that learning takes place when there occur some sort of interactions within the environment. This theory has some other assumptions as well which state that one's surrounding shapes one's behavior , brings about a change in his moods and that internal states of the mind which include feelings, emotions and thoughts cannot explain one's behavior.

Classical conditioning is one of the major aspects of the behavioral learning theory. According to Ivan Pavlov, the Russian physiologist who discovered the theory, classical conditioning is a process of learning which occurs when an environmental stimulus links up with a naturally occurring stimulus. It is imperative to understand that classical conditioning occurs when placing a nonaligned signal prior to a naturally happening reaction. In his classic experiment , Pavloc made use of dogs, here the nonaligned signal was the hum of a tone while the naturally happening reaction was salivating as a food response. By associating both the stimulus the hum of the tone could actually price the salivation response.

In order to learn all about the working of classical conditioning, it is essential to know some of the very basic elements involved in the process( Terry, 2009).

The Unconditioned Stimulus

The unconditioned stimulus refers to a response that gets triggered naturally and automatically without any conditions. Just like if you smell the aroma of your favorite foods anywhere and at anytime you may feel hungry there and then. Here the aroma of food is the unconditioned stimulus.

The Unconditioned Response

The unconditioned response refers to the response which automatically replies back to the unconditioned stimulus. Just like feeling extremely hungry is the unconditioned response to the yummy aroma of food.

The Conditioned Stimulus

The conditioned stimulus is an unaligned stimulus but as it gets into an association with the unconditioned stimulus, then we get the conditioned response. Just like whenever you smell the aroma of your favorite food, you also hear a whistle sound. Though the whistle has nothing to do with the aroma of the food, yet whenever the sound of the whistle will be generated it would lead to the conditioned response. Here, the whistle's sound is supposed to be the conditioned stimulus (Lavond & Steinmetz, 2003).

The Conditioned Response

The conditioned response is the response that has derived through learning ...