Classical conditioning is also referred to as the Pavlonian conditioning. Ivan Pavlov first discovered the procedure in the onset of the 20th century. Ivan was concerned mainly in the determination of the functioning of the nervous system in the process of digestion (Borg et al., 2016). In his research, Pavlov discovered that dogs would be adapted to being fed at a particular time when exposed to various stimuli. Thus, this showed that new reflexes could be formed in the nervous system of a dog due to the experiences. Various elements of classical conditioning exist. The first element of the procedure is the unconditioned stimulus that usually elicits a response. The second experiment is the unconditioned response is a retort to the unconditioned stimulus that every experimenter measures. In Pavlov’s experiments, he differentiated between the two examples of unconditioned stimulus that include the alimentary reflex and the defensive reflex. The alimentary reflex as thick mucus giving the alimentary canal a lubricator that leads to mastication and the swallowing of food. On the contrary, the defensive salivation is quite thin and helps in the diluting of the irritant.
The other element of classical conditioning is the neutral stimulus that requires no response eliciting to be conditioned. One good example of the neutral stimulus is the salivation process. Besides that, the conditioned stimulus is another element of the Pavlonian conditioning, which is a neutral stimulus after a response eliciting (Borg et al., 2016). Lastly, the conditioned response is an example of a retort that is accustomed to the conditioned stimulus. One life experience of classical conditioning is the fact that when I was a little child, I did not fear dogs but after I saw them barking and fiercely attacking another person, I would always run after seen a dog. Prior to the barking, the dog was a neutral stimulus while the barking was an unconditioned stimulus hence evoking the response of fear.
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The operant conditioning is also known as the instrumental conditioning, which is a process of learning that takes place through the processes of reinforcement and punishment. In the operant conditioning, a link exists between a behavior and its consequence as well (Abramson, Dinges, & Wells, 2016). One example of the operant conditioning is in the case of a laboratory rat, when it presses the blue button it receives food, which is a rewards. However, when the rat pushes the red button, it gets electrocuted. Therefore, the rat would learn and get adapted to pressing the blue button instead of the red one.
The main elements in the operant conditioning include the reinforcement and punishment processes. The term reinforcement refers to the event that tends to strengthen and increase a behavior that follows. Various kinds of re-inforcers include the positive and the negative re-inforcers. The positive re-inforcers are the favorable events and results presented after a particular behavior. On the contrary, the negative re-inforcers is the removal of the unfavorable events that lead to the displaying of a negative behavior (Abramson, Dinges, & Wells, 2016). Besides that, punishment is the introduction of an adverse outcome or event that leads to the deterioration of a behavior. Two examples of punishment exist that include the positive and the negative punishment. The positive punishment presents unfavorable outcomes to weaken a particular response. On the other hand, negative punishment is conducted in the case whereby a favorable event is removed due to the occurrence of a particular behavior. In both the cases of punishment, a behavior decreases while in the reinforcement processes, a behavior increases. Some of the life examples of operant conditioning includes an instance when a teacher tells a student that they cannot go for recess is they insist on the interruption of a class. Further, another example includes a case when a parent tells a child to be at home before the curfew time.
References
Abramson, C. I., Dinges, C. W., & Wells, H. (2016). Operant Conditioning in Honey Bees (Apis mellifera L.): The Cap Pushing Response. Plos ONE , 11 (9), 1-18. doi:10.1371/journal.pone.0162347
Borg, C., Bosman, R. C., Engelhard, I., Olatunji, B. O., & de Jong, P. J. (2016). Is disgust sensitive to classical conditioning as indexed by facial electromyography and behavioural responses?. Cognition & Emotion , 30 (4), 669-686. doi:10.1080/02699931.2015.1022512
