In the context of classical conditioning, unconditioned stimulus is defined as a stimulus which naturally or automatically triggers a response. On the other hand, an unconditioned response is a natural reaction which is unlearned, for instance, the smell of favorite food and feeling of hunger. In contrast, a conditioned response only takes place after making an association between conditioned stimulus and unconditioned stimulus: the learned response (Cherry, 2017).
The experiment of classical conditioning done by Pavlov was as follows: “A dog is hooked to a mechanism that measures the amount that the dog salivates. A tone is sounded just before a dog is given meat powder. This occurs several times. Eventually, conditioning occurs in that the dog salivates just to the bell alone. Of course, the dog salivates instinctively in response to the food, but “learns” to salivate at the sound of the bell” (Huddle, 2018). In classical conditioning, as explained by Ivan Pavlov, only when an unconditioned stimulus (food) is paired with the ringing of the bell (natural stimulus) causes an unconditioned response, which is the dog’s salivation in anticipation of receiving food. As a result, repeated conditioned stimulus leads to learning (Huddle, 2018). However, the bell only becomes a conditioned stimulus only after the dog learns how to associate food with the sound of the bell and it, therefore, produces the conditioned response which is salivation after repeated pairings between food and bell (David, 2014).
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Considering the case of Kendra, it contradicts the belief that classical conditioning hold. This is because Kendra becomes nauseated with the smell of alcohol (natural stimulus) even though seeing the bottle containing the liquor (unconditioned stimulus) does not upset her (unconditioned response). This indicates that Kendra is associate the liquor smell with becoming nauseated, even though it is the drinking of alcohol that made her sick; thus, she reacts to the smell of liquor without pairing the scent with the bottle containing the alcohol. If Kendra’s case was to apply in the classical conditioning, then the sight of the bottle should become the conditioned response; therefore, she should have reacted from the smell of alcohol after seeing the bottle containing it. As such, this reaction reveals that some humans are biologically inclined to relate some conditioned response (such as nausea in Kendra’s case) with unconditioned response (like the smell of liquor) instead of the conditioned response (like the sight of the bottle). This response is called generalization, where some stimuli that resemble conditioned stimuli provoke the same reaction.
References
Balsam, P. D., Drew, M. R., & Gallistel, C. R. (2010). Time and associative learning. Comparative cognition & behavior reviews .
Cherry, K. (2017). What Is an Unconditioned Stimulus? The role of the unconditioned stimulus in learning. Retrieved April 28, 2018, from https://www.verywellmind.com/what-is-an-unconditioned-stimulus-2796006
David, L. (2014). Classical Conditioning (Pavlov) in Learning Theories. Retrieved April 28, 2018, from https://www.learning-theories.com/classical-conditioning-pavlov.html .
Huddle, J. (2018). What Is Associative Learning in Psychology? Retrieved April 28, 2018, from http://education.seattlepi.com/associative-learning-psychology-5816.html
