Understanding the basic principals of classical conditioning can be aided by considering a sample scenario:
A young boy owns a pet guinea pig named Fred. He stores the guinea pig's food in a cabinet with loose hinges, causing a banging sound when the cabinet door swings closed. Each morning, the boy retrieves the guinea pig's food from the cabinet and its door bangs when it closes. The boy soon notices that the guinea pig squeals excitedly whenever the cabinet door bangs shut, whether or not the boy was retrieving the guinea pig food. Fred has formed an association between receiving food and the banging of the cabinet door.
Critical to the consideration of classical conditioning is that it deals solely with the formation of associations, and not with the concepts of reward or punishment. Our understanding of this process was first outlined in the first decade of the 20th century by the Russian scientist Ivan Pavlov, who conducted experiments in forming associations between a dog, it's food, and the ringing of a bell. Whenever the dog received food, Pavlov rang a bell. Naturally, the dog salivated upon seeing the food. After a time, Pavlov observed that the dog began to salivate whenever the bell was rung, even though it was not presented with any food. Over the course of the experiment, the dog had come to associate the bell with receiving food. The dog's salivation upon hearing the bell is known as a conditioned response, or a response that only exists as a result of the formation of an association though the conditioning process.
The conditioned response was formed from a combination of unconditioned response (the dog's salivation upon seeing food) and a specific stimulus (the ringing of the bell).
Classical conditioning is not just an experiment to read about; examples can be seen in popular culture. In many cases, an advertisement will attempt to associate its product with an image or person that brings to mind feelings of contentment. For instance, a company that sells hot chocolate mix may create an advertisement featuring a happy family gathered in front of a fireplace on a wintry evening. The company that makes the hot chocolate mix wants shoppers to associate their product with cozy evenings spent with loved ones.
Aversions to certain foods can be connected to classical conditioning. For example, imagine a person who all throughout childhood was forced to pay visits to an overbearing aunt. This aunt was loud and often critical of the child. Every time the child visited the relative, the child was forced to eat the scrambled egg recipe she prepared. As an adult, the individual can not stand to eat scrambled eggs simply because of the association between them and the awful childhood visits. A plate of perfectly delicious scrambled eggs holds no appeal for this person due to a childhood experience.
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