Conditioning Theories

Conditioning Theories Author’s Name Institutional Affiliation Course Code and Name Professor’s Name Date Conditioning Theories Theories of Ivan Pavlov, Bandura, Skinner, and John Watson The concept of classical conditioning influencing learning and behavior was first introduced by Ivan Pavlov (1849–1936) through his experiments with animals. Through his experiments, the ideas and concepts of conditioning influencing learning were the conclusions that significantly influenced Watson and provided a scientific platform to advance his theory (Austin, 2022). Using the dogs in his experiments, Pavlov was able to effectively deduce that they were naturally salivating in the presence of food. The unconditioned response of saliva displayed by the animal in the presence of food or an unconditioned stimulus was observable since the response is innate (Austin, 2022). For the sake of experimentation, Pavlov used a metronome sound every time he was serving and feeding dogs food. Eventually, the dogs started to drool every time they heard the sound in anticipation of food, even when food was not presented to them. Pavlov deduced from the experiments that salivation is a conditioned behavior and the sound from the metronome was a conditioned stimulus (Austin, 2022). By using the principles of classical conditioning, Watson is effectively able to study the emotions of animals and humans. Pavlov’s experiments and conclusions provided Watson with a platform that informed and influenced his work. Based on Watson’s work, human behavior like animal behavior, comes from conditioned responses. Similarly, B.F. Skinner was the developer of operant condition...