Respondent Conditioning
Also called: classical conditioning, Pavlovian conditioning, reflexive conditioning
Definition
Learning in which a neutral stimulus comes to elicit a reflex response after being paired with a stimulus that already elicits it. The response is elicited by what comes before it, not maintained by what follows, and the learner does nothing to produce it. Respondent extinction occurs when the conditioned stimulus is presented repeatedly without the pairing.
In plain language
Learning by pairing. A signal that used to mean nothing starts to trigger a reflex, like flinching or salivating, because it kept showing up with the real trigger.
Example
After several painful shots, the sight of the clinic doorway alone makes a child's heart race.
Not respondent conditioning
A child learns to ask for a snack because asking has produced snacks. The behavior is shaped by its consequence, which makes it operant.
Commonly confused with
See also
Written from
- skinner-1953
Written from Skinner (1953) on the respondent–operant distinction. No textbook glossary consulted.
This entry has not yet been through clinical review. Treat it as a draft.