Ivan Pavlov

Who is he and what did he do?

He was a Russian physiologist and was the first person to study classical conditioning.

How did he come across it (classical conditioning)?

He was studying the digestive systems of dogs, and encountered a problem that was ruining his results; the dogs started salivating when they saw the scientists appear, regardless of whether or not they had food. He discovered that they associated the presence of a researcher with food, and so whenever the researcher appeared, the dogs began to salivate.

What is classical conditioning (simple terms)?

Learning through association.

What did he show through his experiment?

That dogs could be conditioned to salivate at the sound of a bell if the sound was repeatedly presented at the same time they were given food.

What was the unconditioned stimulus?

The food.

What was the unconditioned response?

Salivation.

What was the Neutral Stimulus?

The sound of the bell.

What eventually happened when the dogs heard the bell and weren’t given food?

They salivated.

What became the conditioned stimulus?

The sound of the bell.

What became the conditioned response?

Salivation.