Classical Conditioning & Code Blue Alarm

Unconditioned Stimulus:

a  medical emergency requiring CPR - this naturally triggers a strong response in most healthcare staff 

Unconditioned Response:

• The automatic reaction,  urgency, adrenaline, rushing to help, and alertness.

• You didn’t have to learn this, it's instinctive once you understand the gravity of the situation.

Neutral Stimulus (NS):

• The “Code Blue” alarm itself is actually just an alarm usually with bells 

• To someone outside healthcare, it’s just meaningless noise, the noise itself is not meant to cause a reaction to anyone outside of the staff out of curiosity to the other residents and visitors 

Conditioned Stimulus (CS):

• After repeated pairings of the Code Blue alarm with actual emergencies, the alarm becomes meaningful 

• I've learned that this sound signals a life-or-death situation, and cause for an immediate action

Conditioned Response (CR):

• Now, when I hear “Code Blue,” I immediately feel urgency and prepare to act even before knowing the details, even outside of a medical setting

• The sound alone triggers my trained response.

Unconditioned Stimulus:

natural trigger

Unconditioned Response:

natural reaction

Conditioned Response

learned reaction

Condition Stimulus 

learned trigger