6.5 Classical Conditioning and Emotional Response
Classical Conditioning and Its Application to Emotions
Overview of Classical Conditioning
Classical conditioning involves pairing a neutral stimulus with an unconditioned stimulus to evoke a conditioned response.
Example: Pavlov's dogs associating a metronome with food leading to salivation at the sound alone.
Conditioned Emotional Response
John Watson and his graduate student Rosalie Rayner developed the concept of conditioned emotional response.
Focuses on the ability to condition emotions to specific stimuli, similar to Pavlov's work with dogs.
Example: Eliciting fear through association rather than natural reflexes.
Little Albert Experiment
Conducted by Watson and Rayner to demonstrate conditioned emotional response on a human subject:
Little Albert was initially exposed to a white rat and had a neutral emotional response.
Experiment involved pairing the rat with a frightening loud noise using metal rods which induced crying and distress in Little Albert.
After repeated pairings, the rat alone elicited fear in Little Albert, showing the conditioning of the emotional response.
Albert’s reaction extended to other similar stimuli (e.g., a bunny, fuzzy white mask), indicating generalization of the fear response.
Ethical considerations:
The experiment is considered unethical by today’s standards due to lack of informed consent from Albert’s mother and failure to plan for ‘unconditioning’ the fear response.
Little Albert was later whisked away by his mother, and there are questions regarding his emotional well-being post-experiment.
Implications of Conditioned Responses
Conditioning of emotions has been linked to the development of phobias.
Traumatic experiences can lead to lasting emotional responses towards specific objects or events.
Watson's Legacy in Advertising and Marketing
After his academic career, Watson applied behavioral principles to marketing, developing evaluative conditioning:
Evaluative conditioning involves associating positive or negative emotional responses (valence) with a product.
Positive valence: feeling good about a product.
Negative valence: feeling bad about a product.
Marketing strategy shifted from simple product descriptions to evoking emotional responses about a product.
Example: Pebeco toothpaste campaign using attractive women to associate good breath with desirability, influencing purchasing behavior.
Concept of a “coffee break” as a social ritual was popularized through Watson's efforts.
Modern Applications of Evaluative Conditioning
Emotional valence transfers from celebrities to products in advertisements.
Celebrities are used to evoke emotions, with the idea that their positive traits (e.g., charm, attractiveness) transfer to the products they endorse.
Example: Pairing George Clooney with a liquor brand to elicit feelings of charm and desirability in consumers.
Evaluative Conditioning in Political Advertisements
Modern application of evaluative conditioning used in political campaigns:
Attack ads aim to create negative feelings towards political opponents by displaying unflattering images and narratives.
Example: Justin Trudeau portrayed in negative light during his campaigns.
Negative imagery and emotional manipulation can affect public perception and voting behavior.
The Third-Person Effect
Research shows a phenomenon called the third-person effect regarding the influence of conditioning through advertisements:
Individuals believe attack ads will influence others more than themselves, acknowledging their own immunity to such tactics.
This illustrates a lack of awareness regarding how conditioning affects everyone, often outside of conscious recognition.
Conclusion
Understanding classical conditioning, particularly in the realm of emotions and evaluations, is critical in parsing out how external stimuli can influence behavior and decision-making.
Awareness of these conditioning mechanisms allows individuals to separate conditioned responses from their actual values and feelings, especially in voting and consumer behavior.