Conditioning

Explanations > Conditioning

Ivan Pavlov is famed for his experiments with dogs in discovering Classical Conditioning (although it is less known that this was a by-product in his researches into digestion, for which he received a Nobel Prize). As with much historical research, the breadth of his discoveries are often reduced into a few words. This section provides more space to explore some of the more interesting discoveries he made.

• Classical Conditioning: Pavlov's original triggering of responses.
• Operant Conditioning: Reward, punishment and behavior.
• The dog temperaments: four different types of response to stress.
• Four stressors: different methods of causing stress.
• Three stages of breakdown: during which behavior changes.
• Extinction: removal of conditioned or undesirable behaviors.
• Transmarginal Inhibition: When faced with stress the body may shut down.
• Types of Operant Conditioning: The four types of conditioning.

So what?

Whilst realizing that dogs and people are not quite the same, and hence discoveries about the behavior of dogs cannot be directly translated into the human domain, it nevertheless gives many interesting pointers that may well indicate how people may behave under similar conditions.

See also

Classical Conditioning, Operant Conditioning, Conversion techniques, Institutionalization, Dogs and motivation