Classical Conditioning - Foundations

Basic Psychological Processes II
Classical conditioning: Foundations
Marcos Díaz-Lago
marcos.diaz@deusto.es
What is going on here?
2
What is going on here?
▪ Stimulus
▪ Response
3
What are we going to see?
➢ Pavlov’s experiment
➢ Experimental situations in Pavlovian conditioning
➢ Procedures
o Excitatory conditioning
o Inhibitory conditioning
▪ Summation test
▪ Retardation-of-Acquisition test
➢ Extinction of Pavlovian conditioning
o Extinction phenomena
4
o Implications in drug conditioning
What are we going to see?
• Habituation and sensitisation are two simple

ways of learning. But they do not allow you to
do things like:
– Learning new behaviours.
– Learning to respond to new stimuli.
– Learning relationships between stimuli.
– Learning to predict stimuli.
• Classical or Pavlovian learning (by Ivan P.

Pavlov) does allow you to do all these things.
It is also called classical or Pavlovian
conditioning. 5
Pavlov’s dog
Pavlov's dog
6
Pavlov’s dog
Ivan P. Pavlov studied the salivation response (involuntary

reflex) in dogs. While conducting it, he observed salivation:
▪ In the presence of food
o Stimulus that, biologically, triggers the salivation response
▪ …But, sometimes, when the food was not in sight

o Any stimulus that is present at the time of feeding is capable of producing
salivation on its own, without the presence of food
7
Pavlov’s dog
At that time, this was quite a discovery, because reflexes were

supposedly be automatic responses produced by particular
stimulus. Therefore:
▪ Unconditioned Stimulus (US)
o A biologically relevant stimulus that, without prior training, produces a
response (a reflex).
▪ Unconditioned Response (UR)

o The one that appears after presenting the US, without the need for learning
(innate).
8
Pavlov’s dog
US: food UR: salivation
9
Pavlov’s dog
But according to Pavlov’s discovery there are reflexes that can

be performed in response to a stimulus after prior learning
(experience, training with that stimulus):
▪ Conditioned Stimulus (CS)
o A neutral stimulus that did not initially produce a response, but through
association would be capable of producing a response by itself.
▪ Conditioned Response (CR)

o A response elicited by the CS after it has been associated with the US. It is
similar to the UR, but triggered by the CS instead of the US.
10
Pavlov’s dog
Neutral Stimulus: sound No salivation response
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Pavlov’s dog
Neutral Stimulus + US: food UR: salivation

12
Jim’s Dwight
13
Jim’s Dwight
14
Jim’s Dwight
15
Pavlov’s dog
▪ We call each paring a “trial”.
▪ After many pairings between the initially neutral stimulus (CS, e.g.
sound) and the biologically relevant stimulus (US, e.g. mint), we
present a trial only with the CS:
o Why only the CS?
o Test trial
16
Pavlov’s dog
Pavlov's dog
CS: sound CR: salivation
17
Pavlov’s dog
Pavlov's dog
• Reasoning: Why do we need a test trial (only CS without US)?
18
The learning curve
The learning curve
Learning is gradual: It
does not happen
suddenly but follows
Saliva droplets (CR) in test an acquisition curve.
The more responses
(saliva droplets) the
dog produces to the
CS in test trials, the
more it has learned
(the more
conditioned it is).
trials
Training Trials (CS-US Pairings)

19
Types of associations in Pavlovian conditioning
Types of association in Pavlovian conditioning
• Stimulus-Estimulus (S-S).
CS CR
US UR
20
• Stimulus-Stimulus (S-S).
• Stimulus-Response (S-R).
CS
UR/C
US
R
21
• How do you know which one? US
devaluation.
CS CR
US U
R
• Normally the association is S-S.

22
Experimental Situations in Pavlovian
Conditioning
Fear conditioning
Fear conditioning
• Watson and Rayner Experiment (1920) ("Little Albert")
24
Fear conditioning
Fear conditioning
At first, Albert is not afraid of the rat

(Neutral Stimulus).
Loud noises do frighten him
(Unconditioned Stimulus).
25
Fear conditioning
Fear conditioning
Noise + rat pairing: followed by startle

reaction.
26
Fear conditioning
Fear conditioning
After many "noise + rat" pairings, it is now

sufficient to present the rat to produce the
startle: Conditioned Stimulus - Conditioned
Response.
27
Fear conditioning
Fear conditioning
Generalisation of CR to other stimuli not

previously presented.
28
Fear conditioning
Fear conditioning
• In reality, the experimenter has induced a phobia. This shows
that phobias are the product of learning.
• If phobias can be learned, they can be learned out: Mary Cover
Jones.
• Today, learning-based therapies are successfully used to treat
anxiety disorders and phobias.
29
Fear conditioning
Fear conditioning
• What does it bring to fear therapy?
– Systematic desensitisation (Wolpe)
30
Fear conditioning
Fear conditioning
• Ethical commentary on the Little Albert experiment.
31
Fear conditioning
Fear conditioning
• Ethical commentary on the Little Albert experiment.
• Watson versus eugenics and genetic determinism: there are no

"missing cases".
If we teach him to love the
books, the illiterate will be a scholar.
32
Fear conditioning
Fear conditioning
• Study of fear conditioning with animal models.
Estimulo apetitivo
UR (fear)
CS Problem: How do we
(light) measure the "fear
Aversive US (Discharge) response"?
33
Fear conditioning
Fear conditioning
• Rats become very quiet when they detect danger ("freezing").
• How do we measure "how still" they are?
• Conditioned suppression procedure.
34
Fear conditioning
Fear conditioning
• Step 1 (pre-training): We teach the rat to continuously perform
a behaviour (e.g., pressing a lever). Es condicionamiento instrumental.
Si tenemos dudad de (condicionamiento clásico

reflejo)o condicionamiento instrumental)
Time El Condicionamiento Instrumental es un

tipo de aprendizaje por condicionamiento,
en el que, a diferencia del
condicionamiento clásico, las personas
aprenden a relacionar o asociar una
conducta con sus consecuencias.
Lever pressed
35
Fear conditioning
Fear conditioning
• Step 2 (training): An CS (light) is presented before an aversive
US (shock), triggering an UR (she stands still in fear and stops
pressing the lever). Palanca
UR (fear)
CS
(light)
Aversive US (Discharge)
36
Fear conditioning
Fear conditioning
• Step 3 (Test): No US is presented, and we will see how much
fear the CS produces on its own.
• If the rat is afraid, it will stand still and therefore stop doing
what it was doing at the time (pressing the lever). It will
suppress that lever-pressing response (Suppression).
• How can this suppression be quantified?
37
Fear conditioning
Fear conditioning
• Step 4: Quantify the suppression. Encendiendo la luz podemos ver cuantas veces le da a la palanca cuan cuando
esta encendida la luz. Con esto podemos comparar cuantos veces le da en un
mismo tiempo de duración en comparación, de cuando la luz esta apagada
Time
CS (light)
We count the
3 sec.
number of lever Para que haya miedo la
rata tiene que responder
presses before the menos.
CS occurs (interval
B) and during the CS
(interval A).
B. Pre-CS time A. Time interval
interval during CS 3 sec.
3 sec.
cuanto mas este cerca del cero - resouesta
aqui > 0,5
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si se acerca a 0,5 o 1 es que le tiene miedo
Fear conditioning
Fear conditioning
• If the rat is frightened by the CS, then it will give fewer pulses
during the CS than before the CS.
• Suppression ratio:
𝑅𝑒𝑠𝑝𝑜𝑛𝑠𝑒𝑠 𝑑𝑢𝑟𝑖𝑛𝑔 𝐶𝑆
𝑅𝑒𝑠𝑝𝑜𝑛𝑠𝑒𝑠 𝑑𝑢𝑟𝑖𝑛𝑔 𝐶𝑆 + 𝑅𝑒𝑠𝑝𝑜𝑛𝑠𝑒𝑠 𝑏𝑒𝑓𝑜𝑟𝑒 𝐶𝑆
39
Fear conditioning
Fear conditioning
• Let’s calculate an example: si es 0,5 es que esta respondiendo de igual forma
cuándo esta la luz que cuando no estas.
Avanzamos en el tiempo es esta linea discontinua.
Time
•Responses DURING
CS (light) CS:
3 sec.
•Responses BEFORE
CS:
•Suppression ratio:
6/(6+6) = 0.5
3 sec.
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Fear conditioning
Fear conditioning
• We calculate an example:
Time
•Responses DURING
CS (light) CS:
3 sec.
•Responses BEFORE
CS:
•Suppression Ratio:
3/(3+6) = 0.33
3 sec. ratio
Hay miedo porque hay menos respuestas cuando la luz esta
encendida 41
Fear conditioning
Fear conditioning
• We calculate an example:
Time
•Responses DURING
CS (light) CS:
3 sec.
•Responses BEFORE
CS:
•Suppression ratio:
0/(0+6) = 0
3 sec.
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Fear conditioning
Fear conditioning
• Be careful with the suppression ratio!
1.It takes values between 0 and 1. porque lo divides del total de respuestas.
2.Different values have different interpretations. We will look at

examples...
3.Look at the vertical axis!
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Fear conditioning
Fear conditioning
• Who is afraid, Rat 1 or Rat 2? TEL ME WHICH RAT HAS MORE FEWER
CAE EN EL EXAMEN
Razón de Supresión
0,6
Razón de supresión
0,5
0,4
0,3
0,2
0,1
0
Rata 1 Rata 2
LA RATA UNO TIENE MENOS MIEDO PORQUE EL SUPRESIÓN RATE ES MÁS BAJO.
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Fear conditioning
Fear conditioning
• Who is afraid, Rat 1 or Rat 2?
Razón de Supresión Suppression ratio:

0,6
values close to 0
0,5 indicate fear

0,4 (suppression of
0,3
behaviour).
Values close to 0.5
0,2
indicate that the
0,1 behaviour is not
0 altered.
Rata 1 Rata 2
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Fear conditioning
Fear conditioning
0,9
0,8
0,7
0,6
0,5
0,4
0,3
0,2
0,1
0
Rata 1 Rata 3
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Fear conditioning
Fear conditioning
Razón de Supresión Suppression ratio:

0,9
Values greater than 0.5
0,8
0,7
(rare) indicate that the
0,6 animal suppresses the
0,5 behaviour more when
0,4 CS is not present than
0,3
when it is present. CS is
0,2
0,1
a safety cue that
0 inhibits fear (inhibitory
Rata 1 Rata 3 learning).
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Fear conditioning
Fear conditioning
• Warning: Conditioned response (CR) is ALWAYS the measure of
conditioning. The more CR, the more conditioning.
• Sometimes the animal that makes the fewest lever presses is

the one that has learned the most (either because it has had
inhibitory training and so we measure inhibition, or because
we use the conditioned suppression procedure and so measure
suppression). Be careful!
48
Fear conditioning
Fear conditioning
• Two more examples of how to read these graphs...
• Which rat has learned the most?
49
Fear conditioning
Fear conditioning
1,5
1,25
0,75
0,5
0,25
0
Rata 1 Rata 2 Rata 3 Rata 4
50
Fear conditioning
Fear conditioning
Rat 4: Someone has messed up
Rat 1: conditioned
1,5 fear Rat 3: For this rat, CS is a safety the data! (reason for deletion >
(suppression ratio < 0.5) signal or fear-inhibiting stimulus 1)
1,25 (suppression ratio > 0.5).
0,75
Rat 2: No fear (suppression ratio
= 0.5) 0,5
0,25
0
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Fear conditioning
Fear conditioning
Look at the vertical axis!
It is not suppression ratio.
1,5
Número de pulsaciones
1,25
0,75
0,5
0,25
0
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Fear conditioning
Fear conditioning
• Video: Suppression ratio
– http://youtube.com/watch?v=ZlZekx1P1g4
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Eyeblink conditioning
• It is based on the eyelid reflex: when suddenly stimulated close
to the eye, the eyelid closes.
• CS = A sound, a word...
• US = A brief draught of air in the eye.
• UR/CR = Blink. Measured with a very precise device
(electromyography).
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Experimental: CS-US trials
Control: Random CS/US
trials.
Procedure Test Result

MAYUSCULAS POQUEE SE
Experimental Group 6 CS-US CS? CR ESPERA QUE LA RESPUESTA VA
A SER MAS GRANDE
2 grupos Control Group 6 CS / US CS? cr
puede ser diferente
conditional estimulus Uncoditional estimulous
In the test we expect more

CR in the experimental group
than in the control group.
Ivkovich, Collins, Eckerman, Krasnegor and Stanton (1999) 55

Blocks of 6 trials (+ 1
90 test) in 2 sessions.
Porcentaje de ensayos con RC

80
70
60
50 Experimental
40 Control Cuanto más alto, mas
respuesta condicionada
30
20
10
0 Control group does
Bloque 1
Bloque 2
Bloque 3
Bloque 4
Bloque 5
Bloque 6
Bloque 7
Bloque 8
Bloque 9
Bloque 10
not learn to blink
(CR) in presence of
Sesión 1 Sesión 2
CS (sound)
Ivkovich, Collins, Eckerman, Krasnegor and Stanton (1999) 56

• The real usefulness of eyeblink conditioning: the neural circuits involved
in this reflex are well known. It is therefore useful for studying the
neurological basis of classical conditioning.
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• Example of a study with eyeblink conditioning: Attention
processes in schizophrenia. Tienen un problema de atención muy bestia, no pueden filtrar estimulos irrelevantes.
• Importance of tuning out irrelevant stimuli in order to learn.
• Latent inhibition.
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Sign tracking
Sign Tracking
• Also called “autoshaping".
• Spontaneous occurrence of approach responses to CS that are
unnecessary for US to occur.
• Video: http://youtube.com/watch?v=cacwAvgg8EA
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Sign tracking
Sign Tracking
Feeder (Food =
US)
Light (CS)
The feeder opens
for a few seconds
60
Sign tracking
Sign Tracking
The pigeon pecks at the CS
and misses the opportunity
to reach the feeder in time.
61
Taste-aversion learning
Taste-aversion Learning
• Our preferences (and aversions) for certain foods can also arise
through classical conditioning.
62
Taste-aversion Learning
Do you feel like eating spicy chicken

again?
63
• Experimental procedure
The rat is free to choose

between drinking plain
H2O water and sweet-tasting
water. We observe that it
spends more time drinking
H2O
the sweet water. The rat
+ prefers the sweet water
Saccharin to the pure water.
64
We let the rat drink sweet-tasting water (CS).

Then, we inject a LiCl (Lithium Chloride)
Experimental Group solution that causes harmless gastric distress
(US).
CS
H2O US
+
Saccharin Discomfort
LiCl
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In the Control Group, the rat drinks sugar

Control Group water but does not receive an injection that
causes discomfort.
CS
H2O
+
Saccharin
Saline
66
Test Trial Run
H2O H2O
H2O H2O
+ +
Saccharin Saccharin
Experimental Group Control Group
67
Cantidad de Agua azucarada

consumida (ml)
70
60
50
H2O
40
+
Saccharin 30
20
10
0
Grupo Experimental Grupo Control
68
• A special kind of learning:
– It happens with very few training trials, or even with just one trial!
– It happens even if there is a long time (a few hours) between the CS
and the US.
– It happens even if the person rationally knows that there is no
relationship between the food and the discomfort (it is a conditioning
that occurs irrationally).
– Only occurs with specific USs (discomfort, vomiting).
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• Why does it have these special characteristics? Because it is
adaptive:
– Quickly acquired: natural means to avoid poisons ("you only get
poisoned once").
– Long CS-US interval: because only foods that have already been
digested are to be feared.
– Only occurs with USs such as vomiting or dizziness, not with
"external" stimuli: CS-US relevance.
70
Taste-aversion
Taste aversion
• Taste aversion in chemotherapy patients - what to do?
– Varied meals
– “Exotic" foods
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Taste-aversion
Taste aversion
• Difficult to acquire taste aversion with some foods that we eat
very often (e.g. bread).
– Reason: "latent inhibition" (we will see).
72
Procedures: Excitatory conditioning
Excitatory vs. Inhibitory learning
Excitatory vs. inhibitory conditioning
• Excitatory conditioning:
– A stimulus followed by the presence of another stimulus
• Inhibitory conditioning:
– A stimulus followed by the absence of another stimulus
74
Types of excitatory conditioning
• Delay conditioning
• Trace conditioning
• Simultaneous conditioning
• Backward conditioning
75
• Delay conditioning
Time
CS (light) The stimuli overlap in

time.
US (food)
Inter-stimulus
interval: onset of CS
- onset of US
76
• Trace conditioning
Time
There is a gap
between CS and US
CS (light) ("footprint
interval")
US (food) The longer the
interval, the worse
the conditioning.
77
• Simultaneous conditioning
Time
CS (light) The stimuli start at

the same time.
(Inter-stimulus
US (food)
interval = 0)
It's malfunctioning!
Do you think this is a good or a bad
method of conditioning?
78
• Backward conditioning
Time
CS (light) The US comes before

the CS.
US (food) It usually produces

bad (or even
inhibitory)
conditioning.
79
Excitatory conditioning
Excitatory conditioning
• How can excitatory conditioning be demonstrated?
– We present a test trial (CS followed by nothing)
– We measure the CR: magnitude, frequency, latency...
80
Controls in excitatory conditioning
Group Acquisition Test trial

Experimental Group CS-> US CS?
No control group - -
What conclusions can we draw if we do not have a control

group?
What if there is CR without learning?

Ex: Pseudo-conditioning. Simply repeating a stimulus is
enough to change behaviour (habituation/sensitization).
81
Group Procurement Test trial

Experimental Group CS-> US CS?
Randomised Control CS/US CS?
Group
Random control: CS and US are presented

at random intervals. Sometimes they
coincide by chance, but not systematically.
Prediction: The Control Group cannot learn
any CS-US relationship.
82
Procedures: Inhibitory conditioning
Inhibitory conditioning
Conditioned inhibition
• An CS indicates the absence of US.
• Various procedures to achieve this:
– Standard procedure for conditioned inhibition.
– Differential inhibition.
– Explicit mismatching.
– Backward conditioning.
84
• What is the point of learning to predict the absence of
something?
Example: Panic attacks.

After one episode,
people relax (they
know it will be a while
before they have
another one).
85
• Difficulty for one stimulus to signal the absence of another: the
second must occur at some other times (if it never occurs,
nothing is learned).
86
• 1. Standard procedure for conditioned inhibition.
– It employs two CSs: CS+ and CS-.
– First: CS+ is followed by US.
– After: The compound CS+CS- is not followed by US.
– One eventually learns that CS- “means" the absence of US.
87
• Standard procedure of conditioned inhibition.
88
(Now with the characters we like)
Nelson (CS+) is
bothering Ralph
(US)
89
If Ms Krabappel
(CS-) is present:
Nelson (CS+) does
not bother Ralph
(no US).
90
Eventually, Ralph
learns that Miss
Krabbapel (CS-)
means the
absence of US. In
other words, it is
an inhibitory CS.
91
• 2. Differential inhibition procedure
– It employs two ECs: CS+ and CS-.
– The CS+ is followed by the US.
– CS- is never followed by US.
– One eventually learns that CS- “means" the absence of US.
92
• 3. Explicit mismatching inhibition procedure
– Only use one CS.
– CS occurs in a way that correlates negatively with US: US is more
likely to occur when the CS is absent than when it is present.
93
• Explicit mismatching inhibition procedure
Time
...
US can occur at any time except just after CS. CS

becomes a sign of the absence of US (i.e.
inhibitory CS).
94
• 4. Procedure of inhibition by backward conditioning.
– The CS-US correlation is positive, but the order is the reverse of the
usual one (in this case, US-CS).
– The animal learns that the CS signals that the US will not appear for a
while.
95
• Backward conditioning inhibition procedure
Time
... ...
96
• How to demonstrate conditioned inhibition?
• Inhibition of a behaviour = not performing that behaviour
("behavioural silence").
• Hint: imagine that the inhibitory stimulus produces a "negative"
response.
• Direct measurement: bidirectional systems

• Indirect measurement:
– Compound-stimulus or Summation test
– Retardation-of-Acquisition test
97
Inhibition: Inhibitory conditioning
what is it and how to measure it?
Initial situation: "no learning".

Inhibition: Inhibitory conditioning
what is it and how to measure it?
"ON"
"OFF"
Inhibition: What is it and how to measure
Inhibition: what is it and how to measure it? it?
100 Excitatory:
“Positive” response (directly visible)
Non-learning:
No Response
0
Inhibitory:
-100 “Negative" response (NOT directly visible)
100
-100
100
?
-100
100
?
-100
Inhibition: What is it and how
Conditioned inhibitionto measure it?
• Bidirectional response systems

– They have a "baseline" and from there they can go up or down (two
directions).
– Example: physiological responses such as heart rate.
104
• Most of the time we can only measure it indirectly:
Summation Test and Retardation-of-Acquisition Test.
• Inhibitory response = "negative" response.
Summation test
Inhibition:Conditioned
How to measure it? Summation
inhibition test
• Summation test.
– CS- is a trained inhibitory stimulus.
– CS+ is a trained excitatory stimulus.
– If we present both CS- and CS+, the response will be lower than if we
present only CS+, as CS- is inhibitory.
107
Inhibition: How to measure it?
Summation Test Summation test
CS-
CS+
As CS- is inhibitory, it
100 produces a "negative
response", so the CR to the
compound is 100+(-100)=0.
CS+
CS+ and CS-

0
CS- If the CS- were not inhibitory

(if it had not been learned),
then the CR to the compound
-100 would be 100+0=100.
• Summation test.
If Ms. Krabappel is
an inhibitory CS,
then Ralph will be
less afraid of
Nelson when she is
watching than
when Nelson is
alone.
110
Retardation-of-Acquisition test
Inhibition: How toConditioned
measure it? Retardation-of-acquisition
inhibition test
• Retardation-of-Acquisition test.
– The CS is paired with an US.
– An inhibitory stimulus will need more pairings than a neutral stimulus
to produce a response.
– Hint: imagine that the inhibitory stimulus produces a "negative"
response. You have to "travel" further to get to the same point from
where you started.
112
Inhibition: How to measure it? Retardation-of-acquisition
Retardation-of-acquisition Test test
How do you know if a runner has started late?

Measuring how long it takes to arrive!
100
CS+
CS+ CS+
CS+ CS+
0
CS+
Control: A neutral stimulus

takes some time to become
-100
excitatory conditioned.
100
CS-
CS-
-100
100
CS-
The learning of the relationship CS- →US is

very slow because CS- is inhibitory: it does
-100
not start "from 0", but "from -100".
Extinction of Pavlovian conditioning
Extinction
Extinction
• Procedure to reduce the
conditioned response.
• Great practical utility: therapies,
interventions...
118
Extinction
Extinction
• It consists of the presentation of the CS followed by nothing.
• After the acquisition, extinction causes the CR to disappear.
Acquisition Test Extinction Test

CS → US CS CS → no US CS
119
Extinction
Extinction
35
30
Respuesta condicionada
25
20 Adquisición Extinción
15
10
0
1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 20
Bloques de ensayos
Acquisition Test Extinction Test

CS → US CS CS → no US CS
120
Extinction
Extinction
• Is it to forget?
121
Extinction
Extinction
• This is NOT to forget:
– Forgetting happens because of the passage of time.
– Extinction requires exposure to CS followed by nothing.
122
Extinction
Extinction
• Is it habituation?
123
Extinction
Extinction
• It is NOT to be confused with habituation:
– Extinction decreases the response to a previously learned CS.
– Habituation decreases the response to a stimulus that does not
require learning.
124
Extinction
Extinction
• Does extinction consist of inhibitory learning? (learning that CS
means "absence of the US")
125
Extinction
Extinction
• Does extinction consist of inhibitory learning? (learning that CS
means "absence of the US")
– Then, the excitatory and inhibitory associations would counteract
each other, resulting in the absence of CR.
• It is not inhibitory learning, because it does not pass the
summation test or the retardation-of-acquisition test.
126
Extinction
Extinction
• Does extinction consist of a "deletion of information"?
• It is according to some theories, but there are extinction
phenomena that contradict this...
127
Extinction phenomena
• They generally show that extinction is NOT definitive.
1. Disinhibition
2. Spontaneous recovery
3. Reinstatement
4. Renewal
129
Extinction Disinhibition
phenomena: Disinhibition
• It shows that extinction is not an "erasure" of information:

what has been learned is still there.
• It consists of:
– During the Acquisition: CS → US
– During Extinction: CS
– Suddenly: CS → New stimulus. (NOT an US!)
– The acquired response to the CS reappears. In other words, what was
learned is "still there".
130
Extinction Disinhibition
phenomena: Disinhibition
Acquisition Extinction Disinhibition
131
ExtinctionSpontaneous
phenomena: Spontaneous
recovery recovery
• After extinction, we let time pass, and the response reappears.
132
ExtinctionSpontaneous
phenomena: Spontaneous
recovery recovery
Acquisition Extinction Time interval
Spontaneous
recovery: After
a period of
rest, CR
reappears.
...
133
Extinction Reinstatement
phenomena: Reinstatement
• After extinction, upon presentation of US alone, CR reappears.
134
Extinction Reinstatement
phenomena: Reinstatement
Acquisition: Increases CR
Extinction: CR drops
We present a trial with US
? Test: CR reappears
135
Extinction phenomena:
Renewal Renewal
• CR recovers after extinction when the context is changed.

• Context = any stimulus that accompanies the learning situation
(not a CS).
136
Renewal Renewal
• Two types:
– ABA
– ABC A B A
137
Renewal Renewal
• Type ABA
A Acquisition: Context A
B Extinction: Context B
? CR A Test: Context A
138
Renewal Renewal
• Two types:
– ABA
– ABC A B C
139
Renewal Renewal
• Type ABC
A Acquisition: Context A
B Extinction: Context B
? CR C Test: Context C
140
Renewal Renewal
• Why does renewal happen?

• Bouton: Idea of "ambiguity" and context.
141
Renewal Renewal
Acquisition: The CS is NOT

A ambiguous
Extinction: The CS has

B become ambiguous
(It used to mean food,
now it doesn't)
? A Proof: The CS is no longer

ambiguous. Context
undoes ambiguity
142
Renewal Renewal
Acquisition: The CS is NOT

A ambiguous
Extinction: The CS has

B become ambiguous
(It used to mean food,
now it doesn't)
Evidence: The context is
? C novel. What is learned in
extinction is not retrieved.
143
Renewal Renewal
• According to Bouton's theory:

– Extinction memory is context-dependent. It is only expressed in the
same context in which it was formed.
– This is because extinction implies an ambiguity of the CS. In the face
of ambiguity, the context is used to undo it.
– In acquisition there is no ambiguity and therefore memory is not
context-dependent.
144
Renewal Renewal
• Under this scheme, all the above-mentioned extinction

phenomena can be understood as special cases of renewal:
– Spontaneous recovery: time = context change
– Disinhibition: new stimulus = change of context
– Reinstatement: US = context switching
145
Implications in drug conditioning
Implications of extinction
Implications
• Especially for therapy (exposure)
• Extinguished conduct may return
• How can this be avoided?
– Therapy in the natural context
– Therapy in multiple contexts
– Extinguish multiple CSs
147
Implications of extinction: Drug
Example: quitting smoking conditioning
148
Drug conditioning: Compensatory
Compensatory responses responses
• The body tends towards homeostasis

• Faced with a drug: imbalance
• The compensatory response restores balance
• The compensatory response can be conditioned (triggered by

a CS or by the context).
149
Implications of extinction: Drug
Compensatory responses conditioning
D
150
End of Topic 3
Thank you so much for your attention!
151

Classical Conditioning - Foundations

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Classical Conditioning - Foundations

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Basic Psychological Processes II

Classical conditioning: Foundations

• Habituation and sensitisation are two simple

• Classical or Pavlovian learning (by Ivan P.

Ivan P. Pavlov studied the salivation response (involuntary

▪ …But, sometimes, when the food was not in sight

At that time, this was quite a discovery, because reflexes were

▪ Unconditioned Response (UR)

US: food UR: salivation

But according to Pavlov’s discovery there are reflexes that can

▪ Conditioned Response (CR)

Neutral Stimulus: sound No salivation response

Neutral Stimulus + US: food UR: salivation

▪ We call each paring a “trial”.

CS: sound CR: salivation

Training Trials (CS-US Pairings)

• Normally the association is S-S.

At first, Albert is not afraid of the rat

Noise + rat pairing: followed by startle

After many "noise + rat" pairings, it is now

Generalisation of CR to other stimuli not

• Watson versus eugenics and genetic determinism: there are no

Si tenemos dudad de (condicionamiento clásico

Time El Condicionamiento Instrumental es un

2.Different values have different interpretations. We will look at

3.Look at the vertical axis!

Razón de Supresión Suppression ratio:

0,5 indicate fear

Razón de Supresión Suppression ratio:

• Sometimes the animal that makes the fewest lever presses is

Procedure Test Result

In the test we expect more

Ivkovich, Collins, Eckerman, Krasnegor and Stanton (1999) 55

Porcentaje de ensayos con RC

Ivkovich, Collins, Eckerman, Krasnegor and Stanton (1999) 56

• Importance of tuning out irrelevant stimuli in order to learn.

Do you feel like eating spicy chicken

The rat is free to choose

We let the rat drink sweet-tasting water (CS).

In the Control Group, the rat drinks sugar

Test Trial Run

Experimental Group Control Group

Cantidad de Agua azucarada

CS (light) The stimuli overlap in

CS (light) The stimuli start at

CS (light) The US comes before

US (food) It usually produces

Group Acquisition Test trial

What conclusions can we draw if we do not have a control

What if there is CR without learning?

Group Procurement Test trial

Random control: CS and US are presented

Example: Panic attacks.

US can occur at any time except just after CS. CS

• Direct measurement: bidirectional systems

Initial situation: "no learning".

• Bidirectional response systems

CS+ and CS-

CS- If the CS- were not inhibitory

How do you know if a runner has started late?

Control: A neutral stimulus

The learning of the relationship CS- →US is