Assignment 1.3 | Carman’s Definition

Introduction: 

The purpose behind assignment 1.3 looks into the role of definitions in technical writing. Definitions are important because they provide the audience with more insight in a particular field that one may be lacking interest or knowledge in. There are many different levels to definitions and each level provides a diverse level of details and can be interpreted differently based on the situation it comes across. Assignment 1.3 aims to provide those different levels of definitions within one’s specific profession or discipline at the parenthetical, sentence, and expanded levels with many examples.

Complex Term: Classical Conditioning

Parenthetical: 

Classical Conditioning (also known as Pavlovian Conditioning) is the process in which an unconditioned stimulus is paired with a neural stimulus to produce a behavioural conditioned response.

Sentence:

Classical Conditioning is an unconscious learning process that is using two or more stimuli to create a response. It can be used as a training tactic and is seen in our everyday lives.

Expanded:

i) Analysis of Parts:

Classical Conditioning always has these 4 parts:

1. Unconditioned stimulus (US): something to trigger a response such as food
2. Conditioned stimulus (CS): a stimulus that is paired with the US to produce a response such as a whistle
3. Unconditioned response (UR): natural behavioural response that occurs after US such as salivation
4. Conditioned response (CR): response acquired after being exposed to the CS such as salivation

ii) Operating Principle:

The unconditioned stimulus (US) is usually something that will trigger a natural behavioural response. The unconditioned response (UR) is a response that happens after the unconditioned stimulus. The conditioned stimulus (CS) is a neural stimulus that after repeated exposure before the unconditioned stimulus, it will create a response similar to the response given when shown the unconditioned stimulus. The conditioned response (CR) is the response produced after being conditioned from the conditioned stimulus.

iii) Example:

The most famous example is Pavlov’s bell and food classical conditioning with dogs. Pavlov would get an unconditioned response (salivation) from the dog with the presence of unconditioned stimulus (food). The conditioned stimulus (bell) would be rung and produce no response, but once the bell was rung, and then food was presented, the dog would salivate, producing an unconditioned response. Soon, after repeated exposure, the dog would respond by salivating just to the sound of the bell, a conditioned response.

iv) Visual

Fig 8.3 4-Panel image of bell and dog

References:

4-Panel Image of Whistle and Dog. (n.d.). https://opentextbc.ca/introductiontopsychology/wp-content/uploads/sites/9/2013/11/72ff70c6cb32a57995de5d2081132da7.jpg. Retrieved from https://opentextbc.ca/introductiontopsychology/wp-content/uploads/sites/9/2013/11/72ff70c6cb32a57995de5d2081132da7.jpg.

Elmer, J. (2020, January 8). Classical conditioning: How it works and how it can be applied. Healthline. Retrieved February 8, 2023, from https://www.healthline.com/health/classical-conditioning#definition

Stangor, C., & Walinga, J. (2014, October 17). 8.1 Learning by association: Classical conditioning. Introduction to Psychology 1st Canadian Edition. Retrieved February 8, 2023, from https://opentextbc.ca/introductiontopsychology/chapter/7-1-learning-by-association-classical-conditioning/