What was the purpose of the Little Albert Experiment and the outcome that followed?
The Little Albert Experiment demonstrated that classical conditioning—the association of a particular stimulus or behavior with an unrelated stimulus or behavior—works in human beings. In this experiment, a previously unafraid baby was conditioned to become afraid of a rat.
What was the conditioned response in the Little Albert Experiment?
Even if there was no loud sound from the hammer, Albert would cry whenever the rat was in his sight. This was because Albert associated the white rat and the loud noise interchangeably. Him crying was a conditioned response based on a neutral stimulus being altered by an unconditioned stimulus.
What is spontaneous recovery?
Spontaneous recovery is typically defined as the reemergence of conditioned responding to an extinguished conditioned stimulus (CS) with the passage of time since extinction.
What happened after Little Albert was classically conditioned to fear a tame white rat?
What happened after “Little Albert” was classically conditioned to fear a tame white rat? Stimulus generalization occurred; Albert responded with fear to other furry animals and fuzzy objects.
How did Albert’s response become generalized?
How did Albert’s response become generalized? Albert was conditioned to fear a white rat, however he also ended up fearing many other white animals such as white rabbits. For example, a boy was conditioned not to be afraid of rabbits by associating rabbits with happy experiences like ice cream.
What is the ethical problem with Watson’s famous experiment with Little Albert and the rat?
The experiment also raises many ethical concerns. Little Albert was harmed during this experiment—he left the experiment with a previously nonexistent fear. By today’s standards, the Little Albert experiment would not be allowed.
What is the key point in the understanding discovery of spontaneous recovery?
Spontaneous recovery can be defined as the reappearance of the conditioned response after a rest period or period of lessened response. If the conditioned stimulus and unconditioned stimulus are no longer associated, extinction will occur very rapidly after a spontaneous recovery.
What is meant by conditioned response?
In classical conditioning, the conditioned response is the learned response to the previously neutral stimulus. The previously neutral stimulus will then evoke the response all on its own. At this point, the response becomes known as the conditioned response.
How did Watson and Rayner conditioned Little Albert to fear white rats?
Method. The aim of Watson and Rayner was to condition a phobia in an emotionally stable child. At this point, Watson and Rayner made a loud sound behind Albert’s back by striking a suspended steel bar with a hammer each time the baby touched the rat. Albert responded to the noise by crying and showing fear.
What defense did Watson and Rayner give for their decision to experiment on Albert do you consider their justification valid?
What defense did Watson and Rayner give for their decision to experiment on Albert? Do you consider their justification valid? They claimed that these fears could form as he got older anyway.
Would the Little Albert experiment be considered ethical in today’s standard of research why or why not?
according to today’s ethical standards, the nature of the study itself would be considered unethical, as it did not protect Albert from psychological harm, because its purpose was to induce a state of fear. Many sources claim that Little Albert was used as a subject in the study without the permission of his mother.
What are the ethical issues of the Little Albert experiment?
Ethical Issues on Little Albert Essay. Watson and Rayner decided to experiment the conditioned emotional responses of an eleven months old baby. They experimented on this issue by implanting fear in little Albert. Since he was an orphan, nobody was there to stand up for him, so the psychologists did what they pleased with him.
What was the purpose of the Little Albert experiment?
The Little Albert experiment was a controlled experiment showing empirical evidence of classical conditioning in humans. The study also provides an example of stimulus generalization. It was carried out by John B. Watson and his graduate student, Rosalie Rayner, at Johns Hopkins University .
Why is the Little Albert experiment unethical?
The Little Albert experiment was one of these unethical experiments. In the year 1920, a psychologist named John Watson wanted to show that humans can be classically conditioned. Classical conditioning means pairing a stimulus, like food, with the triggering of a physical response.
What was the hypothesis of the Little Albert experiment?
The Little Albert Experiment demonstrated that classical conditioning—the association of a particular stimulus or behavior with an unrelated stimulus or behavior—works in human beings. In the experiment, psychologist John Watson was able to condition a previously unafraid baby to become afraid of a rat.