Classical Conditioning: Why You Do What You Do, Noted

Classical conditioning, respondent conditioning, or Pavlovian conditioning is when a biological stimulus (e.g. food) is paired with a neutral stimulus (e.g. an alarm), and the neutral stimulus comes to elicit a similar response. The term refers to that automatic, habituated, conditioned response. It comes from Russian psychologist Ivan Pavlov who famously studied classical conditioning with dogs.

Pavlov’s experiments were not all too ethical, but the results were groundbreaking and changed the way we understood psychology. In one study of digestion, Pavlov observed that dogs salivated when fed red meat. That was expected. However, later, he noticed the dogs would salivate merely from seeing the technician who normally fed them. Putting these observations to the test, Pavlov presented a neutral stimulus (e.g. the sound of a metronome) in combination with the food. After a few repetitions, the dogs started salivating in response to Pavlov’s stimulus.

Classical conditioning underpins many aspects of human and animal behavior. It’s why we feel nauseated by seeing food that made us sick in the past and why our phone vibrating automatically makes us want to check. Over our experiences, we have learned to associate certain stimuli with specific responses. This happens unconsciously by virtue of classical conditioning. Our brains form connections between seemingly unrelated events, resulting in automatic reactions.

Drinking coffee is a prime example. In the beginning, the “kick” comes from the caffeine in the drink. Later, when you become a coffee freak like me, you might get a “kick” from just smelling it. This is why you instantly feel more alert after a few sips of coffee. The caffeine takes roughly twenty minutes to take effect, but your brain and body have learned to associate coffee with it’s stimulating effects. Here, the initial stimulus of coffee without prior learning is the unconditioned stimulus, the stimulating effect of caffeine on the body the unconditioned response. The neutral stimulus is the smell of the coffee. When that neutral stimulus starts to elicit the unconditioned response—that is, when merely smelling the coffee gives you energy—we call it a conditioned response to a conditioned stimulus.

Pavlov’s experiments paved the way for later research as psychologists were interested in how it impacted learning. One prominent figure was John Watson. He did a famous, and very unethical experiment with children and rats, the “Little Albert”. Watson conditioned a child to fear a rat. He later expanded his theories, noticing that fear can be elicited from general objects like rabbits, dogs, fur coats, and even Santa masks. These discoveries gave psychologists a better idea of how we learn, memorize, and behave. Hence classical conditioning is now applied widely in therapy to help patients overcome harmful behavior and phobias.

Classical conditioning finds it’s way into branding and marketing campaigns as well. Typically, the goal is to form positive correlations between the brand and a consumer’s experiences. Marketers achieve this by pairing their products, logos, and other elements with biological stimuli that make us feel good—music, humor, positive imagery, visual storytelling. Think how Netflix instantly brings up pictures of plopping down on the sofa to relax while watching a movie, how Nike reminds us of sports and movement, and how Disney brings with it a nostalgic veil that temporarily takes us back to our childhoods. Picture what feelings and/or associations names like LEGO, Apple, Microsoft, Nintendo, Audi, and FedEx elicit for you. These links between brands and experiences are key to the success of countless household names.

Real life implications of classical conditioning:

• Therapy: phobias can be treated with systemic desensitization, like by exposing a person who is afraid of spiders to spider-related stimuli gradually while maintaining calm, weakening the fear response over time;

• Habit: a specific external or internal cue can be associated with a behavior to form a habit, such as working in a designated study space to elicit focus;

• Marketing: products can be associated with positive emotions and experiences to influence consumer behavior, like the endorsement of a celebrity to elicit admiration or a nostalgic advertisement to link the brand’s name to nostalgic experiences;

• Work: you can boost employee morale by putting forward recognition programs, such as regularly acknowledging them for their achievements, large and small, to help the worker associate productivity with feelings of satisfaction.

How you might use classical conditioning as a mental model: (1) identify the desired outcome, defining the behavior or response you want to trigger; (2) choose a stimuli, selecting something that reliably produces your desired response (e.g. sound, location, physical sensation); (3) repeatedly and consistently pair the desired outcome with the stimulus; (4) monitor responses, observing yourself to see whether the neutral stimulus (e.g. the sound of a bell) becomes a conditioned stimulus (e.g. makes you hungry, gets you pumped up for exercise, etc.); (5) periodically pair both the desired outcome with the stimulus to keep it from fading, tailoring the stimuli to your needs.

Thought-provoking insights. “We are what we repeatedly do.” Aristotle paralleling the idea of conditioning through repetition—and it’s true, our habits do speak for us. “Habits are the invisible architecture of daily life.” Gretchen Rubin highlighting how learned responses are the backbone of what we do. “Change your environment, and your behavior will follow.” taps into how, if the trigger is not present, the behavior will not subsist. Overall, classical conditioning is a lens that helps you observe how and why certain behaviors form and are influenced by external stimuli. It’s why you get hungry at the same time each day or when you walk into the kitchen. Understanding and applying the principle ensures you don’t fall for your mind’s associative gymnastics. Maybe you aren’t actually hungry, don’t actually need that item, don’t…

Questions to reflect on:

1. How do certain stimuli in my environment trigger (conditioned) responses or behaviors?

2. How can I use classical conditioning principles to develop habits and behaviors?

3. How do my past experiences shape my current reactions to certain stimuli?

4. How can I use classical conditioning principles to teach, train, or mentor others?

5. What strategies can I use to desensitize myself to fear or anxiety-provoking stimuli?

Quotes to make your head spin:

1. "Give me a child and I'll shape him into anything." B.F. Skinner, American psychologist and behaviorist.

2. "Learning is the process whereby knowledge is created through the transformation of experience." - David A. Kolb, American educational theorist.

3. "It is easier to act yourself into a new way of thinking than it is to think yourself into a new way of acting." - Millard Fuller.

4. "We are what we repeatedly do. Excellence, then, is not an act, but a habit." - Aristotle, Greek philosopher.

Example use cases:

1. Therapy: behavioral therapists can use classical conditioning techniques to help clients overcome phobias and anxiety by gradually exposing them to the feared stimulus in a controlled environment, creating new positive associations.

2. Marketing: advertisers use classical conditioning to form relationships between their products and customers' feelings by pairing them with pleasant stimuli, such as music, visuals, or endorsements from known figures.

3. Animal training: trainers use classical conditioning to teach animals specific behaviors by associating commands or signals with rewards, such as treats or praise.

4. Personal development: you can use classical conditioning principles to form new habits by creating positive associations with desired behavior, such as exercising or healthy eating, with rewards and repetition.