Classical Conditioning

Watson and Raynor:

Methodology:

• 1 Participant - normal male infant - 9 months (Little Albert)
• Not a case study, focus on response to conditioning, case study - in depth analysis of aspects in life.
• Not an experiment - only 1 condition.
• Investigation to determine effects of certain stimuli.
• Use of experiment restricted as conducted in controlled conditions in a well lit dark room. 
• Albert placed on a mattress on top of the table
• Study could be described as controlled observation.

Procedures:

• Responses recorded with motion picture camera.
• Emotional tests - to test emotional responses to certain objects confronted suddenly with white rabbits, dogs, monkeys, masks with and without hair, cotton wool, burning newspapers etc. Each for instance, first time seen objects.
• Albert then tested with loud sounds, strike hammer upon suspended steel bar. Bar 1 metre long, 2cm diameter. 1 experimenter distracted albert while the other used a hammer to strike the bar behind his head.
• Session 1 - Establishing a conditioned emotional response
  • 11 months, 3 days old, brought to the lab. White rabbit presented, Albert reached for it, bar struck.
• Session 2 - Testing the conditoned emotional response. 
  • 1 week later, Albert returned and was shown a rat with no sound. Albert exposed to 5x after with joint stimulation, shown rat and noise made. 
• Session 3 - Generalisation - 11 months, 15 days, returned for more testing, research question - whether learned link between rat and noise generalisable.
  •  Albert presented with rat, wooden blocks, rabbit, dog, seal fur coat, cotton wool, Watson's hair.
• Session 4 - Changing the environment - 11 months, 20 days, conditioned emotional response 'freshened' up, using 'joint simulation'. 
  • Taken to new environment - large well lit room with 4 people present. Placed on centre of table.
• Session 5 - Effect of time - 12 months, 21 days, tested last time. 
  • Been to lab in interim, no emotional tests conducted. Final tests - Santa Claus mask, fur coat, rat, rabbit, dog and blocks

Findings:

• Emotional tests - no fear response to objects before conditioning. Hospital attendants and mother - never seen him in state of fear or rage, never cried. First time bar struck behind head - child started violently, arms raised. Second simulation…