Watson and Raynor Paper

Stein 1

Gabrielle Stein

PSY 100-01

Prof. William Hauselt

15 October 2015

Watson and Rayner Paper

        After reading the article “Conditioned Emotional Reactions” by John B. Watson and Rosalie Rayner, I am able to identify that the term conditioned emotional response refers to a phenomenon that is seen in classical conditioning after a conditioned stimulus (CS) has been paired with an emotion-producing unconditioned stimulus (US). In this case, Watson and Rayner created one for Little Albert by presenting the conditioned stimulus. In this experiment the conditioned stimulus was the white rat, although he had been shown other animals including a rabbit, a monkey, a dog, masks and more. After the conditioned stimulus was presented, then the unconditioned stimulus was presented. In this experiment the unconditioned stimulus was the loud noise, which then brought about Little Albert crying of fear. It is important to also recognize that Little Albert initially showed no fear of any of the objects he was shown. This process could be used to create a conditioned response leading to a positive emotion by instead of producing fear, creating more of a calm environment. To achieve a new conditioned we must pair the scary or exciting thing with something extremely pleasant. To create the new conditioned response, we will provide treats/snacks or even toys that magically appear to Little Albert whenever a rat or other furry animal is presented. The goal is to convert Little Albert’s automatic response from

Stein 1

fear (which requires defensive behaviors to create safety like turning left and trying to get away) to a more positive reaction from his new environment. By giving him those treats/snacks or even toys, shows Little Albert that there is nothing to be afraid of. Turning his negative (fear) behavior into something more relaxed and positive. The procedure for going about this would be that the experimenter would present the rat or other furry animal. While Little Albert may become uneasy and upset because he has come to fear them, the pleasant stimulus would then be presented. This process would repeat for all of the animals and even the mask to create positive emotions from then on.