Blog post 1

    There are many reasons why psychology is an interesting subject. One of the topics that interests me the most is classical conditioning. Classical conditioning is a fundamental principle in behavioral psychology. The dog experiment by Ivan Pavlov is a common example of this. The idea of this affects many parts of our daily lives, from advertising to therapy, and it also defines how we learn. This experiment a dog was used as well as a bell. The sound of a bell was rung when the dog was presented with food. This is an example of classical conditioning because after the food was removed the dog began salivating at just the sound of the bell. Ivan Pavlov laid the groundwork for classical conditioning in the late 1800s; it is the foundation of modern psychology since it shows how associations between stimuli influence behavior. 

    In his famous dog experiment, Pavlov demonstrated that, with enough repetition, a neutral stimulus—like a bell—could elicit a response—like salivation—that had previously only been activated by a natural food stimulus. This complex but fundamental understanding of the brain's learning process has influenced many things such as employment, education, and marketing. Pavlov's experiment showed that a neutral stimulus, such as a bell, might eventually elicit a response, like salivation, that was previously only triggered by a natural stimulus, like food, through repeated pairings. This influenced many other research studies that promoted the idea of classical conditioning. 

    There has been a lot of research done regarding classical conditioning that has been successful. As an example, classical conditioning is used in therapy to help people overcome phobias and anxieties by reducing their conditioned reactions to frightening stimuli through controlled, gradual exposure. There are many different reasons that classical conditioning is relevant and used in today's society. I agree with the concept of classical conditioning and believe that is a great way to train individuals. Classical conditioning is useful because it lays a foundation for many different things. It helps with exposure therapy along with other therapies.