Matthew once had a teacher who punished him severely whenever he did poorly on a classroom test. Now he refuses to take tests, saying he is too frightened to do so. He has learned to associate tests with the pain of punishment. From the perspective of classical conditioning, the painful punishment is:
A) An unconditioned stimulus
B) An unconditioned response
C) A conditioned stimulus
D) A conditioned response

Question

Quizplus · Accepted Answer

In classical conditioning, an unconditioned stimulus (US) is something that naturally and automatically triggers a response without prior learning. In this case, the painful punishment is the unconditioned stimulus that naturally causes fear or discomfort.

Matthew Once Had a Teacher Who Punished Him Severely Whenever