While little Jeanie was playing with her grandmother's big tabby cat, the cat scratched her badly, causing her pain and her arm to bleed. Now Jeanie muscles tense up and she shows fear, every time any cat is near her. The conditioned stimulus in this example would be:

Question

Quizplus · Accepted Answer

The conditioned stimulus is the cat because it is the neutral stimulus that, after being associated with the unconditioned stimulus (the pain from the scratches), now triggers the conditioned response (fear) in Jeanie.

While Little Jeanie Was Playing with Her Grandmother's Big Tabby