In a conditioning experiment, a sound is paired with a brief puff of air to the eye of the rabbit. After several pairings, the rabbit ultimately blinks its eye when it hears the sound. Which of the following is TRUE?
A) The blinking of the eye serves as stimulus.
B) The puff of air serves as the unconditioned stimulus.
C) The puff of air serves as the conditioned stimulus.
D) The blinking of the eye serves as the conditioned stimulus.

Question

In a conditioning experiment, a sound is paired with a brief puff of air to the eye of the rabbit. After several pairings, the rabbit ultimately blinks its eye when it hears the sound. Which of the following is TRUE?
A) The blinking of the eye serves as stimulus.
B) The puff of air serves as the unconditioned stimulus. 
C) The puff of air serves as the conditioned stimulus.
D) The blinking of the eye serves as the conditioned stimulus.

Quizplus · Accepted Answer

In classical conditioning, the unconditioned stimulus (US) is the stimulus that naturally elicits a response without any prior learning. In this experiment, the puff of air is the US because it naturally elicits the eye blink response. The sound is initially a neutral stimulus that does not elicit an eye blink response. Through pairing with the US, the sound becomes a conditioned stimulus (CS) that eventually elicits the eye blink response. Therefore, Choice B is the correct answer.

In a Conditioning Experiment, a Sound Is Paired with a Brief