Stimulus Generalization: A Definition With Examples
- Examples of Stimulus Generalization. One of the most famous examples of stimulus generalization took place in an early psychology experiment.
- The Impact of Stimulus Generalization. Stimulus generalization can have an impact on how people respond to different stimuli. ...
- Summary. ...
What are examples of stimulus generalization in children?
Another example of stimulus generalization in children also involves a fear response. Toddlers who were taught to fear moving cars in order to prevent them from trying to cross busy streets by themselves also experienced stimulus generalization. They began to fear not only moving cars, but moving trucks, vans, buses, and motorcycles.
What is stimulus generalization in classical conditioning?
Lesson Summary. Stimulus generalization is when stimuli elicit similar responses to previously conditioned stimuli that share certain qualities. Stimulus generalization occurs in both classical conditioning and operant conditioning situations.
What are stimulus generalization and response generalization in Applied Behavior Analysis?
These terms even give BCBAs difficulty at times. Both stimulus generalization and response generalization are cornerstones of good applied behavior analysis treatment. Generalization occurs when relevant behaviors happen under different, untrained conditions.
What is an example of generalization in conditioning?
For example, a subject may initially make the desired response when exposed to any sound (that is, to a generalized stimulus) rather than making such a response only to a specific sound. Such generalization can occur in both classical and operant conditioning (if a CS is used).
Which is an example of stimulus generalization quizlet?
Stimulus generalization is the procedure of reinforcing a response in the presence of a stimulus or situation and the effect of the response occurring more frequently. EX. Teaching a person about dogs. Thinking Wiener, pug, lab are all "dogs".
What is and example of stimulus generalization in classical conditioning?
Stimulus generalization occurs when an individual responds to stimuli that are similar to the original conditioned stimulus. For example, the dog that was conditioned to drool upon hearing a clicking noise may generalize that behavior to similar sounds, such as tapping and beeping noises.
What is stimulus general generalization?
Stimulus generalization is the ability to behave in a new situation in a way that has been learned in other similar situations.
What is an example of stimulus generalization in ABA?
For example, if a child was taught how to use the potty on only one toilet, his ability to go potty on different toilet in another environment would demonstrate stimulus generalization.
What is generalization give an example?
generalization, in psychology, the tendency to respond in the same way to different but similar stimuli. For example, a dog conditioned to salivate to a tone of a particular pitch and loudness will also salivate with considerable regularity in response to tones of higher and lower pitch.
What is the most famous example of generalization?
One of the most famous examples of stimulus generalization took place in an early psychology experiment. In the Little Albert experiment, the behaviorist John B. Watson and his assistant Rosalie Rayner conditioned a little boy to fear a white rat.
What is the importance of stimulus generalization?
Stimulus generalization occurs in both classical conditioning and operant conditioning situations. It is useful because it allows for learning to take place quickly in novel situations that may be similar to past experiences.
What is stimulus generalization in consumer Behaviour?
Stimulus Generalisation is: - When a particular brand uses the similar/same packaging design for all or most of its products in order to extend its goodwill to all its products. - When a competing brand uses the similar packaging design as an already established brand for its product.
What is an example of stimulus discrimination?
Only ordering a dish at one restaurant because you know that other restaurants don't offer that same menu item is an example of stimulus discrimination.
How do you explain generalization to a child?
Generalization is defined as the ability for a child to display a skill or behavior in the presence of a variety of people, across various settings/contexts, and over increasing lengths of time.
How do you teach stimulus generalization?
0:044:58Teaching Stimulus & Response Generalization | ABA | AutismYouTubeStart of suggested clipEnd of suggested clipExamples. So that you're not only teaching what something is but also what something is not thereMoreExamples. So that you're not only teaching what something is but also what something is not there are two types of generalization seamless simulation.
What is stimulus generalization?
In technical terms, stimulus generalization occurs when a previously unassociated or new stimulus that has similar characteristics to the previously associated stimulus elicits a response that is the same or similar to the previously associated response. In short, similar stimuli trigger similar responses when stimulus generalization is at work.
When a child is learning to use the toilet, what are rewards?
Usually it starts off with rewarding behavior that involves becoming comfortable around the toilet, followed by rewards for sitting on the toilet, culminating in rewards for using the toilet.
What is stimulus generalization?
In the conditioning process, stimulus generalization is the tendency for the conditioned stimulus to evoke similar responses after the response has been conditioned. For example, if a child has been conditioned to fear a stuffed white rabbit, it will exhibit a fear of objects similar to the conditioned stimulus such as a white toy rat.
How does stimulus generalization affect the response to stimulus?
Stimulus generalization can have an important impact on the response to a stimulus. Sometimes individuals are able to discriminate between similar items, but in other cases, similar stimuli tend to evoke the same response.
Why is stimulus generation important?
Why Stimulus Generation Is Important. It is important to understand how stimulus generalization can influence responses to the conditioned stimulus. Once a person or animal has been trained to respond to a stimulus, very similar stimuli may produce the same response as well. Sometimes this can be problematic, particularly in cases where ...
What did the researchers observe about the stimulus generalization?
The researchers observed that the boy experienced stimulus generalization by showing fear in response to similar stimuli including a dog, a rabbit, a fur coat, a white Santa Claus beard, and even Watson's own hair. 1.
Can a subject be taught to discriminate between similar stimuli?
However, a subject can be taught to discriminate between similar stimuli and only to respond to a specific stimulus. For example, imagine that a dog has been trained to run to his owner when he hears a whistle. After the dog has been conditioned, he might respond to a variety of sounds that are similar to the whistle.
What is the best known example of stimulus generalization?
One of the best known cases of stimulus generalization is that of Little Albert. In 1913, psychologist John Watson conducted an experiment to see if he could instill a fear of little white lab rats into an infant. This infant was Little Albert, who was naturally afraid of loud noises, but not white rats. In fact, he was initially very eager to pet the white rat. In order to develop the fear, Watson would bang a hammer on a steel bar to create a loud noise every time Little Albert tried to pet the rat. After Watson did this several times, Little Albert began to cry from only seeing the white rat.
What is stimulus generalization?
Stimulus generalization is a phenomenon that can occur in both classical and operant conditioning. It occurs when organisms display a response to stimuli other than the one used for the original conditioning.
Is salivation a conditioned stimulus?
In this example, the tone is considered the conditioned stimulus, and the sa livation in response to hearing just the tone is considered the conditioned response. Another outcome of classical conditioning is stimulus generalization, which happens when the organism that is being conditioned learns to associate other similar stimuli with ...
What is stimulus generalization?
Stimulus generalization occurs when untrained or new stimuli evoke the same response as a trained or known stimuli. Multiple stimuli evoke the same response. In other words, the same response will occur in the presence of a variety of trained untrained stimuli. When you are taking your RBT exam, and you are unsure whether or not stimulus ...
When does generalization occur?
Generalization occurs when relevant behaviors happen under different, untrained conditions. Generalization can occur across subjects, people, behaviors, time, and settings. Generalization should be planned for, and actively taught. We should not “train and hope” as RBTs and BCBAs.
When you are taking your RBT exam, and you are unsure whether or not response generalization occurred, what is
When you are taking your RBT exam, and you are unsure whether or not response generalization occurred, always think about how many responses are present in the question. If multiple responses are taking place, and there is only one stimulus, then response generalization may have occurred. An example of response generalization would be learning ...

Examples
Symptoms
- 1. Little Albert
Short Explanation: The Little Albert experiment was an experiment where a child named Albert was taught to fear white fluffy things that look like a rat (such as white beards). The case of Little Albert may be the most famous example of classical conditioningin history. It was an early expe… - 2. The Dog and the Whistle
Short Explanation: A dog may respond to a flute or bell in the same way it has been trained to respond to a whistle. There are many ways to train a dog to return home when needed. One common way is to use a whistle. Whenever the dog hears the whistle, it knows that it is time to g…
Mechanism
Causes
Effects
- The researchers observed that the boy experienced stimulus generalization by showing fear in response to similar stimuli including a dog, a rabbit, a fur coat, a white Santa Claus beard, and even Watson's own hair. Instead of distinguishing between the fear object and similar stimuli, the little boy became fearful of objects that were similar in appearance to the white rat.
Benefits
- It is important to understand how stimulus generalization can influence responses to the conditioned stimulus. Once a person or animal has been trained to respond to a stimulus, very similar stimuli may produce the same response as well. Sometimes this can be problematic, particularly in cases where the individual needs to be able to distinguish between stimuli and res…
Criticisms
- Stimulus generalization can also explain why the fear of a certain object often affects many similar objects. A person who is afraid of spiders generally won't be afraid of just one type of spider. Instead, this fear will apply to all types and sizes of spiders. The individual might even be afraid of toy spiders and pictures of spiders as well. This fear may even generalize to other creat…