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Blocking and unconditioned response diminution in human classical autonomic conditioning.

H D Kimmel1, M J Bevill

  • 1Dept. of Psychology, University of South Florida, Tampa 33620.

Integrative Physiological and Behavioral Science : the Official Journal of the Pavlovian Society
|April 1, 1991
PubMed
Summary

Blocking in human conditioning is complex. While unconditioned response diminution occurred, blocking effects were delayed and design-dependent, challenging theories of reduced unconditioned stimulus processing.

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Area of Science:

  • Psychology
  • Cognitive Science
  • Behavioral Science

Background:

  • Recent conditioning theories link reduced unconditioned stimulus (UCS) processing to unconditioned response (UCR) diminution and blocking.
  • Blocking occurs when a previously conditioned stimulus (CS) overshadows a new CS in compound conditioning.
  • UCR diminution suggests reduced UCS processing, potentially explaining blocking.

Purpose of the Study:

  • To investigate blocking and UCR diminution in human electrodermal conditioning (SCR).
  • To test the hypothesis that reduced UCS processing underlies both UCR diminution and blocking.
  • To examine the influence of experimental design on blocking and UCR diminution.

Main Methods:

  • Three experiments involving human participants undergoing SCR conditioning.

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  • Utilized within-subject and between-subject designs.
  • Included extinction trials for both blocked and non-blocked stimuli.

    • Main Results:

    • Consistent evidence of UCR diminution across all three experiments.
    • Blocking was observed only in the third experiment, which used a within-subject design.
    • Blocking in the third experiment was delayed, appearing after extinction trials, irrespective of testing order.

    Conclusions:

    • The findings provide clear evidence for UCR diminution in human SCR conditioning.
    • Blocking effects are not consistently observed and appear dependent on specific experimental designs (within-subject) and procedures (post-extinction).
    • Results challenge the proposed link between UCR diminution and blocking, suggesting reduced UCS processing is not the sole or primary mechanism for blocking.