Stimulus Generalization (Noun)
Meaning
(psychology) transfer of a response learned to one stimulus to a similar stimulus.
Classification
Nouns denoting cognitive processes and contents.
Examples
- The concept of stimulus generalization was first introduced by Ivan Pavlov, who observed that his dogs would salivate not only to the sound of the bell that preceded their food, but also to similar sounds.
- Stimulus generalization is a fundamental concept in psychology that explains why we often respond to similar stimuli in the same way.
- In the experiment, the researchers found that the participants' fear response to a snake generalized to similar stimuli, such as a picture of a snake or a snake-like object.
- The child's fear of dogs generalized to other animals that looked similar, such as wolves and foxes.
- The marketing team took advantage of stimulus generalization by using a logo that was similar to the logo of a popular brand, in order to evoke a similar positive response from consumers.