Final answer:
Learned associations contribute to habitual behaviors via classical and operant conditioning by connecting stimuli with reflexive responses, and behaviors with their consequences, leading to the reinforcement or modification of those habits.
Step-by-step explanation:
Learned associations feed habitual behaviors primarily through classical conditioning and operant conditioning, both forms of associative learning. In classical conditioning, also known as Pavlovian conditioning, an organism learns to connect a stimulus that naturally triggers a reflexive response with a different, usually neutral, stimulus. When this neutral stimulus is repeatedly paired with the unconditioned stimulus, it becomes a conditioned stimulus that elicits the reflex. For example, a lightning flash (neutral stimulus) becomes associated with the sound of thunder (unconditioned stimulus), leading to a reflexive response of flinching at the sight of lightning (conditioned response).
In operant conditioning, an organism learns to associate a voluntary behavior with its consequences. For instance, when a dolphin performs a flip and receives a fish as a reward, the positive reinforcement makes the behavior more likely to be repeated. By reinforcing associations through rewards or punishments, habitual behaviors can be formed or altered.