Question

Last year, Dr. Moritano cleaned Natacha's skin with rubbing alcohol before each of a series of painful rabies shots. Which of the following processes explains why Natacha now is afraid every time she smells rubbing alcohol?

a. classical conditioning
b. negative reinforcement
c. operant conditioning
d. latent learning

Answer 1

Natacha is experiencing classical conditioning, where the smell of rubbing alcohol has become associated with the pain of rabies shots, causing fear.

Step-by-step explanation:

The process that explains why Natacha now feels afraid every time she smells rubbing alcohol after each series of painful rabies shots is known as classical conditioning. This is a learning process in which a neutral stimulus becomes associated with a meaningful one and acquires the capacity to elicit a similar response. In Natacha's case, the rubbing alcohol, which was neutral, is now associated with the pain from the shots and triggers fear. Over time, the previously neutral stimulus (rubbing alcohol) elicits a conditioned response (fear) because it has been consistently paired with the unconditioned stimulus (painful shots).