Effects of conditioned stimulus fear-relevance and preexposure on expectancy and electrodermal measures of human Pavlovian conditioning.
The present research investigated the effects of fear-relevance of the conditioned stimulus (CS) and CS preexposure on human electrodermal conditioning and on a continuous measure of expectancy of the unconditioned stimulus (US). Both experiments employed 20 preexposure, 8 acquisition, and 8 extinction trials in a differential Pavlovian conditioning paradigm with shock as the US. In Experiment 1 (N = 48), electrodermal conditioning was retarded by CS preexposure, but was not influenced by fear-relevance of the CS. Expectancy of the US was retarded by preexposure only in the fear-relevant condition. In Experiment 2 (N = 48), the CS/US contingencies was embedded in a visual masking task. Preexposure retarded both electrodermal conditioning and US expectancy. Neither measure was influenced by fear-relevance of the CS. However, fewer subjects in the preexposure condition learned the CS/US relationship and those who did, did so on later trial than those in the no-preexposure condition. Thus, the results indicated clear retardation of conditioning as a result of preexposure, but no reliable effect of fear-relevance.
M L
ML
Booth
D A
DA
Siddle
N W
NW
Bond
D000293:Adolescent; D000328:Adult; D001143:Arousal; D003214:Conditioning, Classical; D005239:Fear; D005260:Female; D005712:Galvanic Skin Response; D006801:Humans; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D012718:Set, Psychology