Describe stimulus generalization? A response occurs in the presence of a specific stimulus and in the presence of stimuli similar to the specific stimulus.

• A. A response occurs in presence of the specific stimulus and similar stimuli
• B. A response occurs only to the exact stimulus
• C. A response occurs only to dissimilar stimuli
• D. The response is extinguished

Answer: (A)

Stimulus generalization is the idea that a response learned for one stimulus can be triggered by stimuli that are similar to that original cue. The organism doesn’t just react to the exact stimulus; it responds to related cues with a strength that tends to decrease as the new cue becomes less similar. For example, if a dog learns to salivate to a bell of a specific tone, it will also salivate to bells with nearby tones. In everyday terms, a person conditioned to fear a particular red object might react to other red objects that resemble it. This concept is different from discrimination, where the response is limited to the exact cue, and from extinction, where the response diminishes when the cue is no longer reinforced.