I don’t like it because it eats sprouts: Conditioning preferences in children

Abstract

Although little is known about how preferences develop in childhood, work in adults suggests that evaluative responses to stimuli can be acquired through classical conditioning. In two experiments children were exposed to novel cartoon characters, that were either consistently paired with a picture of a disliked food (Brussels sprouts) or a liked food (ice cream). Relative preferences for these stimuli (and others) were measured before and after these paired presentations (Experiment 1): preferences for the cartoon character paired with Brussels sprouts decreased, whereas preferences for the character paired with ice cream increased. These preferences persisted after 10 un-reinforced trials. Experiment 2 replicated this finding using affective priming as an index of preference for the cartoon characters. These findings demonstrate that preferences to novel stimuli can be conditioned in children and result from associations formed between the stimulus and a stimulus possessing positive or negative valence.

Interpretation of Ambiguous Situations: Evidence for a Dissociation Between Social and Physical Threat in Williams Syndrome

“…However, the short situations and forced choice binary (threat/no threat) judgement may limit the ecological validity of the task and the response format may be susceptible to response bias. Other researchers have addressed this by using more detailed stories and allowed participants to outline their own interpretations (Bogels, Dongen, & Muris, 2003) or by using implicit cognitive tasks (Field, 2006). It will, therefore, be useful for future research to replicate the present findings using alternative paradigms.…”

The Moderating Impact of Distal Regularities on the Effect of Stimulus Pairings

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Dois paradigmas de primação afectiva: Interferência e influência

“…Para avaliar o alvo, o participante deverá decidir, o mais rapidamente possível, que pólo de uma escala dicotómica melhor o caracteriza: Mau/Bom (e.g., Fazio et al, 1986;Bargh, et al, 1992); Desagradável/Agradável (e.g., Askew & Field, 2007;Field, 2006); Negativo/Positivo (e.g., Musch & Klauer, 2001). Tipicamente, a avaliação é expressa através da selecção da tecla correspondente no teclado do computador.…”