Experiment Title:

Little Albert Experiment

Experimenters:

John B. Watson and Rosalie Rayner

Publication Year:

1920

Methodology:

The Little Albert Experiment was a classical conditioning study conducted by John B. Watson and Rosalie Rayner. The primary objective of the experiment was to demonstrate how a conditioned emotional response could be elicited in a previously unstimulated child.

Participants:

A nine-month-old male child known as “Albert B.”

Procedure:

The experiment involved exposing little Albert to various stimuli to observe his initial and conditioned responses. Initially, Albert showed no fear towards a white rat, a rabbit, a dog, a monkey, a masks, or burning newspapers. However, the experimenters paired the rat with a loud, startling noise, causing Albert to display signs of fear and distress. After several repetitions of the pairing, Albert developed a conditioned fear towards the previously neutral stimulus of the white rat.

Implications and Controversy:

The Little Albert Experiment raised ethical concerns due to its use of psychological harm and an inadequate debriefing process. The study provided valuable insights into classical conditioning and the potential for fear responses to be conditioned. However, its questionable methodology and potential long-term effects on the participant have sparked ongoing debate regarding the ethics of psychological research.