Chapter 22 of PSYCHOMarketing by Roger Nichols
Ivan Pavlov came up with a theory that is now popularly referred to, simply, as “Pavlov’s dog.” He was a successful psychologist who won a Nobel Prize in 1904 for his ground-breaking research on digestive processes. While studying the digestive system of dogs, he noticed a striking occurrence: the dogs salivated whenever his assistants entered the room to feed them. Although his primary career was not psychology, his theory is important to modern psychology.
To investigate his observation, he and his assistants introduced a variety of edible and non-edible food items into the diets of dogs and observed their behaviors. The result showed that salivation is a reflexive process, which happens automatically in response to a specific urge; it is not under the control of the dogs. He also noticed that the dogs often salivated even when there was no food, nor any scent of food. Based on his observations, Pavlov concluded that salivation is a learned response; the dogs actually responded to the white lab coats worn by his assistants, who were charged with presenting food to the animals.
Pavlov next discovered the process of learning conditioned responses. To ensure his findings, he also invoked a conditioned response to an otherwise neutral stimulus. Using food as the unconditioned stimulus, he evoked a response from the dogs automatically, by introducing the sound of a metronome. The ticking sound would be introduced first, and then food would be given to the dogs immediately after.
After following this procedure many times, Pavlov discovered that three of the dogs began to salivate at the sound of the ticking metronome. “A stimulus which was neutral in and of itself had been superimposed upon the action of the inborn alimentary reflex,” Pavlov wrote about the results. “We observed that, after several repetitions of the combined stimulation, the sounds of the metronome had acquired the property of stimulating salivary secretion.” Simply put, the metronome, which was a previously neutral stimulus, became a conditioned stimulus and provoked salivation, which is a conditioned response. This theory is popularly called “classical conditioning,” and it is very important to psychology, influencing many theories that came after it.
Today, Pavlov’s theory is often adopted in the treatment of mental health and in stimulating change in behaviors. It is also useful in treating phobias, panic disorders, and anxiety. There have also been questions about the theory: Can there be “unconditioning?” Can the association ever be broken? Looking for answers, Pavlov presented the dogs with a sound they came to associate with food. He then played the sound, but did not follow that by rewarding the dogs with food. After the ticking sound of the metronome was made several times without food, the dogs produced less saliva, and the conditioning fell off gradually. Pavlov also realized it could be reactivated after it had worn off.
This theory is vital to advertising and creating an association with products. It is also regarded as the best and most effective example of marketing’s ability to direct consumers’ activity.
Don’t believe it?
Over the years, Budweiser has used their marketing to get consumers to associate various physical activities with certain environmental factors, like football, dehydration, and heat, or something as odd as emotional Clydesdales and English bulldogs with their product. All these examples make you desire a cold Bud, and it doesn’t stop there. When you see a Clydesdale or think Budweiser, you automatically get thirsty and may even hear in your head, ”Are you ready for some football?”
Still don’t believe it? When was the last time you responded to these words: “ON SALE FOR A LIMITED TIME!“—?