Which of the following actions could John Watson have used to eliminate Little Albert's conditioned fear response according to principles of classical conditioning?

• A. Remove all toys and objects from Little Albert's environment
• B. Pair the white rat with a pleasant stimulus to reinforce the fear response
• C. Increase the intensity of the loud noise when presenting the white rat
• D. Repeatedly present the white rat to Little Albert without the loud noise until the fear response diminished

Answer: (D)

Verified step by step guidance

1. Understand that Little Albert's fear was a conditioned response formed by pairing a neutral stimulus (the white rat) with an unconditioned stimulus (the loud noise) that naturally elicited fear.
2. Recall that according to classical conditioning principles, to eliminate a conditioned response, one must use the process called extinction.
3. Extinction involves repeatedly presenting the conditioned stimulus (the white rat) without the unconditioned stimulus (the loud noise), so the association between the two weakens over time.
4. Recognize that removing all toys or increasing the intensity of the loud noise would not eliminate the conditioned fear; instead, they might maintain or worsen it.
5. Therefore, the correct approach is to repeatedly present the white rat alone, without the loud noise, until Little Albert's fear response decreases and eventually disappears.