conditioning

[kuhn-dish-uh-ning]

noun

Psychology.

1. Also called operant conditioning, instrumental conditioning. a process of changing behavior by rewarding or punishing a subject each time an action is performed until the subject associates the action with pleasure or distress.

2. Also called classical conditioning, Pavlovian conditioning, respondent conditioning. a process in which a stimulus that was previously neutral, as the sound of a bell, comes to evoke a particular response, as salivation, by being repeatedly paired with another stimulus that normally evokes the response, as the taste of food.

conditioning

1. See classical conditioning

Other Word Forms

• self-conditioning adjective

Word History and Origins

Origin of conditioning¹

First recorded in 1915–20; condition + -ing ¹

Example Sentences

Meanwhile, P Venkataraman, the director-general of the Andhra Pradesh Fire Services Department, said electrical batteries used for the air conditioning system of the bus also exploded and made the fire worse.

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At least I’m a sucker who can turn on the air conditioning in August.

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Critical analysts and former officials say that explicitly conditioning U.S. aid on ideological alignment risks undermining U.S. credibility as a partner in the region.

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The intention is obvious: After a conditioning period, the only certainty — and reality — that remains exists in the form of the Great Leader.

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He said a gaping hole in the ceiling exposed "thick black mold" underneath, and that broken air conditioning forced prisoners to endure sweltering heat.

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Related Words

• assignment 
• discipline 
• drilling 
• homework 
• preparation 
• repetition 
• training 
• tryout 
• warmup 
• workout