Carla was bitten by a dog when she was a toddler. She's older now, but still backs up in fear whenever a dog approaches her. This is an example of

• A. vicarious conditioning.
• B. biological preparedness.
• C. conditioned emotional response.
• D. stimulus substitution.

Answer: (C)

Verified step by step guidance

1. Identify the key elements of the scenario: Carla was bitten by a dog (an unconditioned stimulus) which caused fear (an unconditioned response).
2. Recognize that Carla's fear response to dogs is a learned behavior, as she now backs up in fear whenever a dog approaches, even though the original event (the bite) is not occurring.
3. Understand that this learned fear response is an example of classical conditioning, where a neutral stimulus (the sight of a dog) becomes associated with an unconditioned stimulus (the bite) to produce a conditioned response (fear).
4. Define 'conditioned emotional response' as a learned emotional reaction to a previously neutral stimulus, which in this case is Carla's fear of dogs.
5. Conclude that Carla's behavior is best explained by the concept of a conditioned emotional response, as her fear is a learned reaction to the presence of dogs, stemming from her past experience.