A conditioned response is a learned response to a previously neutral stimulus, acquired through a process called classical conditioning
. In this context, a conditioned stimulus is a neutral or arbitrary stimulus that, after being associated with a biologically potent physiological stimulus, triggers a conditioned response
. This process involves linking two stimuli to create a new response from a person or an animal
. For example, the smell of food can be considered a conditioned stimulus, as it is not inherently dangerous but becomes associated with the idea of nourishment and satisfaction when paired with the unconditioned stimulus of actual food
. The conditioned response can be similar to the unconditioned response, but it can also be quite different
. Most learning theorists suggest that the conditioned stimulus comes to signal or predict the unconditioned stimulus and analyze the consequences of this signal
