Question

From the Chapter 5, in the book theories of "Human Learning: What the professor said-180-day option, 6th edition Guy R Lefrancois", in thinking about the topic of taste aversion please discuss the key concepts that contribute to this type of learning. Furthermore, what parts of the brain might contribute to this learning process and how? Give two references from outside book.

Answer 1

Taste aversion is a form of classical conditioning. It is an associated learning wherein a being learns to associate certain kinds of food or beverages ingested to a negative consequence. The hippocampus in the limbic system is responsible in formation of the fear of ingesting a certain kind of food. For instance, Mary was diagnosed with a kidney problem and had to be hospitalized for two weeks. In the hospital, right after she consumed anything sweet after a meal or otherwise, the nurse would pull out some blood with a needle to check Mary's blood sugar levels. After Mary got discharged from the hospital, she developed an aversion to sweets. She began to associate desserts with fine needles that suck blood out of her arm.

Aversion is also used as a form of therapy to treat addictions. For instance, a drug abuser or an alcohol addict are given the drug that they are addicted to, which is mixed with another drug that causes nausea. Once a person induces the drug, he immediately vomits. This leads to an aversion and the person chooses to refrain from alcohol or drug because of the consequences that follows.