Question

Describe in your own words Seligman’s Preparedness Theory. Give your own example of how this would manifest in a human.

Answer 1

Martin Seligman theory of preparedness in learning states that humans are prone learning some things more easily than others. According to him, our evolutionary history predisposes us to developing certain kinds of responses more readily than others. Some of these responses could be fear of heights and snakes, which are essential to our survival. An example of this is how we develop allergies or intolerance to some foods, this happens through associating the food with past history of vomiting, so that the food if taken again may cause vomiting again. This happens because of classical conditioning, but in this case it develops very fast compared to other things learned through conditioning as this is essential for survival