StimulusStimulus is defined as any change in the environment or form of energy that affects an organism’s behavior or physiological state. Stimuli can be external or internal, and they can el... More Discrimination refers to the ability to differentiate between different stimuli and respond appropriately to each. It occurs when a behaviorBehavior refers to any activity or action that living organisms engage in, which can be observed, measured, and analyzed. It encompasses all interactions an organism has with its environment, inc... More is reinforced in the presence of one stimulus (discriminative stimulus, or SD) but not in the presence of other stimuli (S-deltas), leading the learner to respond only when the correct stimulus is present.
Example
A child learns to say “dog” when shown a picture of a dog (SD), but does not say “dog” when shown a picture of a cat (S-delta). The child has developed stimulus discrimination because they can distinguish between the two different stimuli and respond only to the appropriate one (the picture of the dog).