Stimulus
Stimulus
Stimulus (/ˈstɪmjʊləs/; plural stimuli) is a detectable change in the internal or external environment. The ability of an organism or organ to respond to external stimuli is called sensitivity.
Etymology
The term "stimulus" is derived from the Latin word "stimulus" which means 'goad, spur, incentive'. It was first used in the English language in the mid-17th century.
Definition
In psychology, a stimulus is any object or event that elicits a sensory or behavioral response in an organism. In general, stimuli can be classified into two broad categories: internal stimuli and external stimuli. Internal stimuli are changes within the body, such as hunger, that motivate behavior. External stimuli are changes in the environment outside the body, such as light or sound, that affect the senses.
Related Terms
- Sensory receptor: A sensory nerve ending that recognizes a stimulus in the internal or external environment of an organism.
- Response: A reaction to a specific stimulus.
- Stimulus control: The ability of a stimulus to encourage some sort of behavior or response.
- Stimulus generalization: The tendency for the conditioned stimulus to evoke similar responses after the response has been conditioned.
- Stimulus discrimination: The ability to differentiate between a conditioned stimulus and other stimuli that have not been paired with an unconditioned stimulus.
See Also
External links
- Medical encyclopedia article on Stimulus
- Wikipedia's article - Stimulus
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