Watson and Rayner (1920) conditioned “Little Albert” to fear white rats by banging a hammer on a steel bar as he played with a white rat. Later, it was discovered that Albert feared not only white rats but white stuffed toys and Santa’s beard as well. Albert’s fear of these other objects can be attributed to:

A. Acquisition
B. Stimulus generalization
C. Stimulus discrimination
D. An overactive imagination
Correct Answer: B. Stimulus generalization

Albert's fear of other white, furry objects is due to stimulus generalization, where a conditioned response spreads to stimuli similar to the original conditioned stimulus. Acquisition is the initial learning, not the spread.

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