What it is
Classical conditioning, also called Pavlovian conditioning, is learning by pairing. Something that naturally causes a response (food, a puff of air on the eye) gets paired with something neutral (a bell). After enough pairings, the neutral thing sets off the response by itself.
Ivan Pavlov’s work with dogs, published in 1897, is the best-known early account. The dogs learned to salivate at the sound that meant food was coming.
How it shows up for me
It explains a lot of what I thought was “just how I am.” A certain tone of voice, a certain sound at night, and my body is already bracing before my mind has decided anything. Knowing it was learned means it can be unlearned, slowly.