"Science demands from a man all his life. If you had two lives that would not be enough for you. Be passionate in your work and in your searching," Pavlov once suggested.
Let's discuss a few things about the life of Pavlov today..
Some people are unaware of the fact that Pavlov was initially a theologist! Yes!
A person initially propagating and learning about religious studies changed his entire focus to the study of classical conditioning. This happened after reading Charles Darwin's On the Origin of the Species that had a powerful influence on his future interests. After that , he soon abandoned his religious studies and devoted himself to the study of science. In 1870, he began studying the natural sciences at St. Petersburg University.
Today, Pavlov is remembered for his experimental work on conditional reflexes in dogs; but also for his work as one of the behaviourist movement’s founding fathers, an association that continues to this day, in both Western and post-Soviet science and culture.
Pavlov’s concept of classical conditioning is now considered to be “the foundation of the modern science of learning and, in particular, of the influential theories of Watson and Skinner and the entire school of behaviourism” (Jarius & Wildemann, 2017, p. 322)
Many outside of psychology reading this article may be surprised to know that Pavlov was not a psychologist at all! and does not have any degree in the subject too! Not only was he not a psychologist; he reportedly was skeptical of the emerging field of psychology and it's applications altogether.
