Mike used to really enjoy potato salad, and at a family reunion he ate a large helping. Unfortunately, the potato salad had not been properly refrigerated, and Mike became quite ill after eating it. Now he finds that even the sight of potato salad in the school cafeteria can make him feel sick to his stomach. In this example of classical conditioning, the unconditioned stimulus is:

The improperly refrigerated potato salad at his family reunion                                                    

Explanation:

Unconditioned stimulus: In psychology, the term "unconditioned stimulus" is described as a specific stimulus that is automatically, unconditionally, and naturally triggering a particular response.

Example: When an individual smells a food that he or she likes to eat, then he or she may feel hungry immediately, however, in this scenario the unconditioned stimulus is considered as the food's smell.

In the question above, the unconditioned stimulus is the improperly refrigerated potato salad at his family reunion.

a: social security and social programs