Deck 7: Operant Procedures:punishment

Question 1

When disciplining their son, Jacob, Mr.and Ms Grinch begin with an extremely mild form of punishment and gradually increase its strength if the offenses continue.This procedure is likely to result in .

A)violent outbursts from Jacob
B)confusing Jacob
C)the use of excessively strong aversives
D)a rapid suppression of the unwanted behavior

Answer 1

C

Question 2

The word positive in positive punishment refers to the fact that .

A)something is added
B)something positive is removed
C)the results are positive
D)the procedure is used with good intentions

Answer 2

A

Question 3

If Charles Catania's thinking about reinforcement is applied to punishment, we can say that all of the following are true of punishment except .

A)a behavior must have a consequence
B)the consequence of the behavior must be negative
C)a behavior must decrease in strength
D)the decrease in strength must be the result of the behavior's consequence

Answer 3

B

Question 4

Any event that follows a behavior and makes that behavior less likely to occur is called a .

A)positive reinforcer
B)negative reinforcer
C)punisher
D)punishment

Question 5

Murray Sidman's book on aversive control, including punishment, is called .

A)Coercion and Its Fallout
B)Aversive Control Today
C)The Punitive Society
D)The End of Punishment

Question 6

In the school year, 2004-2005, public school teachers or staff paddled .

A)50,000 students
B)over 100,000 students
C)early 150,000 students
D)more than 250,000 students

Question 7

Harriet hears a noise in the kitchen and investigates.She finds the cookie jar in pieces on the floor and 5-year-old Willy standing nearby.Harriet knows what happened, but asks Willy anyway.Willy admits
That he broke the jar while trying to get cookies.Harriet gives Willy a spanking.Willy is most likely to
Learn from this experience that .

A)it doesn't pay to tell the truth
B)cookies are scary
C)his mother doesn't like him
D)the kitchen is an unsafe place for little boys

Question 8

Of the following procedures, the one that reinforces behavior that cannot be performed at the same time as the unwanted behavior is .

A)DRZ
B)DRI
C)DRL
D)DRA

Question 9

The correct term for a stimulus that acts as a punisher is .

A)asbestive
B)admonitor
C)adversive
D)aversive

Question 10

When a student repeatedly behaves in an inappropriate way, probably the teacher's first step should be to .

A)have the child tested by the school psychologist
B)develop a plan for applying punishment
C)use differential reinforcement of incompatible behavior
D)try to discover what is reinforcing the behavior

Question 11

Generally speaking, the more intense a punisher, the .

A)less it suppresses behavior
B)more it suppresses behavior
C)more important it is to have the response on extinction
D)less important the reinforcement history

Question 12

David Camp and colleagues found that, compared to a two-second delay in punishment, a 30-second delay resulted in .

A)slightly greater response suppression
B)slightly less response suppression
C)about half as much response suppression
D)about twice as much response suppression

Question 13

Farmer Gable had a problem with motorcyclists riding across his meadow land, tearing up sod and frightening his cattle.He installed barbed wire fencing in the area and no longer had a problem.Gable's approach is best described as an example of .

A)response prevention
B)extinction
C)differential reinforcement
D)punishment

Question 14

Positive punishment is most often confused with .

A)negative punishment
B)negative reinforcement
C)aversion therapy
D)counterconditioning

Question 15

Of the following, the person who most approved of the use of punishment was probably .

A)Skinner
B)Thorndike
C)Franklin
D)Machiavelli

Question 16

Research has shown that abnormal behavior is often .

A)the result of unconscious urges
B)an inappropriate way of obtaining appropriate reinforcers
C)due to the misuse of punishment
D)an effort to punish others

Question 17

Differential reinforcement is best used in combination with .

A)punishment
B)negative reinforcement
C)extinction
D)response prevention

Question 18

David Camp and colleagues found that even a delay of only reduced the effectiveness of a punisher..

A)2 seconds
B)5 seconds
C)10 seconds
D)15 seconds

Question 19

All of the following enhance the effectiveness of punishment except .

A)using strong punishers
B)withholding reinforcement of the punished behavior
C)punishing immediately
D)increasing the reinforcer deprivation level

Question 20

Each time Charles, who has a lisp, says "Mithithippi" or the like, his wife, Evelyn, yells, "Idiot!" However, there is no evidence that Evelyn's efforts to reduce the frequency of such mispronunciations have been effective.We can therefore conclude that .

A)Charles's behavior is being positively reinforced
B)Charles's behavior has not been punished
C)Evelyn's efforts to punish Charles's behavior have actually reinforced it
D)Charles is lisping deliberately to annoy Evelyn

Question 21

The first formal studies of punishment were probably done by .

A)Thorndike
B)Watson
C)Rosalie Rayner
D)Pavlov

Question 22

The term punishment, as used by behavior scientists, has nothing to do with retribution.

Question 23

Frequent use of weak punishers is more effective than occasional use of intense punishers.

Question 24

When using punishment to suppress an undesirable behavior, it is important to provide alternative means of obtaining the reinforcers that have maintained that behavior.

Question 25

An early theory of punishment proposed that response suppression occurred because aversives disrupt ongoing behavior.

Question 26

One problem with extinction as a way of reducing the frequency of potentially harmful behavior is that .

A)the behavior on extinction sometimes increases at first
B)the results are not durable
C)it is not covered by medical insurance
D)ultimately, it makes the problem worse

Question 27

Abnormal behavior may persist despite aversive consequences because it also produces reinforcing consequences.

Question 28

The two-process theory of punishment assumes that punishment involves .

A)positive and negative reinforcement
B)Pavlovian and operant learning
C)positive and negative punishment
D)reward training and escape training

Question 29

Positive punishment necessarily involves aversives.

Question 30

The use of punishers is so common that concluded that "The world runs on fear."

A)Jack Nicholson
B)Jack Robinson
C)Jack Michaels
D)Jack Sprat

Question 31

Punishers, like reinforcers, are defined by their effect on behavior.

Question 32

Delaying delivery of a punisher is most likely to .

A)reduce its effectiveness
B)increase its effectiveness
C)have no impact on its effectiveness
D)have variable and unpredictable effects on its effectiveness

Question 33

Punishers are defined by .

A)society at large
B)experts in the field
C)their effects on behavior
D)their intensity

Question 34

Negative punishment is also sometimes called training.

A)escape
B)penalty
C)withdrawal
D)subtraction

Question 35

The one-process theory of punishment goes back to .

A)Thorndike
B)Watson
C)Skinner
D)Pavlov

Question 36

In using punishment, it is best to begin with a weak punisher and gradually increase its strength as needed.

Question 37

If a rat receives a shock each time it presses a lever, but not otherwise, we can say that .

A)the rate of lever pressing will decrease, then increase
B)the shock will reduce the frequency of lever pressing
C)shock is contingent on lever pressing
D)lever pressing and shock are contiguous

Question 38

John gives his dog, Alfie (a yap hound), a bit of food whenever it goes 30 seconds without barking. Gradually, John increases the amount of quiet time required to earn food until finally the dog will go for
Hours without a yap.The procedure John used is best described as .

A)extinction
B)differential reinforcement of alternative behavior
C)differential reinforcement of zero responding
D)non contingent reinforcement

Question 39

Although punishment can have negative side effects, there is evidence that it can also have positive side effects.

Question 40

One way to make punishment more effective is to provide an alternative means of obtaining reinforcement.

Question 41

How is the effectiveness of punishment affected by the availability of reinforcement?

Question 42

It is common practice to begin punishment with a very weak punisher and gradually increase the intensity of the punisher until one finds an effective level of intensity.Is this a good idea? Why or why not?

Question 43

Positive and negative punishment have in common that they both behavior.

Question 44

What is the fundamental difference between the two-process and one-process theories of punishment?

Question 45

Briefly discuss the problems associated with punishment.