Deck 10: Behaviorism and the Learning Approaches to Personality

Question 1

The goal of the behavior therapist, in working with a patient, is

A) gaining insight into the reasons behind the development of pathological behavior.
B) overcoming the psychological "blocks" which prevent a person from developing normally.
C) the modification of the target behavior.
D) the restructuring of the patient's view of his world in such a way that he can deal with it effectively.

Answer 1

C

Question 2

The learning theory approach to psychology tends to emphasize the _______ approach to research.

A) univariate
B) multivariate
C) correlational
D) experimental

Answer 2

D

Question 3

Which of the following is not an emphasis of the behaviorist approach?

A) objectivity
B) introspection
C) experiments
D) assessment

Answer 3

B

Question 4

According to learning theory, whatever consistency is found in behavior is most likely the result of

A) similarity of neural pathways handling the different impulses.
B) a limited or constricted response repertoire.
C) similarity of environmental conditions evoking the behavior.
D) the various behaviors being under the control of the same or similar ergs.

Question 5

Which of the following is not a strong criticism of Skinner's theory?

A) there is evidence of learning in the absence of reinforcement.
B) It neglects to provide for measures of important concepts.
C) Human capacity for language and thought is underemphasized.
D) Important species and constitutional differences are underemphasized.

Question 6

The principle of self-control in behavioral technology is that

A) the individual is able to tolerate delay of gratification.
B) the individual learns new escape and avoidance responses.
C) the individual gains control over his own reinforcers.
D) each individual should control his own behavior.

Question 7

With regard to behavior and its determinant, the learning theory approach tends to see the main determinants of behavior as being

A) inside the organism.
B) under mostly cognitive control.
C) external to the organism.
D) a combination of internal drives and cognitive controls.

Question 8

Watson was influenced in his thinking by

A) Hull.
B) Pavlov.
C) Skinner.
D) Tolman.

Question 9

Behavior theory has been used in psychiatric hospital settings to control and develop the behavior of patients through a system of applied rewards. This system has been called

A) reinforcement economy.
B) desensitization with psychotics.
C) token economy.
D) counter conditioning.

Question 10

Behavioral and trait approaches share an emphasis on

A) idiographic research.
B) empirical investigation.
C) laboratory-based data.
D) all of the above.

Question 11

Behavioral approaches to personality are critical of trait approaches for their emphasis on

A) systematic investigation.
B) use of verbal report.
C) principles of learning.
D) all of the above.

Question 12

The repeated presentation of a bell with electric shock will lead to the bell becoming

A) a CS.
B) an US.
C) a CR.
D) an UR.

Question 13

According to the text, the behavior therapist would be most likely to compare his role as a therapist to that of

A) an engineer.
B) an advisor.
C) a substitute parent.
D) an administrator.

Question 14

Behaviorists reject concepts such as will and intention because

A) such phenomena are unimportant.
B) such phenomena are inappropriate.
C) the observations are not public and replicable.
D) they do not exist in animals.

Question 15

According to the text, many psychologists with a behavioral orientation are turning to an emphasis on _________ in behavior and on minimizing the importance of individual differences in personality.

A) internal events, inside the organism
B) situational specificity
C) computer analogies
D) unconscious forces

Question 16

Behaviorists generally believe that

A) it is possible to generalize from the laboratory to real life.
B) one cannot generalize from rats to humans.
C) both (a) and (b).
D) neither (a) nor (b).

Question 17

Situational specificity in behavior might be due to

A) extinction.
B) generalization.
C) discrimination.
D) intermittent reinforcement.

Question 18

The learning theory account of psychopathology is that people

A) can develop sick personalities.
B) are mentally sick.
C) have specialized problems.
D) do not respond appropriately to stimuli.

Question 19

Which of the following is not one of the two basic assumptions underlying the learning theory approach to psychology put forward in the text?

A) Research methodology is important.
B) Nearly all behavior is learned.
C) People are basically active rather than reactive.
D) Both (a) and (c).

Question 20

Stability to behavior over many situations might be due to

A) extinction.
B) generalization.
C) discrimination.
D) intermittent reinforcement.

Question 21

Early reports of the continued improvement of patients treated with systematic desensitization challenged the psychoanalytic concept of

A) penis envy.
B) id, ego, superego.
C) symptom substitution.
D) the importance of transference.

Question 22

Watson and Rayner suggested that the reasons for adult fears might

A) be expressed in dreams.
B) lie in the unconscious.
C) lie in the early traumatic experiences.
D) none of the above.

Question 23

In systematic desensitization

A) the value of each component is known.
B) the value of each component is unclear.
C) it is clear that mainly suggestion is involved.
D) it is clear that operant conditioning is going on.

Question 24

Pavlov's classical conditioning design allowed him to investigate many important phenomena. Which of the following is not one of these phenomena?

A) reinforcement.
B) generalization.
C) discrimination.
D) extinction.

Question 25

Skinner called emitted responses

A) habits.
B) S-R bonds.
C) drives.
D) operants.

Question 26

Watson's work with conditioning a fear response to furry objects with Little Albert is an example of the potential for _________ conditioning to play a considerable role in the development of certain types of pathology.

A) classical
B) instrumental
C) operant
D) integration

Question 27

Watson and Rayner suggested that

A) many fears are conditioned emotional reactions.
B) fears can be extinguished through insight.
C) anxiety responses in Albert could be secondary drives.
D) all of the above.

Question 28

Skinner question the idea that people

A) have free will.
B) learn from environmental experiences.
C) can think.
D) all of the above.

Question 29

The classical conditioning procedure was illustrated in the treatment of

A) Peter and the rabbit.
B) alcoholics.
C) bed-wetters.
D) all of the above.

Question 30

Pavlov found that the failure to distinguish between the circle and ellipse as CS resulted in

A) ulcers.
B) experimental neurosis.
C) experimental psychosis.
D) learned helplessness.

Question 31

The text notes that the key structural unit for the behavioral approach to personality is

A) the response.
B) the stimulus.
C) the S-R association.
D) the erg.

Question 32

Which of the following is not a part of systematic desensitization?

A) relaxation.
B) guided participation.
C) graded hierarchy.
D) imagination of anxiety-arousing stimuli.

Question 33

John goes to the doctor for allergy shots in his arm every spring. He has done this for so long that now just seeing the doctor makes his arm hurt. This is an example of

A) instrumental conditioning.
B) operant conditioning.
C) punishment conditioning.
D) classical conditioning.

Question 34

The following is a definition of __________ conditioning: A previously neutral stimulus becomes capable of eliciting a response because of its association with a stimulus that automatically produces the same or a similar response.

A) instrumental
B) reward
C) operant
D) classical

Question 35

Behavioral psychologists could be expected to be critical of the psychoanalytic interpretation of the use of Little Hans because

A) of the emphasis on unconscious wishes.
B) of the emphasis on anxiety.
C) of the emphasis on behaviors learned from their father.
D) all of the above.

Question 36

Longstanding disgust for certain foods may be based on

A) unconscious wishes.
B) approach-avoidance conflicts.
C) classical conditioning.
D) systematic desensitization.

Question 37

Pavlov suggested that thought processes

A) were part of a second signal system.
B) were part of a system of US.
C) were unique to humans.
D) could not be studied objectively.

Question 38

Jones's (1924) unconditioning of Peter's fear of the rabbit is most similar to which classical conditioning technique?

A) Token economy
B) Positive reinforcement
C) Aversive conditioning
D) Systematic desensitization

Question 39

A fundamental difference between Freudian and Pavlovian interpretations of the case of Little Hans is

A) an emphasis on symbolism.
B) an emphasis on anxiety.
C) both (a) and (b).
D) neither (a) nor (b).

Question 40

Skinnerians would not favor systematic desensitization because

A) it emphasizes specific behaviors.
B) it emphasizes mental imagery.
C) it emphasizes anxiety.
D) all of the above.

Question 41

In operant conditioning, punishment consists of

A) a painful stimulus.
B) the removal of a positive reinforcer.
C) the removal of an aversive event.
D) a conflict between positive and negative stimuli.

Question 42

Superstitious behavior can be defined by a learning theorist as

A) doing something and not knowing why.
B) a behavioral deficit which only shows up in unusual situations.
C) doing something for good luck.
D) non-contingent reinforcement.

Question 43

Which of the following is an accurate statement of the Skinnerian view of imitation?

A) It does not exist at all.
B) Behavior must always be directly reinforced to be initiated.
C) Imitative responses can result from intermittent reinforcement.
D) "Monkey sees, monkey does."

Question 44

In ____________ a response is reinforced because it is associated with the termination of an aversive stimulus.

A) escape learning
B) successive approximation
C) avoidance learning
D) punishment

Question 45

Based on the relative permanency of effect and utility in modifying behavior, Skinner emphasized the use of _______ reinforcement in the shaping of behavior.

A) positive
B) partial
C) negative
D) conditional

Question 46

The effect of punishment is to

A) decrease the probability of a response.
B) extinguish a response.
C) both (a) and (b).
D) neither (a) nor (b).

Question 47

According to Skinner

A) exploration of motivation is a worthy endeavor.
B) feelings are causes of behavior.
C) both (a) and (b).
D) neither (a) nor (b).

Question 48

According to Skinner, scientists

A) are driven by needs for prestige.
B) are shaped by their own reinforcement histories.
C) are completely free of bias.
D) none of the above.

Question 49

A distinguishing feature of behavioral assessment is an emphasis on

A) specific responses in general situations.
B) specific responses in specific situations.
C) general responses in specific situations.
D) general responses in general situations.

Question 50

According to Skinner, complex behaviors are built up through

A) observational learning.
B) successive approximations.
C) classical conditioning.
D) intermittent reinforcement.

Question 51

Pavlov's work was suggestive to Skinner in terms of

A) emphasizing the importance of nervous system functioning.
B) emphasizing the importance of controlling environmental conditions.
C) both (a) and (b).
D) neither (a) nor (b).

Question 52

A critical difference between psychoanalytic and behavioral interpretations of psychopathology is

A) one emphasizes learning, the other does not.
B) one emphasizes the organization of responses, the other does not.
C) one emphasizes anxiety, the other does not.
D) all of the above.

Question 53

Skinner's research emphasizes

A) self-report.
B) the study of individual organisms.
C) physiological data.
D) the study of elicited behavior.

Question 54

The concept of schedules of reinforcement relates to

A) the pairing of CS and US.
B) the pairing of CR and UR.
C) rates and intervals.
D) none of the above.

Question 55

For Skinner, depression may be viewed as a result of

A) punishment.
B) withdrawal of positive reinforcers.
C) intermittent reinforcement.
D) all of the above.

Question 56

Behavioral approaches to psychopathology emphasize the importance of

A) behavioral deficits.
B) maladaptive responses.
C) both (a) and (b).
D) neither (a) nor (b).

Question 57

Skinnerians feel that behaviors can be imitated without being directly reinforced, but that this can only happen when

A) the behavioral response is already within the child's repertory of behaviors.
B) the model receives reinforcement for the behavior to be imitated.
C) the child has had no previous experience with unreinforced imitations.
D) the act of imitation itself has taken on the qualities of a reinforcer.

Question 58

For Skinner, money is

A) a motivation of behavior.
B) a generalized reinforcer.
C) a conditional stimulus.
D) the root of all evil.

Question 59

According to Skinner, qualities of learned behavior are influenced by reinforcer

A) fixed time intervals.
B) intermittent time intervals.
C) variable schedules.
D) all of the above.

Question 60

According to Skinner, individuals

A) have unique reinforcement histories.
B) all follow the same rules of learning.
C) both (a) and (b).
D) neither (a) nor (b).

Question 61

According to the text, the Skinnerian approach to psychopathology would predict that a "behavioral deficit" would result when

A) a person developed a "healthy" response that came under the control of inappropriate reinforcers.
B) there is a failure to develop a response that is normally part of a person's behavioral repertory.
C) a person develops a response that is labeled as "bad", "sick", or "neurotic" in society.
D) a person is out of touch with the conditions of reinforcement in the environment.

Question 62

According to the behavioral view, psychopathology involves learned problematic behaviors that can be unlearned.

Question 63

The behavioral emphasis is on environmental determinants and situational specificity.

Question 64

Behavioral assessment is associated with theories that

A) emphasize the interplay among motives.
B) emphasize hierarchical structure.
C) emphasize perception as an active process.
D) none of the above.

Question 65

The functional analysis of behavior leads to

A) an analysis of global personality characteristics.
B) an analysis of the functions-adaptive aspects of behavior.
C) the ABC assessment method.
D) all of the above.

Question 66

Therapist control over the relevant variables is demonstrated

A) in the corrective emotional experience.
B) with the ABA design.
C) with the ABC method.
D) with the NEO.

Question 67

The key aspect of a reinforcer is that it influences the probability of a response.

Question 68

Money is illustrative of a generalized reinforcer.

Question 69

According to Pavlov, a neurosis can be caused by difficulty in discriminating between similar stimuli.

Question 70

Behavioral assessment

A) generally is tied to treatment objectives.
B) generally assumes the existence of some person variables.
C) both (a) and (b).
D) neither (a) nor (b).

Question 71

Behavioral assessment focuses on the direct assessment of theoretical constructs.

Question 72

The learning theory account for psychotherapy is that individuals are not mentally sick, but rather

A) they are mentally ill.
B) they have failed to learn a response or they have learned a maladaptive response.
C) they are physically sick.
D) they suffer from stimulus generalization and response constriction.

Question 73

Successive approximations provide an explanation for the development of complex behaviors.

Question 74

Which of the following is not an emphasis of behavior therapy?

A) Experimental manipulations of variables.
B) Focus on change in core aspects of psychological functioning.
C) Environmental stimuli that cause and maintain behavior.
D) Alteration of responses by direct means.

Question 75

Behavioral and self-report data

A) show good agreement.
B) are interchangeable.
C) do not always match one another.
D) both require the use of factor analysis.

Question 76

The case of Albert involved a conditional emotional reaction.

Question 77

According to Skinner, superstitious behavior develops because of an accidental relationship between response and reinforcement.

Question 78

Behavioral assessment is illustrative of the

A) sign approach.
B) sample approach.
C) nomothetic approach.
D) construct validity approach.

Question 79

Operant conditioning differs from classical conditioning in that it shapes rather than creates behavior.

Question 80

Rorschach is to ABC as

A) sign is to sample.
B) sample is to sign.
C) TAT is to NBC.
D) none of the above.