Question 1

A disadvantage of using punishment is that&#10;A)the subject may exhibit aggressive behavior in response to the punishment&#10;B)the subject may try to escape from the situation&#10;C)both a and b&#10;D)neither a nor b

Accepted Answer

Both options A and B are potential disadvantages of using punishment. The subject may become aggressive towards the punisher or try to escape the situation in order to avoid punishment. Therefore the correct option is C.

Question 2

It may be difficult to reduce a behavior with punishment if&#10;A)the punishment is delayed&#10;B)the behavior is highly motivated&#10;C)the intensity of the punishment is gradually increased&#10;D)all of the above

Accepted Answer

A) If the punishment is delayed, the association between the behavior and punishment may not be strong enough to reduce the behavior in the future.
B) If the behavior is highly motivated, the individual may be willing to accept the punishment as a consequence of continuing the behavior.
C) Gradually increasing the intensity of the punishment may actually make the individual more resistant to the punishment and less likely to change their behavior. Therefore, all of the above factors can make it difficult to reduce a behavior with punishment.

Question 3

After training an avoidance response,response blocking can&#10;A)lead to aggression&#10;B)help to produce extinction of the avoidance response&#10;C)produce an increase in avoidance responses&#10;D)lead to increased fear of the CS

Accepted Answer

C

Question 4

Taking an aspirin every day to reduce one's chances of a heart attack is an example of a behavior controlled by&#10;A)positive reinforcement&#10;B)negative reinforcement&#10;C)punishment&#10;D)omission

Accepted Answer

Negative reinforcement involves the removal or avoidance of an unpleasant stimulus in order to increase the likelihood of a behavior. In this case, taking aspirin is a behavior that is reinforced by the avoidance of a potential heart attack.

Question 5

Suppose an animal first receives tone-shock pairings in one chamber,and then learns to jump over a barrier to escape a shock in a shuttle box.If the tone is now presented in the shuttle box,the likely result is

A)an increase in the rate at which the dog jumps over the barrier
B)a decrease in the rate at which the dog jumps over the barrier
C)no change in the rate of jumping
D)conditioned suppression

Accepted Answer

The animal has learned to associate the tone with the shock through classical conditioning in the first chamber. When the tone is presented in the shuttle box, it acts as a conditioned stimulus, signaling that a shock is imminent. This would likely increase the animal's motivation to escape the shock by jumping over the barrier more quickly, hence an increase in the rate at which the animal jumps over the barrier.

Question 6

To obtain the maximum reduction in a behavior,the most effective schedule of punishment is&#10;A)continuous punishment&#10;B)fixed-ratio punishment&#10;C)variable-ratio punishment&#10;D)fixed-interval punishment

Accepted Answer

Continuous punishment involves administering punishment consistently every time the behavior occurs. This is effective in reducing the behavior quickly and strongly, as there is no chance for the behavior to be reinforced. However, it can also lead to negative side effects such as emotional distress, fear, and aggression, so it should be used with caution and under the guidance of a professional.

Question 7

When flooding is used as behavior therapy,it is important to&#10;A)make sure that a session continues until the patient's fear decreases&#10;B)keep each session short&#10;C)keep the patient relaxed throughout the treatment&#10;D)keep the patient uninformed about what will occur during treatment

Accepted Answer

It is important to make sure that the flooding session continues until the patient's fear decreases so that the patient can experience the "extinction" of their fear response. This helps to ensure that the therapy is effective in treating the phobia or anxiety. Keeping each session short or keeping the patient uninformed about what will occur during treatment may lead to increased anxiety and decreased effectiveness of the therapy. While it is important for the patient to remain relaxed throughout treatment, this cannot be achieved at the expense of exposing the patient to the fear-provoking stimulus.

Question 8

According to the one-factor theory of avoidance,&#10;A)fear is essential for avoidance learning&#10;B)an external CS that predicts the arrival of an aversive event is essential for avoidance learning&#10;C)avoidance of an aversive event can itself serve as a reinforcer&#10;D)avoidance responding should never extinguish

Accepted Answer

The one-factor theory of avoidance proposes that avoidance of an aversive event can itself serve as a reinforcer, meaning that the animal or person may engage in the avoidance behavior to avoid the aversive event in the future. The theory does not suggest that fear or an external CS are essential for avoidance learning, nor does it imply that avoidance responding will never extinguish.

Question 9

Learned helplessness has been observed in&#10;A)dogs&#10;B)cockroaches&#10;C)the spinal cord&#10;D)all of the above

Accepted Answer

Learned helplessness, a concept that emerged from experiments with animals, has been observed across various species, including dogs (in the foundational work by Martin Seligman), cockroaches, and even in studies related to the spinal cord, indicating a broad biological basis for the phenomenon.

Question 10

Various experiments have shown that avoidance responding&#10;A)will not be acquired unless there is an external CS&#10;B)will be acquired without an external CS if the passage of time is a reliable signal for shock&#10;C)will not be acquired if the only effect of a response is to reduce the rate of shocks&#10;D)none of the above

Accepted Answer

This is because if the passage of time is a reliable signal for shock, the organism can learn to avoid the shock without an external CS. The other options are incorrect as they state that avoidance responding will not be acquired unless there is an external CS or that it will not be acquired if the only effect of a response is to reduce the rate of shocks, both of which are not always true.

Question 11

Removing a pleasant stimulus after a behavior occurs is called&#10;A)positive reinforcement&#10;B)negative reinforcement&#10;C)punishment&#10;D)negative punishment

Accepted Answer

The answer of Removing a pleasant stimulus after a behavior...

Question 12

According to Bolles's theory of species-specific defense reactions,shock-avoidance learning in a rat would probably be slowest if the required response were&#10;A)jumping out of the chamber&#10;B)pressing a lever&#10;C)running in a wheel&#10;D)standing still

Accepted Answer

The answer of According to Bolles's theory of species-specific defense...

Question 13

A disadvantage of using punishment is that&#10;A)one must continually monitor the subject's behavior&#10;B)a return of the punished behavior is inevitable once the punishment contingency is removed&#10;C)both a and b&#10;D)neither a nor b

Accepted Answer

The answer of A disadvantage of using punishment is that&#10;A)one...

Question 14

According to the cognitive theory of avoidance,a subject learns to expect&#10;A)that no shock will occur if a response is made&#10;B)that shock will occur if no response is made&#10;C)both a and b&#10;D)neither a nor b

Accepted Answer

The answer of According to the cognitive theory of avoidance,a...

Question 15

Learned helplessness is likely to develop if&#10;A)controllable shocks are preceded by uncontrollable shocks&#10;B)uncontrollable shocks are preceded by controllable shocks&#10;C)either a or b&#10;D)neither a nor b

Accepted Answer

The answer of Learned helplessness is likely to develop if&#10;A)controllable...

Question 16

According to two-factor theory,in a shuttle-box shock-avoidance procedure,an avoidance response is reinforced by&#10;A)the termination of the shock&#10;B)the omission of the shock&#10;C)the termination of the CS&#10;D)the omission of the CS

Accepted Answer

The answer of According to two-factor theory,in a shuttle-box shock-avoidance...

Question 17

According to two-factor theory,the procedure of response blocking or flooding&#10;A)works because the subject's expectations about the consequences of failing to respond are changed&#10;B)works because the fear-eliciting properties of the CS are extinguished&#10;C)works because flooding produces a drastic stimulus change&#10;D)should not work

Accepted Answer

The answer of According to two-factor theory,the procedure of response...

Question 18

According to Bolles,typical laboratory experiments on avoidance are not representative of avoidance in the natural environment because&#10;A)shock is not usually encountered in the natural environment&#10;B)avoidance in the natural environment does not require many learning trials&#10;C)there are many more discriminative stimuli to examine in the natural environment&#10;D)all of the above

Accepted Answer

The answer of According to Bolles,typical laboratory experiments on avoidance...

Question 19

As animals become experienced in an avoidance task,&#10;A)visible signs of fear increase&#10;B)visible signs of fear decrease&#10;C)there are visible signs of fear before the avoidance response is made,but not after&#10;D)there are visible signs of fear after the avoidance response is made,but not before

Accepted Answer

The answer of As animals become experienced in an avoidance...

Question 20

The effects of punishment are&#10;A)temporary&#10;B)no greater than those of response-independent shocks&#10;C)dependent on the immediacy of the punishment&#10;D)greatest when the subject has no alternative behaviors available

Accepted Answer

The answer of The effects of punishment are&#10;A)temporary&#10;B)no greater than...

Question 21

In a token system,if a person loses points for using bad language,this is an example of&#10;A)differential reinforcement of alternative behavior&#10;B)overcorrection&#10;C)response cost&#10;D)a technique that does not work

Accepted Answer

The answer of In a token system,if a person loses...

Question 22

If a teacher believes that a child is constantly being disruptive in a classroom because it allows him to avoid doing his assignment,the best behavior decelerator to use is probably&#10;A)time-out&#10;B)escape extinction&#10;C)stimulus satiation&#10;D)response blocking

Accepted Answer

The answer of If a teacher believes that a child...

Question 23

If an inappropriate behavior appears to occur because it is reinforced by attention from others,the best behavior decelerator to use is probably&#10;A)extinction&#10;B)flooding&#10;C)stimulus satiation&#10;D)negative reinforcement

Accepted Answer

The answer of If an inappropriate behavior appears to occur...

Question 24

Reinforcing normal speech while ignoring psychotic speech is an example of&#10;A)differential reinforcement of alternative behavior&#10;B)differential reinforcement of low rates&#10;C)noncontingent reinforcement&#10;D)response cost

Accepted Answer

The answer of Reinforcing normal speech while ignoring psychotic speech...

Question 25

To treat a woman in a psychiatric hospital who hoarded towels,the nurses gave the woman a large number of towels.This is an example of&#10;A)extinction&#10;B)stimulus satiation&#10;C)overcorrection&#10;D)response prevention

Accepted Answer

The answer of To treat a woman in a psychiatric...

Question 26

A young boy disobeys his parents by coming home late.An example of the use of negative punishment would be to&#10;A)pay no attention to the transgression&#10;B)require the child to dry the dishes&#10;C)give the child no allowance for that week&#10;D)none of the above

Accepted Answer

The answer of A young boy disobeys his parents by...

Deck 7: Avoidance and Punishment