Question 1

What do we call the learning that occurs when a stimulus eliciting a response is paired with another stimulus that initially does not elicit a response on its own but, over time, also causes a similar response because of its association with the first stimulus?

Accepted Answer

Classical conditioning is the process where a neutral stimulus becomes associated with a meaningful stimulus and acquires the capacity to elicit a similar response. This was famously demonstrated by Ivan Pavlov through his experiments with dogs, where a neutral stimulus (a bell) was paired with the presentation of food, eventually leading the bell alone to elicit salivation.

Question 2

Repeated pairings of CS and UCS over time may lead to a certain level of association, but when the pairings are only occasionally presented, the prior linking effects may disappear completely. This is called:

Accepted Answer

Extinction in classical conditioning occurs when the conditioned stimulus (CS) is repeatedly presented without the unconditioned stimulus (UCS), leading to a decrease in the conditioned response over time. This process describes the scenario where the association between the CS and UCS weakens due to the lack of reinforcement (pairing of CS and UCS).

Question 3

Why do companies use the masked branding strategy?

Accepted Answer

Masked branding is used to deliberately hide a product's true origin, often to reach a different target market or to avoid the preconceptions associated with the main brand.

Question 4

Juan, while out cycling in Vancouver one day, found himself humming a jingle for farm tractors that he had heard on the radio. He found this surprising, as he had absolutely no interest in farming or tractors. This acquisition of knowledge is known as:

Accepted Answer

Incidental learning occurs when a person acquires knowledge or skills without having intentionally set out to learn them. Juan learning the jingle without any interest in the product (tractors) is an example of incidental learning, as he learned it passively, without deliberate effort.

Question 5

________ refers to a relatively permanent change in behaviour that is caused by experience.

Accepted Answer

Learning is defined as a relatively permanent change in behavior due to experience. This distinguishes it from memory (which is the ability to store and recall information), perception (which is how we interpret sensory information), and motivation (which is what drives us to act).

Question 6

Classical conditioning is a form of:

Accepted Answer

Classical conditioning is a form of associative learning, where an individual learns to associate one stimulus with another, leading to a learned response.

Question 7

For the second time that day, Karla heard a radio ad announcing 40% off all spring jackets at a downtown Halifax ladies' clothing store. She decided to go and check out the sale as a result of the ads. We would conclude that ________ has occurred.

Accepted Answer

Karla's decision to check out the sale after hearing the radio ads indicates that learning has occurred, as she has processed the information from the ads and it influenced her behavior.

Question 8

You see a humorous commercial for Coca-Cola that has been repeated several times during your favourite TV show. While you are at the grocery store, you see a bottle of Coca-Cola and smile uncontrollably at the products. What is this an example of?

Accepted Answer

This is an example of classical conditioning, where an association is formed between the humorous commercial (a neutral stimulus) and the positive feelings or amusement (an unconditioned response). When you see the Coca-Cola bottle (now a conditioned stimulus), it elicits a similar positive response (conditioned response) as the commercial did, making you smile.

Question 9

A coffee chain could not understand why its new commercial was not successful at improving sales. The commercial, which showed its latte followed by a jingle, had aired for a month on popular television stations. This commercial was not successful because:

Accepted Answer

Playing the jingle before showing the product (latte) could create a stronger associative link in the viewer's mind, making the advertisement more effective. This technique is based on the principles of classical conditioning, where a conditioned stimulus (jingle) is presented before the unconditioned stimulus (latte) to create a stronger association.

Question 10

Derek has seen a commercial for a phone company so many times that he no longer pays attention to it. Derek is experiencing:

Accepted Answer

Derek is experiencing advertising wearout, which occurs when an advertisement is overexposed to the point where the audience becomes overly familiar with it and starts to ignore it or even develop negative feelings towards it.

Question 11

Scott thought of himself as a very successful marketer. He created a campaign with a product logo that was very popular and that customers associated with a quality product. It was so popular that, in a few months, the logo began to appear almost everywhere. Instead of increasing sales of the product, customer demand began to decrease as the competitor's product became more successful. What characteristic of learning was ruining Scott's apparent success?

Accepted Answer

Too much repetition can lead to extinction in conditioning, where the conditioned stimulus (in this case, the logo) loses its ability to elicit the conditioned response (positive perception of quality) due to overexposure. This phenomenon can explain the decrease in customer demand despite the logo's initial popularity.

Question 12

Casual, even unintentional, acquisition of knowledge is called:

Accepted Answer

Incidental learning refers to the process of learning that occurs without the intention to learn. This type of learning happens as a by-product of some other activity, such as carrying out a task, interacting with others, or being exposed to information, without the explicit goal of acquiring knowledge.

Question 13

If consumers repeatedly see TV ads for a "decadent" ice cream (perhaps "Pure Cream and Berries Ice Cream"), they will feel hungry for some in the future when they merely hear the brand name. Their hunger is an example of a:

Accepted Answer

The hunger triggered by hearing the brand name after repeated exposure to the TV ads is a conditioned response. This is because the consumers have learned to associate the brand name with the sensory experience of the ice cream, leading to hunger when they hear the brand name even without the direct stimulus of the ad.

Question 14

Neutrogena is a well-known brand of shampoo sold in a distinctively shaped unbreakable bottle. A major New York store sells shampoo in a nearly identical-looking bottle with its own name on it. Consumers who purchase the private label brand assuming it shares the product attributes of Neutrogena are showing the influence of:

Accepted Answer

Consumers are showing stimulus generalization because they are responding to the similar packaging of the private label brand in the same way they would to Neutrogena, assuming similar product attributes based on the similar appearance. This is a classic example of how similar stimuli can evoke similar responses, even if the products are from different brands.

Question 15

The Kraft Heinz Company markets different food products such as ketchup, pickles, and mustard, all using the Heinz brand name. This is known as:

Accepted Answer

Family branding is a marketing strategy where a single brand name is used for multiple related products. The Kraft Heinz Company using the Heinz brand name for ketchup, pickles, and mustard is an example of this strategy, as it leverages the established brand equity of Heinz across various product categories.

Question 16

In Pavlov's famous physiological experiments with dogs, he paired a bell with presentation of food. Over a period of time, dogs were observed to start drooling (salivating) when they heard the bell only. What was the conditioned stimulus?

Accepted Answer

The conditioned stimulus in Pavlov's experiments was the bell, as it was the neutral stimulus that, through association with the unconditioned stimulus (meat powder), came to elicit the conditioned response (salivation) on its own.

Question 17

Recent research shows that a car manufacturer, Grey Motors, is perceived as being "old" by young consumers. To overcome this issue they create a new product line, Flash, and in their advertising materials hide all associations with Grey Motors. This is an example of:

Accepted Answer

This is an example of masked branding, where a company deliberately hides or minimizes its association with a product to appeal to a different market segment or change consumer perceptions.

Question 18

When Coach became worried about negative associations of Nicole "Snookie" Polizzi using their products, they sent her their competition's products to use instead. Coach was trying to:

Accepted Answer

Coach aimed to weaken the associative learning that may have occurred between their brand and Nicole "Snookie" Polizzi by having her use their competition's products instead, thereby distancing their brand from any negative associations.

Question 19

The proliferation of Internet usage has changed how consumers learn and retain information. Research shows that:

Accepted Answer

Research indicates that the vast amount of information available on the Internet and the way it is accessed (often through skimming and scanning) has led to people remembering fewer facts and retaining less information overall. This is partly because the ease of finding information online reduces the need to memorize it.

Question 20

Another word for learning would be:

Accepted Answer

Conditioning is a process of behavior modification by which a subject comes to associate a desired behavior with a previously unrelated stimulus. This term is closely related to learning, especially in the context of psychology and behavioral sciences.

Quiz 3: Learning and Memory