Question 1

Withdrawing a negative event to increase the frequency of desirable behavior is

Accepted Answer

Negative reinforcement involves removing an unpleasant stimulus to increase the likelihood of a behavior being repeated. It is not about adding something positive (as in positive reinforcement) or about punishment (which aims to decrease a behavior). Extinction involves the reduction of behavior by stopping the reinforcement altogether.

Question 2

A sales team needs to complete time-consuming paperwork as part of its job. The team would rather make sales contacts during the time it takes to complete the paperwork. The sales manager has decided that, whenever the sales team meets its weekly quota, the team can delegate its paperwork to the clerical staff. This manager is using

Accepted Answer

Negative reinforcement involves the removal of an unpleasant task or responsibility as a reward for desired behavior, in this case, meeting the sales quota results in the removal of the paperwork task.

Question 3

The two types of behavior modification that a manager could use to motivate employees to increase their attendance at work are

Accepted Answer

Positive reinforcement involves rewarding desired behaviors, which can motivate employees to increase attendance. Negative reinforcement involves removing an unpleasant condition in response to the desired behavior, which can also motivate employees to improve attendance.

Question 4

The two types of behavior modification that a manager could use to motivate employees to decrease chatting with each other during work hours are

Accepted Answer

Extinction involves removing a reinforcing stimulus following undesirable behavior to decrease that behavior, and punishment involves applying an adverse consequence to reduce the likelihood of a behavior's recurrence. Both can be used to discourage excessive chatting.

Question 5

Jennifer, a research manager at a government research laboratory, caught a technician falsifying experimental results. Jennifer removed the technician from her part of the laboratory and began termination proceedings. She was using

Accepted Answer

Jennifer's action of beginning termination proceedings for the technician who falsified experimental results is an example of punishment. Punishment involves applying a negative consequence to reduce the occurrence of an undesirable behavior.

Question 6

An engineering team usually is allowed to leave work early on Friday afternoons to resume their discussion at a local bar for happy hour. Recently the team has missed a few deadlines and their manager has decided not to let them leave early for a few weeks. The manager is using

Accepted Answer

The answer of An engineering team usually is allowed to...

Question 7

Whenever customers praise a department store clerk for excellent service, the store manager puts the clerk's name on a board in the employee lounge as a form of recognition. The store manager is using

Accepted Answer

The store manager is using positive reinforcement by recognizing and rewarding the clerk's excellent service with public acknowledgment, which encourages the continuation of such behavior.

Question 8

Desirable behavior stops most quickly when consequences are removed under which reinforcement schedule?

Accepted Answer

Desirable behavior stops most quickly when consequences are removed under a continuous reinforcement schedule because the behavior was reinforced every time it was exhibited, making it highly dependent on the reinforcement for its occurrence. When that reinforcement is no longer provided, the behavior quickly diminishes.

Question 9

Many college professors are paid at the end of each month. This is an example of which reinforcement schedule?

Accepted Answer

Fixed interval schedules provide reinforcement after a fixed amount of time has passed, which in this case is the end of each month for the college professors' paychecks.

Question 10

A restaurant worker is given a small cash bonus about every four or five times the restaurant is busy and the worker must exert extra effort. This is an example of which reinforcement schedule?

Accepted Answer

Variable ratio schedules reward a response after an unpredictable number of responses. This unpredictability encourages consistent behavior, similar to how a small cash bonus is given after an unpredictable number of busy periods at the restaurant.

Question 11

A college professor chooses to "reward" students with a quiz administered on average every three weeks. What reinforcement schedule is the professor using?

Accepted Answer

The professor is using a variable interval schedule, as the quizzes are given at unpredictable time intervals (on average every three weeks), making the reinforcement (in this case, the quiz) unpredictable in terms of timing.

Question 12

Some organizations reward employees with casual dress days every Friday. This is an example of which reinforcement schedule?

Accepted Answer

This is an example of a fixed interval schedule because the reward (casual dress day) is given at fixed time intervals (every Friday), regardless of how many times the desired behavior (working through the week) occurs.

Question 13

Which of the following statements is false about punishment?

Accepted Answer

Punishment can indeed stop a behavior temporarily, lead to emotional reactions, and see the return of undesirable behavior when the punishment is not present. However, it is not as effective for shaping behavior in the long term as positive reinforcement. Positive reinforcement tends to build more lasting behavioral changes by encouraging the repetition of the desired behavior through rewards, whereas punishment often only suppresses the unwanted behavior temporarily.

Question 14

Which of the following statements is false?

Accepted Answer

Most Muslim managers, reflecting the cultural and religious emphasis on the will of Allah, tend to believe more in destiny or fate rather than the idea that they control their destiny. This contrasts with the more individualistic perspective emphasized in U.S. values and reflected in many motivation theories like expectancy theory.

Question 15

The motivation theory with perhaps the greatest ethical implications is

Accepted Answer

The answer of The motivation theory with perhaps the greatest...

Question 16

Which of the following statements is false about the ethical implications of behavior modification?

Accepted Answer

Behavior modification involves interaction between the controller (e.g., therapist, teacher, parent) and the person being controlled (e.g., patient, student, child), contrary to the false statement that there is no interaction.

Question 17

Goal setting is a cognitive process theory.

Accepted Answer

The answer of Goal setting is a cognitive process theory....

Question 18

Equity theory is a behavioral theory.

Accepted Answer

The answer of Equity theory is a behavioral theory....

Question 19

Expectancy theory has received mixed research support.

Accepted Answer

Expectancy theory, which suggests that individuals are motivated to perform based on the expected outcomes of their actions, has indeed received mixed research support. Some studies have found it to be a useful framework for understanding motivation, while others have identified limitations or inconsistencies in its application across different contexts and individual differences.

Question 20

In expectancy theory, both environmental forces and characteristics of the individual interact to affect behavior.

Accepted Answer

Expectancy theory posits that behavior is determined by a combination of the individual's expectation of achieving a goal and the value of that goal to the individual, implying an interaction between personal characteristics (e.g., values, needs) and environmental forces (e.g., reward systems).

Quiz 8: Motivation: Cognitive and Behavioral Theories and Techniques