Gary trains his hamster to roll a marble. First, he reinforces the hamster when it walks toward the marble, and then he reinforces when it touches the marble with its nose. Finally, the hamster learns to roll the marble and is reinforced for it. This example illustrates ________.
A) chaining
B) counterconditioning
C) shaping
D) classical conditioning

Question

Quizplus · Accepted Answer

The example illustrates shaping, which involves reinforcing successive approximations of a desired behavior until the final behavior is achieved. In this case, the hamster is reinforced for first walking towards the marble, then touching it with its nose, and finally rolling it. Chaining involves linking a series of behaviors in a specific sequence, while counterconditioning involves changing an emotional response to a stimulus through association with a different stimulus. Classical conditioning involves pairing a neutral stimulus with a reflexive response to eventually elicit that response alone.

Gary Trains His Hamster to Roll a Marble