A farmer is being troubled by coyotes eating his sheep. In an attempt to solve the problem, he kills a sheep and laces its body with a nausea-inducing drug. He leaves the sheep out where he knows the coyotes roam. He hopes they will learn to not eat the sheep. The farmer is attempting to apply the principle of _________ to accomplish this.
A) observational learning
B) latent learning
C) instrumental conditioning
D) conditioned taste aversions

Question

Quizplus · Accepted Answer

The farmer is using conditioned taste aversions, a type of classical conditioning. By associating the taste of the sheep with the nausea-inducing drug, the coyotes will learn to not eat the sheep because the taste will make them feel sick. Observational learning involves learning by observing others, latent learning is learning that is not immediately expressed, and instrumental conditioning involves learning through consequences of behavior. None of these principles apply to the situation described.

A Farmer Is Being Troubled by Coyotes Eating His Sheep