Question 1

Other stimuli can become secondary reinforcers by being associated with:

Accepted Answer

Secondary reinforcers are stimuli that become reinforcing through their association with primary reinforcers.

Question 2

Alex loves to see his girlfriend smile. When he stops on the way home from the office to pick up a little gift for her, she gets the biggest smile on her face when he gives it to her. According to the principles of operant conditioning, Alex stops to buy her gifts more and more frequently because:

Accepted Answer

Her smile acts as a positive reinforcement for Alex's behavior, encouraging him to continue buying gifts.

Question 3

Thorndike's law of effect states that:

Accepted Answer

Thorndike's law of effect states that behaviors followed by satisfying consequences are more likely to be repeated, while those followed by unsatisfying consequences are less likely to occur.

Question 4

One of the key differences between classical and operant conditioning is that in classical conditioning behaviour is triggered involuntarily like a reflex, while in operant conditioning behaviour is _.

Accepted Answer

In operant conditioning, behavior is under the physical control of the organism, meaning it is voluntary and influenced by consequences such as rewards or punishments.

Question 5

A stimulus that is present before a given behaviour has been displayed is a(n) _.

Accepted Answer

An antecedent is a stimulus that occurs before a behavior, setting the stage for the behavior to occur.

Question 6

Antecedents play a significant role in operant conditioning because they:

Accepted Answer

Antecedents in operant conditioning are cues or signals that inform the organism about the likelihood of a consequence (reinforcement or punishment) following a specific behavior.

Question 7

Tommy is stealing money from his mother's purse. Tommy now has money for candy and his mother doesn't seem to notice the missing money. His behaviour is influenced by the consequences of his actions. This is an example of:

Accepted Answer

Operant conditioning involves learning through the consequences of behavior, such as rewards or punishments. Tommy's behavior is influenced by the positive consequence of obtaining money for candy.

Question 8

Joey likes to watch wrestling on TV, but his mother usually does not allow him to do this. However, Joey has noticed that when his mom has a bad day at work and gets very
Tired, she usually doesn't mind if he watches wrestling. As a result, Joey usually will only ask to watch wrestling if his mother has had a hard day at work. In this instance, the kind of day that Joey's mother has at work would be considered a:

Accepted Answer

The kind of day Joey's mother has at work serves as a discriminative stimulus because it signals to Joey when it is more likely that his request to watch wrestling will be granted.

Question 9

Operant conditioning is most concerned with emitted behaviours, while classical conditioning focuses more on _.

Accepted Answer

Classical conditioning is primarily concerned with elicited behaviors, which are automatic responses to specific stimuli.

Question 10

In operant conditioning, learning occurs because a behaviour is influenced by the:

Accepted Answer

In operant conditioning, learning occurs because a behavior is influenced by the consequences it produces.

Question 11

In classical conditioning, an organism learns an association between two stimuli whereas the type of learning in which an association between a behaviour and its consequence is learned is called:

Accepted Answer

The answer of In classical conditioning, an organism learns an...

Question 12

Jeff's parents want him to study more. To do this, they tell him that if he studies two hours per night during the week, they will pay for him to go to the movies with a friend on the weekend. After a month, they notice that Jeff is studying more often and more
Consistently. According to the principles of operant conditioning, getting money to go to the movies would be a(n):

Accepted Answer

The money to go to the movies acts as a reinforcer because it increases the likelihood of Jeff studying more consistently, which is the desired behavior.

Question 13

Classical conditioning is to operant conditioning as:

Accepted Answer

Classical conditioning involves involuntarily elicited responses to stimuli, while operant conditioning involves voluntarily emitted behaviors based on consequences.

Question 14

According to operant conditioning, when a consequence strengthens the behaviour it follows then has occurred.

Accepted Answer

Reinforcement is a consequence that strengthens or increases the likelihood of a behavior it follows in operant conditioning.

Question 15

According to the principles of operant conditioning, natural stimuli such as food and water that an organism naturally finds reinforcing are called:

Accepted Answer

Primary reinforcers are natural stimuli that an organism naturally finds reinforcing, such as food and water.

Question 16

A young child is hungry and wants a cookie but is too short to reach the table where the cookie jar is kept. She tries various things to get the jar, such as jumping or throwing her teddy bear at the jar in hopes of knocking it off the table, but to no avail. Eventually, almost by accident, she realizes that she can pull the tablecloth on which the jar sits and is thus able to reach the jar. In the future, she will be more likely to try this technique
Again since it was effective. This example best demonstrates:

Accepted Answer

The scenario demonstrates Thorndike's law of effect, which states that behaviors followed by satisfying outcomes are more likely to be repeated. The child accidentally discovers an effective method to get the cookie and is likely to use it again in the future.

Question 17

Shelley has noticed that if her dad is in good mood, he will usually praise her for working on her homework in the evening. If he isn't in a good mood, he doesn't do this. Based on the principles of operant conditioning, the mood of Shelley's dad signals when he will praise her for her homework and this is considered to be a(n) _.

Accepted Answer

In operant conditioning, an antecedent is a stimulus or event that signals the availability of reinforcement. Shelley's dad's mood acts as an antecedent, indicating when praise (reinforcement) is likely to occur.

Question 18

In operant conditioning, to decrease the likelihood of a behaviour, punishment is applied as a _.

Accepted Answer

Punishment is applied as a consequence in operant conditioning to decrease the likelihood of a behavior.

Question 19

In operant conditioning, a stimulus that is present before the behaviour occurs is a(n) ________.

Accepted Answer

In operant conditioning, an antecedent is a stimulus that occurs before a behavior and signals the likelihood of a consequence, influencing the behavior.

Question 20

Edward Thorndike assumed that animals were able to escape his puzzle box because:

Accepted Answer

Thorndike believed that animals learned to escape the puzzle box through trial-and-error, gradually eliminating ineffective responses and strengthening successful ones, a process he described as the "Law of Effect."

Quiz 7: Learning and Adaptation: the Role of Experience