As a marine biologist, you are trying to teach a dolphin to jump over a bar. At first, you reward the dolphin every time she swims near the bar. Then, you only reward her when she emerges from the water near the bar. Eventually, you reward the dolphin each time she jumps out of the water. Then, you only reward the dolphin when she jumps over the bar. This technique is an example of
A) classical conditioning.
B) spontaneous recovery.
C) discrimination.
D) shaping.
E) positive punishment.

Question

Quizplus · Accepted Answer

The technique described in the scenario is an example of shaping, which is the process of reinforcing successive approximations of a desired behavior. The dolphin's behavior is slowly shaped from simply approaching the bar to eventually jumping over it by reinforcing each step of progress. Classical conditioning involves pairing a neutral stimulus with a reflexive response, spontaneous recovery is the reappearance of a previously extinguished behavior, discrimination is the ability to differentiate between two stimuli, and positive punishment involves adding an unpleasant stimulus to decrease a behavior.

As a Marine Biologist, You Are Trying to Teach a Dolphin