Question 1

The most basic foundation of operant conditioning is the notion that

Accepted Answer

Operant conditioning is based on the idea that behaviors are influenced by the consequences that follow them, such as rewards or punishments, which can increase or decrease the likelihood of the behavior being repeated.

Question 2

Pookie, the dog, quickly learns that when she scratches at the door, her owner will allow her to go outside to play. This is an example of __________ conditioning.

Accepted Answer

This scenario involves operant conditioning, as Pookie's behavior (scratching at the door) produces a consequence (being allowed to go outside and play).

Question 3

Rosie and Ginny decide to eat at a restaurant. When they arrive, they are greeted promptly by the hostess. The waiter is efficient and the food is fantastic! They are likely to return to the restaurant because their decision to eat there was followed by a satisfying experience. This example illustrates

Accepted Answer

The law of effect states that behaviors followed by satisfying outcomes are likely to be repeated, which explains why Rosie and Ginny are likely to return to the restaurant.

Question 4

It's a very hot summer day and Ai is sweating in her apartment. She turns on the air-conditioning and right away her apartment gets cooler. Ai is now more likely to turn on the AC when she is hot to reduce her discomfort; this is an example of

Accepted Answer

Negative reinforcement involves the removal of an unpleasant stimulus (heat) to increase the likelihood of a behavior (turning on the AC).

Question 5

After Nadia spills water all over her painting, her first-grade art teacher gives her some M&Ms to make her feel better. The next time art class meets, Nadia promptly and purposefully spills water. The M&Ms acted as

Accepted Answer

The M&Ms acted as positive reinforcers because they were given to Nadia after she spilled water, which increased the likelihood of her repeating the behavior.

Question 6

Whenever Lisa's aunts visit, they kiss her on the cheek. Lisa hates this and eventually learns that they will not kiss her if she is coughing. Now whenever her aunts enter her home, she pretends to cough. This is an example of

Accepted Answer

Lisa's learned behavior of coughing in order to avoid being kissed on the cheek by her aunts is an example of avoidance conditioning. This is because Lisa is engaging in behavior (coughing) in order to avoid an aversive outcome (being kissed on the cheek).

Question 7

Tsvi, a three-month-old baby, stops crying when he hears his parents' OK Computer CD. Now, whenever he begins to cry, his parents play OK Computer. Tsvi's parents' behavior of playing the CD is the result of

Accepted Answer

Tsvi's parents are using operant conditioning by playing the CD to stop his crying, which is a behavior. This is an example of reinforcement, where a behavior (crying) is followed by a consequence (playing the CD) that increases the likelihood of the behavior being repeated.

Question 8

Eve breaks stuff when she gets angry. Whenever Eve begins breaking things, her parents stop what they are doing and pay attention to her. Now, Eve breaks things more than ever. Apparently, her parents' attention serves as a __________ for Eve's behavior.

Accepted Answer

The attention from Eve's parents increases the likelihood of her breaking things, which indicates that it acts as a positive reinforcer for her behavior.

Question 9

Roslyn always used to shop at Penney's because for every purchase over $20, she would get a 10 percent discount. But since Penney's stopped offering this promotion, Roslyn has stopped shopping there. Her shopping behavior (and decrease in such activities)is best explained by

Accepted Answer

Roslyn's behavior is best explained by operant conditioning, where her shopping was reinforced by the discount. When the reinforcement (discount) was removed, her behavior (shopping at Penney's) decreased.

Question 10

One of the most difficult problems for any teacher is a child who consistently disrupts class. Researchers have shown that giving attention in the form of scolding to a disruptive child actually increases the child's misbehavior. In the terms of operant conditioning, the scolding is a

Accepted Answer

In operant conditioning, a positive reinforcer is something that, when presented after a behavior, increases the likelihood of that behavior occurring again. Scolding, although intended as a punishment, can serve as a positive reinforcer if it increases the disruptive behavior by providing attention.

Question 11

While at the grocery store, Jeremy begins to throw a fit because he wants a candy bar. His mom gives him the candy bar so that he will stop screaming. Jeremy's mom experienced __________ conditioning.

Accepted Answer

Jeremy's mom experienced escape conditioning because she gave him the candy bar to stop his screaming, thus escaping the unpleasant situation.

Question 12

Chris does not like it when his infant son, Jacob, cries. Chris finds that if he makes goofy faces while Jacob is crying, Jacob will stop. Which learning principle best explains why Chris is more likely to make goofy faces in the future to make Jacob stop crying?

Accepted Answer

Negative reinforcement occurs when a behavior is strengthened because it removes or reduces an unpleasant stimulus. In this case, Chris making goofy faces removes the unpleasant stimulus of Jacob's crying, making Chris more likely to repeat the behavior in the future.

Question 13

Martina's upstairs neighbors play their stereo loudly. Martina hates loud music and has found that if she bangs on the ceiling with a broom, they turn the volume down. Now, as soon as the loud music starts, Martina bangs on the ceiling and it is muted. This is an example of

Accepted Answer

This is an example of escape conditioning, as Martina is performing a behavior (banging on the ceiling) to remove or escape the aversive stimulus (the loud music). Positive reinforcement would involve adding a consequence to increase the likelihood of a behavior, shaping would involve gradually molding a behavior, and avoidance conditioning would involve performing a behavior to avoid an aversive stimulus before it even occurs.

Question 14

Every time the papergirl says to her customers, "I want my two dollars," her customers give her money. In this example, receiving the customer's money is a(n)

Accepted Answer

Receiving the customer's money is a reinforcer because it strengthens the behavior of the papergirl asking for money, as it is a positive outcome that follows her request.

Question 15

Two-year-old Hannah said the word hell in the middle of dinner, and her parents immediately stopped talking to each other and scolded her. They spent the rest of the meal paying close attention to what Hannah said. Later, Hannah says hell repeatedly, and each time her parents spend time talking to her and paying attention to her. In this situation, the parents' attention is a __________, and Hannah's inappropriate language is a(n)__________.

Accepted Answer

The parents' attention acts as a positive reinforcer because it increases the likelihood of Hannah repeating the behavior (saying "hell"). Hannah's inappropriate language is an operant because it is a behavior that is influenced by the consequences (attention) that follow it.

Question 16

Egan is unable to swim, and the other kids in his camp troop regularly tease him for this deficit. He finds that when he tries to swim, the kids respect his courage and stop mocking him. In a short amount of time, he is swimming like a champ, and the teasing completely stops. In this case, the cessation of the teasing is an example of

Accepted Answer

Negative reinforcement involves the removal of an unpleasant stimulus (teasing) when a desired behavior (attempting to swim) occurs, which increases the likelihood of the behavior being repeated.

Question 17

Whenever Calvin threw his sister's doll in the toilet, his mother would lock Calvin in his room. As soon as Calvin apologized, his mother would let him out. Eventually, Calvin learned to apologize immediately, so that he could get out of his room sooner. Calvin is demonstrating

Accepted Answer

Calvin is demonstrating escape conditioning because he learns to perform a behavior (apologizing) to terminate an unpleasant situation (being locked in his room).

Question 18

Lois and Peter want to teach Brian, their dog, to fetch the newspaper. Lois wants to encourage Brian's behavior when he brings in the newspaper. Peter wants to discourage Brian's behavior when he brings in a stick instead. Lois will most likely use __________, and Peter will most likely use __________.

Accepted Answer

Lois will use reinforcers to encourage the desired behavior of fetching the newspaper, while Peter will use punishment to discourage the undesired behavior of bringing a stick.

Question 19

Any response followed by a pleasant or desirable outcome is likely to be repeated. At the same time, responses followed by unpleasant consequences are less likely to be repeated. According to the textbook, this is the law of

Accepted Answer

The law of effect, proposed by Edward Thorndike, states that behaviors followed by satisfying consequences are more likely to be repeated, while those followed by unpleasant consequences are less likely to be repeated.

Question 20

Lavonne hates to listen to new age music. Whenever Lavonne refuses to clean her room, her mother makes her stay in her room and plays new age music through the intercom. Her mother tells Lavonne that as soon as she finishes cleaning her room, the music will be stopped. The removal of the unpleasant music is an example of

Accepted Answer

Negative reinforcement involves the removal of an unpleasant stimulus to increase the likelihood of a behavior being repeated. In this case, the unpleasant music is removed when Lavonne cleans her room, reinforcing the cleaning behavior.

Quiz 5: Learning