Question 1

Which of the following is NOT an example of learning ?

Accepted Answer

Learning involves a relatively permanent change in behavior or knowledge due to experience. Abigail crying when stepping on a sharp pebble is an immediate pain response, not a learned behavior.

Question 2

Pavlovian (classical) conditioning is to involuntary response as operant conditioning is to _______ response.

Accepted Answer

Operant conditioning involves voluntary behavior and the consequences that follow. The individual chooses whether or not to engage in the behavior based on the consequences that have been associated with it in the past.

Question 3

Linda moved to Columbia, Missouri from New York City and uses New York phrases in her speech. Her classmates tease her when she uses New York phrases in order to influence her to quit using them. Linda has quit using New York phrases in her speech. The teasing is an example of

Accepted Answer

The teasing Linda received from her classmates can be seen as a form of punishment, as it decreased the likelihood of her using New York phrases in the future.

Question 4

One characteristic of behaviorism is an emphasis on

Accepted Answer

Behaviorism places a heavy emphasis on observable events, such as a person's actions and the environment's responses to those actions. The other choices do not align with the primary focus of behaviorism.

Question 5

Chris Mullin wants her husband to fix the back porch. She nags and nags. He wants to escape from her nagging, so he fixes it. Her nagging is functioning as

Accepted Answer

Her nagging is serving as negative reinforcement because the husband wants to escape from it, so he fixes the porch to avoid the nagging in the future.

Question 6

Teresa has a painful experience at the dentist's office. The next time her mother brings her to the dentist's office, Teresa begins to get tense and anxious. In this situation, the dentist and dentist's office are

Accepted Answer

The dentist's office and the dentist are originally neutral stimuli for Teresa, but after associating them with the painful experience, they become conditioned stimuli that trigger her anxiety and tension. Therefore, C is the correct answer. The unconditioned stimuli (A) are the pain and discomfort she experienced during the dental procedure, and the unconditioned responses (B) are her natural and automatic responses to that pain, such as flinching or crying. The conditioned responses (D) would be any learned reactions that follow the conditioned stimuli, such as sweating or increased heart rate, but in this scenario, we are only discussing the triggering stimuli.

Question 7

Negative reinforcement does which of the following?

Accepted Answer

Negative reinforcement increases the probability of a behavior by removing or avoiding a negative outcome or stimulus when the behavior occurs.

Question 8

Which of the following responses is most likely to be learned through classical conditioning?

Accepted Answer

Classical conditioning involves learning to associate a previously neutral stimulus with a natural response. Feeling fear around horses is a learned response that can be formed through classical conditioning, such as if a person had a negative experience with horses in the past (e.g. being bitten or kicked). Waving to a friend, taking a walk on a nice day, and doing homework are not necessarily associated with a specific natural response that can be learned through classical conditioning.

Question 9

Mr. Johnson wants a hyperactive boy to be able to sit quietly for at least 15 minutes at a time. To do this, he begins praising the boy for sitting still for one minute, then for two minutes, and then for four minutes, and so on. Mr. Johnson's strategy best reflects which one of the following concepts?

Accepted Answer

Mr. Johnson's strategy of reinforcing the boy's sitting behavior gradually and systematically until he achieves the desired goal is an example of shaping, which involves reinforcing successive approximations of a desired behavior.

Question 10

Teresa has a painful experience at the dentist's office. The next time her mother brings her to the dentist's office, Teresa begins to get tense and anxious. Teresa's anxiety is a(n)

Accepted Answer

Teresa's anxiety is a conditioned response because it is a learned response to a previously neutral stimulus (the dentist's office) that became associated with a painful experience (the unconditioned stimulus).

Question 11

Mr. Brillhart teaches from a script that is provided by a publisher. The script explains new information clearly, and then calls for student responses. Mr. Brillhart aims for a student success rate of 80 percent on initial learning. He is likely using which form of instruction?

Accepted Answer

Mr. Brillhart's use of a script provided by a publisher and his aim for an 80 percent success rate suggest that he is utilizing direct instruction, which involves the teacher providing clear and structured presentation of material and specific learning objectives.

Question 12

Which of the following supports the operant conditioning explanation for why some children become aggressive?

Accepted Answer

The operant conditioning explanation suggests that aggression is learned through reinforcement. If a child's aggressive behavior is reinforced by them getting what they want, they are more likely to continue to behave aggressively in the future. Choice C supports this explanation by stating that aggressive behavior tends to lead to getting their way.

Question 13

When a student gives a thoughtful answer that goes beyond the information in the textbook, teacher Kimba Wood has the class stand and run in place for a few seconds. Thoughtful answers have increased in the class. Running in place appears to be functioning as

Accepted Answer

Running in place after a thoughtful answer is an example of reinforcement. By giving positive feedback through physical activity, the teacher is encouraging students to continue to give thoughtful answers. This is different from punishment (A) or negative reinforcement (B), which involve adding negative consequences to behavior to decrease the likelihood of that behavior happening again. The exercise is not an unconditioned stimulus (D) as it is a deliberate action taken by the teacher, not an automatic response.

Question 14

Warren has earned himself a reputation for being the class clown. His teacher, Ms. Washington, used to laugh at Warren's funny remarks, but is now trying to discourage Warren's disruptive behavior by ignoring his jokes. In operant conditioning terminology, Ms. Washington is now trying to modify Warren's joke-telling behavior through

Accepted Answer

Ms. Washington is trying to discourage Warren's disruptive behavior by ignoring his jokes. This is an example of extinction in operant conditioning, where a behavior becomes less frequent and eventually stops occurring altogether because it is not reinforced anymore.

Question 15

Generalizing from research on maintaining behavior over the long run, we can say that behavior that is reinforced intermittently is more resistant to extinction than behavior that is reinforced continuously.

Accepted Answer

This is a well-established principle in psychology called the partial reinforcement effect. When behavior is only reinforced occasionally, it is more resistant to extinction than behavior that is reinforced every time. This is because when behavior is reinforced continuously, organisms come to expect the reinforcement every time and are more likely to give up the behavior when the reinforcement stops. However, when behavior is reinforced intermittently, the organism learns that the reinforcement is not guaranteed, so they are more likely to persist in the behavior even when it is no longer being reinforced.

Question 16

Which of the following is true about teacher attention?

Accepted Answer

Teacher attention can sometimes reinforce a behavior even when it is intended as a punishment, because the attention itself can be perceived as rewarding by the student.

Question 17

Teresa has a painful experience at the dentist's office, so her mother takes Teresa to a new dentist, one who takes great care to make her visits painless. Teresa is anxious at first, but after a few visits, Teresa gradually becomes less resistant about going to the new dentist. Teresa's change in behavior can probably best be explained in terms of

Accepted Answer

Teresa's change in behavior can be explained by extinction, which occurs when a conditioned response (in this case, Teresa's anxiety and resistance to going to the dentist) decreases and eventually disappears after the conditioned stimulus (visiting the dentist) is repeatedly presented without the unconditioned stimulus (the painful experience). In Teresa's case, her new experiences at the dentist are painless, so her previously learned anxiety response to the dentist visits gradually diminishes.

Question 18

Of all the operant conditioning techniques and principles discussed in the text, which did Skinner (and others) recommend avoiding?

Accepted Answer

Skinner (and others) recommended avoiding punishment as it can often have negative side effects such as increased aggression and decreased motivation to learn. Instead, they advocated for the use of positive reinforcement to increase desired behaviors.

Question 19

Operant conditioning theorists use the term reinforcement rather than "reward" because

Accepted Answer

While the term "reward" implies a desirable consequence, not all reinforcers are desirable. For example, if a child throws a tantrum in a store and is given a piece of candy to stop crying, the candy may reinforce the behavior of throwing tantrums in the future – even though throwing tantrums is not a desirable behavior. Therefore, "reinforcement" is a more neutral term that encompasses both desirable and undesirable consequences for behavior.

Question 20

Edward is severely beaten by his alcoholic father on several occasions. Before long, Edward begins to shake whenever his father approaches. In this situation, Edward's father is

Accepted Answer

Edward's fear response (shaking) is a learned response that has been conditioned by the repeated association of his father's violent behavior with the approach of his father. Therefore, his father has become a conditioned stimulus.

Quiz 3: Classic Theories of Learning and Cognition