Question 1

When she was young,Nadia's father would always travel in a straight line through a forest if they became lost.Since she was always with her father when hiking,she never had to think much about this tactic.Many years later,while hiking alone,she becomes lost but is able to escape the forest using her father's technique.This best demonstrates ____.

Accepted Answer

Nadia learned the technique of traveling in a straight line through observation and without immediate reinforcement. This knowledge became apparent and useful when she needed to escape the forest on her own, demonstrating latent learning.

Question 2

Neural network models predict that the weaker the connection between two items,the ____ in connection strength when they are experienced together.

Accepted Answer

Neural network models suggest that when two items with a weaker connection are experienced together, the connection strength between them increases more significantly compared to items with a stronger initial connection. This is because there is more room for improvement in the connection strength of weakly connected items.

Question 3

Bill and Ben are about to have breakfast.Their mother asks Bill,"What would you like for breakfast?" Bill answers,"I would like some damn porridge." She slaps him,then turns to Ben and asks,"And what would you like?" Ben answers,"I don't really care,as long as it isn't any of that damn porridge!" Ben's misunderstanding highlights the importance of ____.

Accepted Answer

Ben's misunderstanding highlights the importance of specifying why punishment is being administered. If their mother had explained to Bill why she was slapping him, Ben would have understood that the punishment was for using inappropriate language, rather than for requesting porridge. This would have prevented him from imitating his brother's behavior and making a similar mistake. Therefore, it is important to communicate the reasoning behind punishment to children to help them understand appropriate behavior.

Question 4

In her kindergarten class,Tanesha gives the children star stickers for good behavior in class (e.g.,raising their hands before speaking,being polite to other children,walking in line through the hallways).Tanesha gives a star sticker every time a good behavior occurs.Tanesha is using a(n)____?reinforcement schedule.

Accepted Answer

Tanesha is providing reinforcement every time a good behavior occurs, which is the definition of continuous reinforcement. Fixed-ratio reinforcement would involve providing a star sticker after a certain number of good behaviors, while variable-ratio reinforcement would involve providing a star sticker after an unpredictable number of good behaviors. Interval reinforcement would involve providing a star sticker after a certain amount of time has passed since the last good behavior. None of these schedules match Tanesha's behavior in giving a star sticker every time a good behavior occurs, so the answer is continuous.

Question 5

Keleka's parents often deal with her misbehavior by not allowing her to watch her favorite TV program,Speed Racer.Marnie's parents deal with Marnie's misbehavior by spanking her.Keleka's parents are using ____,and Marnie's parents are using ____.

Accepted Answer

Keleka's parents are using punishment by removing a positive stimulus (watching her favorite TV program) to decrease a behavior, and Marnie's parents are also using punishment by adding an unpleasant stimulus (spanking) to decrease a behavior.

Question 6

Sally is a manager of a house-cleaning company and is paid with a monthly salary.Paul,who works for Sally,gets paid by the number of houses he cleans.Paul gets paid on a ____ reinforcement schedule,while Sally gets paid on a ____ reinforcement schedule.

Accepted Answer

Paul is paid based on the number of houses he cleans, which is a fixed-ratio schedule because the reinforcement (payment) is given after a fixed number of responses (houses cleaned). Sally is paid with a monthly salary, which is a fixed-interval schedule because the reinforcement (salary) is received after a fixed amount of time, regardless of the number of responses.

Question 7

Mike loves Q-Mart and shops there often.One day,another customer asked Mike if he knows where turkey basters are in the store.Mike immediately gives directions to the exact aisle,even though he has never looked for turkey basters himself.Mike has displayed ____.

Accepted Answer

Mike has displayed latent learning, which is the process of learning that occurs without any obvious reinforcement of the behavior or associations that are learned. In this case, Mike learned the location of the turkey basters without specifically trying to remember it, and this knowledge became apparent only when it was needed.

Question 8

Ta'Nisha,a regular smoker,is trying to quit.When she goes to bars or outdoor cafes where others are smoking,she finds the craving for a cigarette too strong to resist.Simply by avoiding bars and cafes that allow smoking,Ta'Nisha has found it easier to quit smoking completely.This example uses principles of ____.

Accepted Answer

The example uses principles of stimulus control by avoiding environments that trigger the craving for a cigarette, which increases the likelihood of successful behavior change.

Question 9

Your knowledge of the word frog is made up of your knowledge of the four letters in that word,as well as all the frog knowledge you have,and any other froglike experiences.This best describes ____.

Accepted Answer

Distributed memory refers to the idea that knowledge is not stored in one specific location in the brain, but is rather distributed throughout various neural networks. In this case, the knowledge of the word "frog" is made up of not only the four letters in the word, but also all of the information and experiences that the individual has had related to frogs.

Question 10

Jelena is studying in her apartment when suddenly the power goes out.She has to walk to the kitchen to get a flashlight and is surprised by how well she "navigates" without bumping into anything in the dark.She is able to do this because she has formed a(n)____.

Accepted Answer

Jelena's ability to navigate in the dark suggests that she has formed a mental representation of the layout of her apartment, known as a cognitive map. This is not a result of a learned response (conditioned response) or an unlearned reflex (unconditioned response), nor is it a proposition that can be expressed in language (mental proposition).

Question 11

When administering punishment,it is least effective for the punishment to be ____.

Accepted Answer

Punishment is most effective when it is immediate. Delaying punishment can reduce its effectiveness because the connection between the behavior and the consequence may not be clear to the individual being punished.

Question 12

In Melody's class,she takes attendance on average every five to ten days,and students who are present receive extra points.This is an example of what type of reinforcement schedule?

Accepted Answer

This is an example of a variable-interval reinforcement schedule because the time between receiving reinforcement (extra points for attendance) is unpredictable and can range from five to ten days.

Question 13

Hailey thinks that it makes no difference as to how hard she studies for her classes.Sometimes she studies and other times she doesn't,but her grades are always the same.Soon,Hailey never studies because she doesn't see any reason to do so.Hailey is experiencing ____.

Accepted Answer

Hailey's belief that studying has no impact on her grades has led her to a state of learned helplessness, where she feels that her efforts are futile and she cannot affect the outcome. This can lead to a decrease in motivation to try and can have negative effects on her academic progress.

Question 14

Herbert,the rat,is put in a cage that is chilly.He operates in the environment by moving around the cage and bar-pressing.He discovers that moving around and bar-pressing have no impact on the temperature of the cage or anything else.Soon,Herbert stops moving around the cage at all,and when the temperature could be controlled through bar-pressing,he doesn't figure it out.Herbert is experiencing ____.

Accepted Answer

Herbert's behavior of no longer moving around the cage or attempting to control the temperature through bar-pressing indicates that he has learned that his actions are ineffective in changing the environment. This feeling of helplessness is known as learned helplessness. Choices B, C, and D are not correct because stimulus discrimination, punishment, and negative reinforcement do not fully explain Herbert's behavior.

Question 15

Although punishment has several drawbacks,it is most effective when ____.

Accepted Answer

Punishment is most effective when the punisher identifies more appropriate behavior. This helps the punished individual learn what behavior is expected and reinforces positive behavior in the future. Other factors such as timing, emotional state of the punisher, and consistency of punishment can also impact the effectiveness of punishment. However, identifying appropriate behavior is crucial for the punished individual to understand and learn from their mistakes.

Question 16

Jerome tries to please his parents by always being good,but whenever Jerome's older brother,Tom,misbehave,their parents punish both Tom and Jerome.Jerome soon stops trying to please his parents because he doesn't think it will make any difference.This change in Jerome's behavior is an example of ____.

Accepted Answer

The scenario describes Jerome's belief that his behavior will not affect the outcome of the situation, leading him to stop trying to please his parents. This is typical of learned helplessness, where an individual learns that their actions have no impact on the outcome of a situation.

Question 17

Stephanie is studying her vocabulary words for German class.Each time she reads the German word and thinks of the English equivalent,she finds it easier to recall the meaning.Stephanie's experience is best explained by the role of ____.

Accepted Answer

Stephanie's experience is best explained by neural networks, specifically the strengthening of connections between the German word and its English equivalent in her memory. This is not classical conditioning as there is no association being created through paired stimuli, nor is it operant conditioning as there is no behavior being reinforced or punished. It is also not latent learning as Stephanie is actively studying and consciously engaging with the material.

Question 18

While she was growing up,Lindsay was repeatedly told by others that she simply does not understand math concepts and she'll never be any good at it.By the time Lindsay reaches high school math classes,she doesn't put any effort into the classes because she thinksthat no amount of effort will help her excel at math.This is an example of ____.

Accepted Answer

This scenario describes the concept of learned helplessness, which occurs when an individual learns to believe that they have no control over a situation and thus give up trying to change it. Lindsay's past experiences and the messages she received from others have led her to believe that she cannot succeed in math, which has resulted in her lack of effort in high school math classes.

Question 19

Learned helplessness involves learning that ____.

Accepted Answer

Learned helplessness involves learning that there is no relationship between one's behaviors and their consequences. This can lead to feelings of powerlessness and a lack of motivation to try and change the situation.

Question 20

Jason does not complete his chores on time,despite his mother's repeated requests for him to do so.As a result,his mother takes away his Playstation and Wii for a month.Jason's mother is hoping to change his behavior through the use of ____.

Accepted Answer

Penalty refers to punishing an individual for unwanted behavior in order to discourage and decrease the occurrence of that behavior in the future. In this case, Jason's mother is taking away his prized possessions to punish him for not completing his chores on time, with the hope that he will learn to complete them on time in the future. The other options (A, C, and D) are not applicable in this scenario. Learned helplessness refers to a state of apathy and passivity resulting from repeated failure or negative experiences, negative reinforcement refers to removing an unpleasant stimulus (which is not the case here), and avoidance conditioning refers to learning to avoid a certain stimulus (which is not relevant to Jason's situation).

Quiz 5: Learning