The leader of a cult tells its followers that if they bow down to him,he will prevent Satan from burning them alive.The followers bow down to him,and sure enough,Satan does not burn them,so they keep bowing down to the leader.Why would it be so difficult to convince the followers to stop bowing down to the cult leader?
A) They learned to bow down through a fixed ratio schedule.
B) Every time they bowed down to the cult leader,the reward of not getting burned was quickly administered.
C) If they keep bowing down to the leader,they will never have the opportunity to see that Satan still won't burn them.
D) People do not like to be burned alive.

Question

Quizplus · Accepted Answer

The followers have been trained through operant conditioning to associate bowing down to the cult leader with the reward of not getting burned by Satan. This is a classic example of a fixed ratio schedule, where the reward is given every time a specific behavior is performed. The quick administration of the reward reinforces the behavior, making it more difficult to change.

The Leader of a Cult Tells Its Followers That If