Question 1

Instinctive drift occurs when an animal's natural behaviors interfere with the performance of previously conditioned behaviors.

Accepted Answer

Instinctive drift is a real phenomenon where an animal's innate instincts or natural behaviors disrupt or interfere with previously learned or conditioned behaviors. This can often occur during training, leading to difficulty in maintaining the trained behavior in the presence of the animal's natural behaviors or instincts.

Question 2

In training various animals to perform tricks, Marian and Keller Breland discovered that certain natural behavior patterns interfered with the operant behaviors they were attempting to condition in some animals, a phenomenon called instinctive drift.

Accepted Answer

Marian and Keller Breland did discover that certain natural behavior patterns interfered with the operant behaviors they were attempting to condition in some animals, and this phenomenon is called instinctive drift.

Question 3

When students repeatedly experience failure in academic settings and feel that they are unable to exert control over their schoolwork, they may develop learned helplessness.

Accepted Answer

Learned helplessness is a psychological concept that describes when an individual has experienced repeated negative outcomes or events and feels that they have no control over them, leading to a feeling of helplessness and a belief that they cannot change the situation. This can occur in academic settings if students repeatedly experience failure and feel unable to exert control over their academic performance.

Question 4

B. F. Skinner asserted that the general laws of operant conditioning applied to all animal species. However, psychologists studying operant conditioning, like those studying classical conditioning, found that an animal's natural behavior patterns could influence the learning of new behaviors.

Accepted Answer

This statement is true. While Skinner believed in the general laws of operant conditioning, other psychologists found that an animal's natural behavior patterns could influence how they learn new behaviors.

Question 5

Motivation is not a factor in Albert Bandura's model of observational learning.

Accepted Answer

Motivation is a key factor in Albert Bandura's model of observational learning. Bandura suggests that motivation influences whether or not an individual will imitate a behavior they have observed. Factors such as reinforcement, punishment, and vicarious reinforcement can all impact an individual's motivation to engage in a particular behavior.

Question 6

Elected president of the American Psychological Association in 1996, Martin Seligman launched a new movement called positive psychology, which would emphasize research on human strengths rather than human problems.

Accepted Answer

This statement is true. Martin Seligman did launch a new movement called positive psychology that emphasized research on human strengths rather than human problems when he was elected president of the American Psychological Association in 1996.

Question 7

Researchers conducting an experiment concerned with mirror neurons discovered that the neuronal activity in the brain of a monkey who simply watched another monkey pick up and eat a peanut was the same as the brain activity of the monkey actually performing these actions.

Accepted Answer

This statement is true. The discovery of mirror neurons has shown that the same neurons in our brains that are activated when we perform an action are also activated when we observe someone else performing the same action. This phenomenon has been observed in primates such as monkeys, and it is thought to underlie our ability to understand and imitate the actions of others.

Question 8

Martin Seligman developed a program to teach learned optimism as a way of overcoming feelings of helplessness, habitual pessimism, and depression.

Accepted Answer

Martin Seligman did develop a program to teach learned optimism.

Question 9

Both Albert Bandura and Edward Tolman demonstrated that reinforcement was not necessary for learning to take place.

Accepted Answer

Both Bandura and Tolman's research showed that learning can occur through observation (Bandura's social learning theory) and cognitive processes (Tolman's purposive behaviorism) without necessarily being reinforced.

Question 10

Once acquired, learned helplessness cannot be overcome.

Accepted Answer

Learned helplessness can be overcome through various interventions such as cognitive-behavioral therapy, positive reinforcement, and empowering experiences that help reframe one's mindset and increase feelings of self-efficacy.

Question 11

In a classic experiment, Albert Bandura used shaping and negative reinforcement to condition children to hit and kick a Bobo doll.

Accepted Answer

Albert Bandura's experiment involved observational learning, where children imitated aggressive behavior towards a Bobo doll after observing adults behaving aggressively, not shaping or negative reinforcement.

Question 12

After a series of setbacks, Evan gave up and dropped out of college. This pattern of behavior is called instinctive drift.

Accepted Answer

Instinctive drift refers to the tendency of an animal to revert to instinctive behaviors after learning and conditioning. It is not related to a person dropping out of college.

Question 13

Albert Bandura proposed that instinctive drift occurs because of principles related to observational learning.

Accepted Answer

Albert Bandura is known for his work on observational learning and social learning theory, while instinctive drift is a concept from behaviorism, proposed by the Brelands, which describes the tendency of an animal to revert to instinctive behaviors that interfere with a conditioned response.

Question 14

Martin Seligman began his research career by studying learned helplessness in dogs and later in humans. He applied his findings to psychological problems in humans, including major depressive disorder, and he investigated why some people succumb to learned helplessness while others persist in the face of obstacles.

Accepted Answer

This statement accurately describes Martin Seligman's early research and its application to psychological problems in humans.

Question 15

Albert Bandura's studies of observational learning demonstrated that immediate reinforcement is NOT essential for learning to take place.

Accepted Answer

Albert Bandura's studies showed that reinforcement is not necessary for learning to occur through observational learning. Instead, people can learn by observing the behavior of others and the consequences that follow, whether positive or negative.

Question 16

According to the Focus on Neuroscience box in your text, neurons that fire both when an action is performed and when an action is simply perceived are called mirror neurons.

Accepted Answer

Mirror neurons are a type of neuron that fires both when an action is performed and when an action is simply perceived.

Question 17

According to Albert Bandura, motivation to imitate a behavior is crucial to the actual performance of the learned behavior.

Accepted Answer

According to Bandura's Social Learning Theory, individuals need to be motivated to imitate a behavior in order to perform the learned behavior. This motivation can come from various sources such as observing the rewards or punishments that others receive for performing the behavior, or having an internal desire to achieve similar outcomes. Without motivation, individuals may not imitate the behavior, or may only partially perform it.

Question 18

Only humans have the mental ability to develop the cognitive expectation that their behavior will have no effect on the environment. Thus, only humans can develop learned helplessness.

Accepted Answer

This statement is false. Animals, including non-human primates, have been shown to exhibit learned helplessness in various experiments. They too can develop the cognitive expectation that their behavior will have no effect on the environment.

Question 19

The phenomenon of learned helplessness, discovered by Martin Seligman and Steven Maier, demonstrated that expectations can play a significant role in classical and operant conditioning.

Accepted Answer

The statement is true. Martin Seligman and Steven Maier's discovery of learned helplessness showed that expectations, or beliefs about the consequences of one's actions, can affect classical and operant conditioning. Specifically, when animals were repeatedly exposed to situations in which their actions had no effect on the outcome, they became "helpless" and stopped trying to change the situation even when their actions were later shown to be effective. This phenomenon has since been observed in humans as well, and has important implications for understanding the psychological effects of trauma, depression, and other conditions.

Question 20

Marian Breland was one of the first psychologists to use positive reinforcement to teach basic self-help skills to people with developmental disabilities. She also helped train marine mammals for the U.S. Navy.

Accepted Answer

Marian Breland was indeed one of the first psychologists to use positive reinforcement for teaching basic self-help skills to individuals with developmental disabilities, as well as for training marine mammals for the U.S. Navy.

Quiz 5: Learning