Question 6.31

Learning is defined as “the process of acquiring, through experience, new and relatively enduring ________ or ________.”

information; behaviors

Question 6.32

Two forms of associative learning are classical conditioning, in which we associate ________, and operant conditioning, in which we associate ________.

• a. two or more responses; a response and consequence
• b. two or more stimuli; two or more responses
• c. two or more stimuli; a response and consequence
• d. two or more responses; two or more stimuli

c

Question 6.33

In Pavlov’s experiments, the tone started as a neutral stimulus, and then became a(n) ________ stimulus.

conditioned

Question 6.34

Dogs have been taught to salivate to a circle but not to a square. This process is an example of ________.

discrimination

Question 6.35

After Watson and Rayner classically conditioned Little Albert to fear a white rat, the child later showed fear in response to a rabbit, a dog, and a sealskin coat. This illustrates

• a. extinction.
• b. generalization.
• c. spontaneous recovery.
• d. discrimination between two stimuli.

b

Question 6.36

“Sex sells!” is a common saying in advertising. Using classical conditioning terms, explain how sexual images in advertisements can condition your response to a product.

A sexual image is a US that triggers a UR of interest or arousal. Before the advertisement pairs a product with a sexual image, the product is an NS. Over time the product can become a CS that triggers the CR of interest or arousal.

Question 6.37

Thorndike’s law of effect was the basis for ________ work on operant conditioning and behavior control.

Skinner’s

Question 6.38

One way to change behavior is to reward natural behaviors in small steps, as they get closer and closer to a desired behavior. This process is called ________.

shaping

Question 6.39

Your dog is barking so loudly that it’s making your ears ring. You clap your hands, the dog stops barking, your ears stop ringing, and you think to yourself, “I’ll have to do that when he barks again.” The end of the barking was for you a

• a. positive reinforcer.
• b. negative reinforcer.
• c. positive punishment.
• d. negative punishment.

b

Question 6.40

How could your psychology instructor use negative reinforcement to encourage you to pay attention during class?

Your instructor could reinforce your attentive behavior by taking away something you dislike. For example, your instructor could offer to shorten the length of an assigned paper or replace lecture time with an in-class activity. In both cases, the instructor would remove something aversive in order to negatively reinforce your focused attention.

Question 6.41

Reinforcing a desired response only some of the times it occurs is called ________ reinforcement.

partial

Question 6.42

A restaurant is running a special deal. After you buy four meals at full price, your fifth meal will be free. This is an example of a ________ schedule of reinforcement.

• a. fixed-ratio
• b. variable-ratio
• c. fixed-interval
• d. variable-interval

a

Question 6.43

The partial reinforcement schedule that reinforces a response after unpredictable time periods is a ________ schedule.

variable-interval

Question 6.44

An old saying notes that “a burnt child dreads the fire.” In operant conditioning, the burning would be an example of a

• a. primary reinforcer.
• b. negative reinforcer.
• c. punisher.
• d. positive reinforcer.

c

Question 6.45

Which research showed that conditioning can occur even when the unconditioned stimulus (US) does not immediately follow the neutral stimulus (NS)?

• a. The Little Albert experiment
• b. Pavlov’s experiments with dogs
• c. Watson’s behaviorism studies
• d. Garcia and Koelling’s taste-aversion studies

d

Question 6.46

Taste-aversion research has shown that some animals develop aversions to certain tastes but not to sights or sounds. This finding supports

• a. Pavlov’s demonstration of generalization.
• b. Darwin’s principle that natural selection favors traits that aid survival.
• c. Watson’s belief that psychologists should study observable behavior, not mentalistic concepts.
• d. the early behaviorists’ view that any organism can be conditioned to any stimulus.

b

Question 6.47

Evidence that cognitive processes play an important role in learning comes in part from studies in which rats

• a. spontaneously recover previously learned behavior.
• b. develop cognitive maps.
• c. exhibit respondent behavior.
• d. generalize responses.

b

191

Question 6.48

Rats that explored a maze without any reward were later able to run the maze as well as other rats that had received food rewards for running the maze. The rats that had learned without reinforcement demonstrated ________ ________.

latent learning

Question 6.49

Children learn many social behaviors by imitating parents and other models. This type of learning is called ________ ________.

observational learning

Question 6.50

According to Bandura, we learn by watching models because we experience ________ reinforcement or ________ punishment.

vicarious; vicarious

Question 6.51

Parents are most effective in getting their children to imitate them if

• a. their words and actions are consistent.
• b. they have outgoing personalities.
• c. one parent works and the other stays home to care for the children.
• d. they carefully explain why a behavior is acceptable in adults but not in children.

a

Question 6.52

Some scientists believe that the brain has ______ neurons that enable observation and imitation.

mirror

Question 6.53

Most experts agree that repeated viewing of TV violence

• a. makes all viewers significantly more aggressive.
• b. has little effect on viewers.
• c. dulls viewers’ sensitivity to violence.
• d. makes viewers angry and frustrated.

c