Skinner once placed some pigeons in Skinner boxes and reinforced them with food randomly no matter what they were doing. Despite the fact that there was no real connection between their behavior and its consequences, each pigeon acted as if there were with one bird flapping its left wing, another hopping on one foot, and a third turning in complete circles. Skinner used which of the following terms to describe such behaviors that are repeated because they appear to produce reinforcement when really the behaviors are unnecessary?
A)modeling
B)latent learning
C)positive transfer
D)superstitious behavior

Question

Quizplus · Accepted Answer

Skinner described these behaviors as "superstitious behavior," because the pigeons developed a false belief that their actions were causing the food to appear, even though the food was given at random. This illustrates how organisms can develop behaviors based on false associations between their actions and outcomes.

Skinner Once Placed Some Pigeons in Skinner Boxes and Reinforced