Question 1

A pigeon learns to peck at a circle for food.The fact that it also pecks at an oval describes
A) operant response substitution.
B) shaping.
C) operant stimulus generalization.
D) response chaining.

Accepted Answer

Operant stimulus generalization occurs when an organism responds to stimuli that are similar to the original discriminative stimulus. In this case, the pigeon learned to peck at a circle for food, and then generalized this behavior to pecking at an oval which is similar in shape to a circle.

Question 2

Which of the following is the tendency to make an operant response when stimuli previously associated with reward are present and to withhold the response when stimuli associated with nonreward are present?
A) latent learning.
B) response chaining.
C) operant stimulus discrimination.
D) operant stimulus generalization.

Accepted Answer

Operant stimulus discrimination is the tendency to make an operant response when stimuli previously associated with reward are present and to withhold the response when stimuli associated with nonreward are present. This is different from operant stimulus generalization, which is the tendency to respond to stimuli similar to those associated with reward, and latent learning, which refers to learning that occurs without reinforcement but is not immediately reflected in behavior. Response chaining refers to the process of linking a series of behaviors together to form a complex behavior.

Question 3

Once you learn how to use the SQ4R method for studying in psychology class,you can then use it to study for any college class.This illustrates
A) latent learning.
B) response chaining.
C) operant stimulus discrimination.
D) operant stimulus generalization.

Accepted Answer

The answer of Once you learn how to use the...

Question 4

When a stimulus consistently precedes rewarded responses,it tends to elicit a response.When a stimulus consistently precedes non-reward,it tends to inhibit responding.This states the principle of
A) partial reinforcement.
B) variable ratio responding.
C) stimulus control.
D) generalization.

Accepted Answer

The principle described in the statement is known as stimulus control. This principle shows that stimuli that consistently precede rewarded responses become associated with the likelihood of receiving a reward, while stimuli that consistently precede non-rewarded responses become associated with the lack of reward. As a result, the presence of the stimulus can influence and even control behavior.

Question 5

A reinforced response tends to be made again when similar antecedents are present.This is referred to as
A) operant stimulus discrimination.
B) operant stimulus generalization.
C) operant stimulus disinhibition.
D) spontaneous recovery.

Accepted Answer

Operant stimulus generalization refers to the tendency for a behavior that has been reinforced in the presence of a specific antecedent to also occur in the presence of similar antecedents. In other words, the behavior generalizes to similar situations or stimuli. This is a common phenomenon in operant conditioning. The other choices, operant stimulus discrimination, operant stimulus disinhibition, and spontaneous recovery, do not accurately describe this phenomenon.

Question 6

A rat in a Skinner box is going through several training sessions where the light that illuminates the box is alternately turned on and off.When the light is on,a bar press will produce food.When the light is off,bar pressing goes unrewarded.We soon observe that the rat presses vigorously when the light is on and ignores the bar when the light is off.This illustrates
A) stimulus control.
B) systematic extinction.
C) stimulus generalization.
D) a resistance to extinction.

Accepted Answer

The rat's behavior is controlled by the presence or absence of the light stimulus. When the light is on, it serves as a discriminative stimulus signaling the availability of food, and the rat presses the bar in response to obtain the reward. When the light is off, the stimulus is no longer present and the rat's behavior of bar pressing goes unrewarded. This demonstrates stimulus control, where the presence or absence of a particular stimulus has a controlling effect on behavior.

Question 7

The tendency to respond to stimuli similar to those that preceded operant reinforcement.is called
A) operant stimulus discrimination.
B) operant stimulus generalization.
C) operant disinhibition.
D) spontaneous recovery.

Accepted Answer

Operant stimulus generalization refers to the tendency to respond to stimuli that are similar to those that preceded operant reinforcement. This can lead to behavior being reinforced in situations where it may not be appropriate. For example, a child who is reinforced for saying "please" when asking for a cookie may also say "please" when asking for a toy, even though it is not necessary.

Question 8

Each time the owner of an aquarium turns on the aquarium light,the fish gather in the corner in which he routinely places food.Because he always turns the light on before feeding the fish,their actions demonstrate
A) spontaneous recovery.
B) extinction.
C) stimulus control.
D) resistance to extinction.

Accepted Answer

The fish have learned to associate the turning on of the light with the presentation of food, and as a result they have been conditioned to gather in the corner where they are routinely fed. This type of behavior is an example of stimulus control, which occurs when an organism's behavior is controlled by the presence or absence of a specific stimulus.

Question 9

A child who is a model of behavior when his parents are present,but who becomes uncontrollable when the babysitter arrives,is demonstrating
A) operant stimulus discrimination.
B) the power of delayed reinforcement.
C) classical conditioning.
D) operant stimulus generalization.

Accepted Answer

This behavior is an example of operant stimulus discrimination because the child behaves differently in the presence of different stimuli (parents vs. babysitter), indicating they have learned to discriminate between contexts in which certain behaviors are reinforced or not.

Question 10

Whether we drive our car across an intersection depends on if the traffic light is red or green.This illustrates the principle of
A) stimulus control.
B) operant extinction.
C) stimulus generalization.
D) the partial reinforcement effect.

Accepted Answer

The principle of stimulus control is the relationship between a stimulus and a response, where the presence of the stimulus determines the occurrence of the response. In this case, the traffic light serves as the stimulus and our decision to drive or not is the response that is controlled by the color of the traffic light. Therefore, the best choice is A) stimulus control.

Question 11

After a child learns how to use the toilet at home,he is able to use the toilet at daycare and in public restrooms.This illustrates
A) operant stimulus discrimination.
B) operant stimulus generalization.
C) response chaining.
D) latent learning.

Accepted Answer

Operant stimulus generalization occurs when a learned behavior is displayed in a different setting or with a different stimulus than what was originally trained. In this case, the child has learned to use the toilet at home and is now able to generalize that behavior to using the toilet in daycare and public restrooms.

Question 12

We pick up phones that are ringing,but rarely answer phones that are silent.This is an example of
A) stimulus generalization.
B) stimulus control.
C) systematic extinction.
D) resistance to extinction.

Accepted Answer

This is an example of stimulus control because the behavior of answering phones is being controlled by the presence of the ringing stimulus, whereas the behavior of not answering silent phones is being controlled by the absence of that stimulus. The other options are not applicable in this scenario.

Question 13

Once a student learns to solve one math equation,she can utilize these same formulas with similar problems.This student is demonstrating
A) operant stimulus discrimination.
B) operant stimulus generalization.
C) response chaining.
D) latent learning.

Accepted Answer

Operant stimulus generalization is the phenomenon where a behavior can be transferred to similar situations or stimuli. In this case, the student is able to utilize the same formula to solve similar math problems, demonstrating stimulus generalization.

Question 14

Which of the following concepts explains why young children may temporarily call all men daddy,much to the embarrassment of their parents?
A) latent learning.
B) response chaining.
C) operant stimulus discrimination.
D) operant stimulus generalization.

Accepted Answer

Operant stimulus generalization occurs when a behavior is generalized to stimuli that are similar to the original stimulus where the behavior was learned. In this case, young children may generalize the term "daddy" to all men, not just their own father, due to similarities in appearance, voice, or behavior.

Question 15

Because you fed your dog table scraps while sitting at the kitchen table,your dog began to jump up and beg for scraps whenever you were eating dinner at the kitchen table.Lately,your dog has also begun to jump up and beg for scraps whenever you sit at any table or desk in the house.Your dog is exhibiting
A) latent learning.
B) response chaining.
C) operant stimulus generalization.
D) operant stimulus discrimination.

Accepted Answer

The dog's behavior of jumping up and begging for scraps has generalized from the specific setting of the kitchen table to any table or desk in the house where the owner sits down to eat. This is an example of operant stimulus generalization, where a behavior that has been reinforced in one context is exhibited in a similar context.

Question 16

The students have learned to tell when Dr.Morgan is in a "good" mood or not by how she enters the room.If she speaks as she enters the room,it will be a "good" day,but if she puts her books down before she speaks,"watch out." Their ability to anticipate her mood for the day and act accordingly illustrates
A) stimulus control.
B) systematic desensitization.
C) place learning.
D) response chaining.

Accepted Answer

The students' ability to anticipate Dr. Morgan's mood based on a specific cue (her speaking or putting her books down) demonstrates stimulus control. They have learned to associate her behavior with a specific outcome (a "good" or "bad" day) and adjust their own behavior accordingly. Systematic desensitization, place learning, and response chaining do not apply in this scenario.

Question 17

One learns to differentiate between antecedent stimuli that signal reward and nonreward through
A) latent learning.
B) response chaining.
C) operant stimulus discrimination.
D) operant stimulus generalization.

Accepted Answer

Operant stimulus discrimination is the process by which an organism learns to differentiate between stimuli that signal a reward or nonreward. This is achieved when an organism is reinforced only for responding to a specific stimulus and not others. Latent learning and response chaining are not related to stimulus discrimination. Operant stimulus generalization is the process by which an organism responds to stimuli similar to the reinforcement stimulus, rather than discriminating between them.

Question 18

Which of the following terms applies to the observation that responses reinforced in the presence of certain stimuli will occur under similar stimulus conditions?
A) the Premack principle
B) operant stimulus generalization
C) the partial reinforcement effect
D) operant disinhibition

Accepted Answer

Operant stimulus generalization refers to the tendency for a learned behavior to occur in the presence of stimuli similar to the ones present during learning.

Question 19

Because you fed your dog table scraps while sitting at the kitchen table,your dog began to jump up and beg for scraps first whenever you were sitting at the kitchen table and later whenever you were sitting at any table or desk in the house.If you do not feed your dog while sitting at any other table besides the kitchen table,the jumping and begging response that originally generalized to all the tables and desks will extinguish because of
A) negative reinforcement.
B) nonreinforcement.
C) positive punishment.
D) latent learning.

Accepted Answer

Nonreinforcement refers to the absence of a consequence, in this case, not feeding the dog while sitting at other tables besides the kitchen table. This lack of reinforcement will lead to the extinction of the jumping and begging behavior. Negative reinforcement involves the removal of an aversive stimulus to increase the likelihood of a behavior, positive punishment involves adding an aversive stimulus to decrease the likelihood of a behavior, and latent learning refers to learning that occurs without apparent reinforcement.

Question 20

Two important aspects of stimulus control are
A) operant stimulus generalization and operant stimulus discrimination.
B) operant inhibition and operant disinhibition.
C) operant stimulus habituation and operant stimulus dishabituation.
D) operant extinction and spontaneous recovery.

Accepted Answer

Operant stimulus generalization occurs when an organism responds to stimuli that are similar to the conditioned stimulus, while operant stimulus discrimination involves the organism learning to distinguish between different stimuli and responding only to the conditioned stimulus. These are key aspects of stimulus control in operant conditioning.

Quiz 6: B: Conditioning and Learning

A pigeon learns to peck at a circle for food.The fact that it also pecks at an oval describes

Which of the following is the tendency to make an operant response when stimuli previously associated with reward are present and to withhold the response when stimuli associated with nonreward are present?

Once you learn how to use the SQ4R method for studying in psychology class,you can then use it to study for any college class.This illustrates

When a stimulus consistently precedes rewarded responses,it tends to elicit a response.When a stimulus consistently precedes non-reward,it tends to inhibit responding.This states the principle of

A reinforced response tends to be made again when similar antecedents are present.This is referred to as

The tendency to respond to stimuli similar to those that preceded operant reinforcement.is called

Each time the owner of an aquarium turns on the aquarium light,the fish gather in the corner in which he routinely places food.Because he always turns the light on before feeding the fish,their actions demonstrate

A child who is a model of behavior when his parents are present,but who becomes uncontrollable when the babysitter arrives,is demonstrating

Whether we drive our car across an intersection depends on if the traffic light is red or green.This illustrates the principle of

After a child learns how to use the toilet at home,he is able to use the toilet at daycare and in public restrooms.This illustrates

We pick up phones that are ringing,but rarely answer phones that are silent.This is an example of

Once a student learns to solve one math equation,she can utilize these same formulas with similar problems.This student is demonstrating

Which of the following concepts explains why young children may temporarily call all men daddy,much to the embarrassment of their parents?

One learns to differentiate between antecedent stimuli that signal reward and nonreward through

Which of the following terms applies to the observation that responses reinforced in the presence of certain stimuli will occur under similar stimulus conditions?

Two important aspects of stimulus control are