College students faced with unsolvable problems eventually give up and make only half-hearted attempts to solve new problems, even when the new problems can be solved easily. This behavior is probably due to ______.
A) learned helplessness
B) contingency blocking
C) latent learning
D) response generalization

Question

College students faced with unsolvable problems eventually give up and make only half-hearted attempts to solve new problems, even when the new problems can be solved easily. This behavior is probably due to ______.
A) learned helplessness 
B) contingency blocking
C) latent learning 
D) response generalization

Quizplus · Accepted Answer

This behavior is a classic example of learned helplessness, which occurs when an individual experiences repeated failures and eventually gives up, even in situations where success is possible. This learned helplessness can generalize to new, solvable problems, leading to a lack of motivation and effort in solving them.

College Students Faced with Unsolvable Problems Eventually Give Up and Make