April wants to teach her cat not to claw at the arms of her couch.She will be most successful in reducing the cat's scratching behavior if she uses
A) classical conditioning.
B) higher-order conditioning.
C) observational learning.
D) operant conditioning.

Question

Quizplus · Accepted Answer

Operant conditioning is the most effective method for teaching a cat to stop unwanted behavior such as scratching furniture. By using positive reinforcement, such as treats or praise, when the cat refrains from scratching the couch and negative reinforcement, such as a loud noise or spray of water, when the cat begins to scratch the couch, the cat will learn to associate not scratching with positive consequences and will be more likely to repeat that behavior in the future.

April Wants to Teach Her Cat Not to Claw at the Arms