When Matthew wrote a "B" that looked more like a "D," his teacher, Mrs. Chen, still praised him because it was better than his previous attempts. Mrs. Chen used a procedure called
A) blocking.
B) generalization.
C) shaping.
D) extinction.

Question

Quizplus · Accepted Answer

The procedure used by Mrs. Chen is shaping, which involves reinforcing successive approximations towards a desired behavior. In this case, Matthew's attempt at the letter "B" was a closer approximation to the correct form than his previous attempts, and so Mrs. Chen provided positive feedback to encourage him to continue improving. Blocking refers to preventing a behavior from occurring, generalization involves applying a behavior learned in one context to other contexts, and extinction involves withholding reinforcement for a behavior, which is not the case here.

When Matthew Wrote a "B" That Looked More Like a "D