Bubba, a very smart German shepherd, has learned that if he barks at the neighbors while they are grilling, they will throw him a treat. However, his owner, Paul, does not want Bubba to eat "people" food. When Paul is in the yard, Bubba never barks at the neighbors. According to operant conditioning principles, Bubba is demonstrating that he can
A) discriminate.
B) generalize.
C) learn to inhibit a response.
D) learn a partial reinforcement schedule.

Question

Quizplus · Accepted Answer

Bubba is demonstrating discrimination, as he is able to distinguish between different situations (when Paul is present vs. when he is not) and adjust his behavior accordingly. He knows that barking at the neighbors when Paul is present will not result in a treat, so he inhibits that response. This shows that he has learned to discriminate between the two situations. The other choices are not accurate descriptions of Bubba's behavior in this scenario.

Bubba, a Very Smart German Shepherd, Has Learned That If