If you wanted to encourage a child to eat a healthier diet, at first you might smile or nod when the child was willing to take a small bite of a healthy food item on her plate. Then you might only smile and nod when the child took a full bite of the food. Then you might only respond when the child ate several bites, and finally only when the child finished the serving on her plate. You are changing this child's behavior through the process of
A) classical conditioning.
B) negative reinforcement.
C) shaping.
D) assimilation.

Question

Quizplus · Accepted Answer

Shaping is the process of reinforcing desired behaviors in small steps, gradually increasing the expectations. In this scenario, the adult is gradually shaping the child's behavior to eat a healthier diet by reinforcing increasing levels of healthy food consumption. Classical conditioning and negative reinforcement involve associating a behavior with a consequence (either a reward or punishment), which is not the case in this scenario. Assimilation involves incorporating new information into an existing framework, which is not the process occurring in this scenario.

If You Wanted to Encourage a Child to Eat a Healthier