Question 1

The small helmet decals given to football players who have an outstanding performance are examples of:
A)variable reinforcers
B)primary reinforcers
C)negative reinforcers
D)conditioned reinforcers

Accepted Answer

The small helmet decals are not primary reinforcers, as they are not inherently rewarding (e.g. food, water, shelter). They are also not negative reinforcers, as they do not remove an unpleasant stimuli. Rather, they are conditioned reinforcers or secondary reinforcers, as they have acquired their reinforcing value through association with a primary reinforcer (e.g. winning a game). Additionally, they are variable reinforcers, as they are not given consistently or every time a player has an outstanding performance.

Question 2

A reinforcement schedule in which a response is followed by reinforcement every time the response occurs is referred to as a:
A)continuous reinforcement schedule
B)classical reinforcement schedule
C)partial reinforcement schedule
D)nondiscriminative reinforcement schedule

Accepted Answer

A continuous reinforcement schedule means that every time a specific response occurs, it will be followed by reinforcement. This is in contrast to a partial reinforcement schedule where the response is only reinforced some of the time. A classical reinforcement schedule and a nondiscriminative reinforcement schedule are not valid terms in this context.

Question 3

According to the theory of operant conditioning, when the presentation of a stimulus, after a response has occurred, decreases the likelihood of the response's occurring again, the process that is at work is referred to as:
A)positive punishment
B)negative reinforcement
C)positive reinforcement
D)negative punishment

Accepted Answer

Positive punishment involves adding a stimulus after a behavior that decreases the likelihood of the behavior happening again.

Question 4

According to the theory of operant conditioning, when the removal of a stimulus, after a response has occurred, decreases the likelihood of the response occurring again, the process is referred to as:
A)positive reinforcement
B)positive punishment
C)negative punishment
D)negative reinforcement

Accepted Answer

Negative punishment involves the removal of a stimulus (such as taking away a privilege or a reward) to decrease the likelihood of the response occurring again. Positive reinforcement (A) involves adding a desirable stimulus to increase the likelihood of a response, positive punishment (B) involves adding an undesirable stimulus to decrease the likelihood of a response, and negative reinforcement (D) involves removing an aversive stimulus to increase the likelihood of a response.

Question 5

If you wanted your best friend to spend less time talking about her boyfriend, you might try frowning every time she started talking about him.In the framework of operant conditioning, your frowning would be:
A)positive reinforcement
B)positive punishment
C)negative reinforcement
D)negative punishment

Accepted Answer

Frowning is an aversive stimulus, and using it to decrease the likelihood of a behavior (talking about her boyfriend) is a form of positive punishment.

Question 6

If you wanted your best friend to spend less time talking about her boyfriend, you might leave every time she started talking about him, saying that you just remembered that you had to be somewhere.In the framework of operant conditioning, your frowning would be:
A)positive reinforcement
B)positive punishment
C)negative reinforcement
D)negative punishment

Accepted Answer

Leaving every time she starts talking about her boyfriend can be seen as a form of negative punishment because you are taking away something (your presence) in response to her behavior (talking about her boyfriend) with the intention of decreasing that behavior in the future.

Question 7

Tammy is just two years old.She recently touched her hand to a hot stove.The burn caused her a great deal of pain.Her mom is fairly sure that because of positive punishment, Tammy will be:
A)more likely to touch the stove in the future
B)just as likely to touch the stove in the future as she was before the incident
C)less likely to touch the stove in the future
D)unpredictable in her tendency to touch the stove in the future

Accepted Answer

Positive punishment involves adding an unpleasant consequence to decrease the frequency of a behavior. In this case, the burn that Tammy experienced is an unpleasant consequence that will make her less likely to touch the stove in the future. Therefore, option C - less likely to touch the stove in the future - is the correct answer.

Question 8

Nora has started withholding physical affection from her boyfriend when he behaves badly on their dates.Nora has starting using which of the following as a way to reduce the likelihood that her boyfriend will behave badly.
A)positive reinforcement
B)negative reinforcement
C)positive punishment
D)negative punishment

Accepted Answer

Nora is using negative punishment by removing something desirable (physical affection) in response to her boyfriend's bad behavior, aiming to decrease the likelihood of the behavior occurring again.

Question 9

Hadley was a compulsive gambler who used to gamble on all the different sporting events.A year ago, Hadley lost over $4,000 in a single weekend, and he hasn't gambled since then.Based on what is known about operant conditioning, you should conclude that for Hadley, the loss of $4,000 acted as a:
A)negative punisher for gambling
B)positive punisher for gambling
C)conditioned stimulus for gambling
D)negative reinforcer for gambling

Accepted Answer

According to operant conditioning, a punishment is any consequence that decreases the frequency of a behavior. Hadley stopped gambling after losing $4,000, which suggests that the loss of money acted as a punishment for his gambling behavior. Since the punishment was negative (loss of money), option A is the correct choice. B, C, and D are incorrect because they do not accurately explain the relationship between Hadley's behavior and the consequence of losing money.

Question 10

Whenever Bhavin left his homework at school, he lost his computer privileges for two days.Bhavin forgets his homework much less often now.Losing computer privileges is an example of:
A)positive reinforcement
B)negative reinforcement
C)positive punishment
D)negative punishment

Accepted Answer

Negative punishment involves removing a desirable stimulus in response to a behavior, such as taking away Bhavin's computer privileges for leaving his homework at school. Bhavin forgetting his homework less often is likely due to the negative punishment of losing computer privileges.

Question 11

Valerie used to leave her room really messy and not make her bed.A month ago, her parents got tired of cleaning up after her and cut off Valerie's allowance until she stopped leaving her room in such a mess.Now, Valerie almost always has her room clean before she leaves the house.Based on what is known about operant conditioning, you should conclude that for Valerie, losing her allowance acted as a:
A)positive punisher for leaving her room messy
B)negative reinforcer for leaving her room messy
C)conditioned stimulus for leaving her room messy
D)negative punisher for leaving her room messy

Accepted Answer

The removal of Valerie's allowance (negative punishment) decreased the likelihood of her leaving her room messy. This suggests that losing her allowance acted as a negative punisher for leaving her room messy.

Question 12

With operant conditioning, a continuous reinforcement schedule is one in which:
A)reinforcers are provided whether or not a response occurs
B)a response is followed by reinforcement every time it occurs
C)reinforcement is delivered only some of the time when the response occurs
D)reinforcement is sometimes given for inappropriate responses

Accepted Answer

A continuous reinforcement schedule is one in which a response is followed by reinforcement every time it occurs. This means that reinforcement is given consistently for every correct response, which leads to fast learning and high response rates.

Question 13

The preschool teachers have started taking away play time when the class behaves badly.The teachers have started using which of the following as a way to reduce the likelihood that children will behave badly.
A)positive reinforcement
B)negative reinforcement
C)positive punishment
D)negative punishment

Accepted Answer

Taking away play time is an example of negative punishment, which involves the removal of a positive stimulus in order to decrease the likelihood of a behavior occurring again. This is different from negative reinforcement (the removal of a negative stimulus to increase the likelihood of a behavior occurring), and positive punishment (the addition of an aversive stimulus to decrease the likelihood of a behavior occurring). Positive reinforcement involves adding a positive stimulus to increase the likelihood of a behavior occurring.

Question 14

Constance used to really enjoy playing softball on her school team, but last week she got hit in the head by a line drive, and since then she hasn't wanted to play softball.Based on what is known about operant conditioning, you should conclude that for Constance, being hit by a line drive acted as a:
A)negative punisher for playing baseball
B)negative reinforcer for playing baseball
C)positive punisher for playing baseball
D)conditioned stimulus for playing baseball

Accepted Answer

According to operant conditioning, punishment is a consequence that decreases the likelihood of a behavior to be repeated in the future. In this case, being hit by a line drive was a painful consequence that led Constance to stop enjoying playing softball. Therefore, it acted as a positive punisher for playing baseball, as it added an unpleasant stimulus that decreased her desire to engage in the behavior. B and D are incorrect because reinforcement refers to consequences that increase the likelihood of a behavior, and a conditioned stimulus refers to a stimulus that elicits a response as a result of previous learning. A is incorrect because punishment and negative reinforcement are different concepts, and negative reinforcement refers to removing an unpleasant stimulus to increase the likelihood of a behavior.

Question 15

With operant conditioning, any event or stimulus that decreases the frequency of the behavior it follows is referred to as:
A)a punishment
B)a conditioned stimulus
C)a reinforcement
D)an unconditioned stimulus

Accepted Answer

A punishment is any event or stimulus that decreases the frequency of the behavior it follows in operant conditioning.

Question 16

With operant conditioning, a partial reinforcement schedule is one in which:
A)a response is followed by reinforcement every time it occurs
B)reinforcers are provided whether or not a response occurs
C)reinforcement is delivered only some of the time when the response occurs
D)reinforcement is sometimes given for inappropriate responses

Accepted Answer

A partial reinforcement schedule is one in which reinforcement is delivered only some of the time when the response occurs. This is in contrast to a continuous reinforcement schedule, where the response is followed by reinforcement every time it occurs. In a partial reinforcement schedule, the timing and frequency of reinforcement can vary. This can lead to behaviors that are more resistant to extinction compared to those that are continuously reinforced.

Question 17

Felix the cat used to jump on the Andersons' old couch every chance he got.Last week the Andersons bought a new couch, and every time Felix jumped up on the couch, he got hit with a newspaper.Felix quickly stopped jumping on the couch.Based on what is known about operant conditioning, you should conclude that for Felix, being hit with the newspaper acted as a:
A)a negative punisher for jumping on the couch
B)a negative reinforcer for jumping on the couch
C)conditioned stimulus for jumping on the couch
D)positive punisher for jumping on the couch

Accepted Answer

Being hit with a newspaper acted as a positive punisher for Felix because it introduced an unpleasant stimulus (the newspaper hit) following the behavior (jumping on the couch), which led to a decrease in that behavior.

Question 18

If you were explaining the concept of punishment to another student, the most accurate explanation would be that punishment:
A)increases the probability of an undesirable response
B)has the same effects as negative reinforcement
C)decreases the probability of a response
D)affects the probability of an unconditioned response's occurring in the future

Accepted Answer

Punishment decreases the probability of a response or behavior occurring in the future.

Question 19

A reinforcement schedule in which reinforcement is delivered only some of the time when the response occurs is referred to as a:
A)continuous reinforcement schedule
B)classical reinforcement schedule
C)partial reinforcement schedule
D)nondiscriminative reinforcement schedule

Accepted Answer

A partial reinforcement schedule involves delivering reinforcement only some of the time when the response occurs. This is in contrast to a continuous reinforcement schedule, where reinforcement is delivered every time the response occurs. Classical reinforcement and nondiscriminative reinforcement are not commonly used terms in psychology.

Question 20

When Simon was fixing his doorbell last month, he received an electric shock.Now he is reluctant to do any more electrical work around the house.Based on what is known about operant conditioning, you should conclude that for Simon, the electric shock acted as a:
A)negative punisher
B)conditioned stimulus
C)positive punisher
D)negative reinforcer

Accepted Answer

A positive punisher is a stimulus that is presented after a behavior and decreases the likelihood of the behavior being repeated. In this case, the electric shock (stimulus) was presented after the behavior of fixing his doorbell and decreased the likelihood of Simon doing any more electrical work around the house.

Quiz 7: Learning From Experience

The small helmet decals given to football players who have an outstanding performance are examples of:

A reinforcement schedule in which a response is followed by reinforcement every time the response occurs is referred to as a:

According to the theory of operant conditioning, when the presentation of a stimulus, after a response has occurred, decreases the likelihood of the response's occurring again, the process that is at work is referred to as:

According to the theory of operant conditioning, when the removal of a stimulus, after a response has occurred, decreases the likelihood of the response occurring again, the process is referred to as:

If you wanted your best friend to spend less time talking about her boyfriend, you might try frowning every time she started talking about him.In the framework of operant conditioning, your frowning would be:

If you wanted your best friend to spend less time talking about her boyfriend, you might leave every time she started talking about him, saying that you just remembered that you had to be somewhere.In the framework of operant conditioning, your frowning would be:

Tammy is just two years old.She recently touched her hand to a hot stove.The burn caused her a great deal of pain.Her mom is fairly sure that because of positive punishment, Tammy will be:

Nora has started withholding physical affection from her boyfriend when he behaves badly on their dates.Nora has starting using which of the following as a way to reduce the likelihood that her boyfriend will behave badly.

Hadley was a compulsive gambler who used to gamble on all the different sporting events.A year ago, Hadley lost over $4,000 in a single weekend, and he hasn't gambled since then.Based on what is known about operant conditioning, you should conclude that for Hadley, the loss of $4,000 acted as a:

Whenever Bhavin left his homework at school, he lost his computer privileges for two days.Bhavin forgets his homework much less often now.Losing computer privileges is an example of:

With operant conditioning, a continuous reinforcement schedule is one in which:

The preschool teachers have started taking away play time when the class behaves badly.The teachers have started using which of the following as a way to reduce the likelihood that children will behave badly.

With operant conditioning, any event or stimulus that decreases the frequency of the behavior it follows is referred to as:

With operant conditioning, a partial reinforcement schedule is one in which:

If you were explaining the concept of punishment to another student, the most accurate explanation would be that punishment:

A reinforcement schedule in which reinforcement is delivered only some of the time when the response occurs is referred to as a:

When Simon was fixing his doorbell last month, he received an electric shock.Now he is reluctant to do any more electrical work around the house.Based on what is known about operant conditioning, you should conclude that for Simon, the electric shock acted as a: