You would be most likely to use operant conditioning to teach a dog to
A) fear cars in the street.
B) dislike the taste of dead birds.
C) wag its tail whenever it is emotionally excited.
D) retrieve sticks and balls.

Question

Quizplus · Accepted Answer

Operant conditioning involves teaching an animal to associate a behavior with a consequence. Teaching a dog to retrieve sticks and balls is a perfect example of operant conditioning because the dog learns that by bringing back the object, it will receive praise or a treat as a reward. Fear and dislike are usually associated with classical conditioning, which involves pairing a neutral stimulus with a negative or positive stimuli, respectively. Wagging its tail is a natural behavior for dogs and does not need to be conditioned.

You Would Be Most Likely to Use Operant Conditioning to Teach