Cats received a fish reward whenever they maneuvered themselves out of an enclosed puzzle box.With successive trials,the cats escaped from the box with increasing speed.This illustrates
A) negative reinforcement.
B) the law of effect.
C) respondent behavior.
D) spontaneous recovery.

Question

Quizplus · Accepted Answer

The law of effect states that behaviors followed by positive consequences are strengthened and behaviors followed by negative consequences are weakened. In this scenario, the cats receiving a fish reward after escaping from the puzzle box is a positive consequence which strengthens the behavior of maneuvering themselves out of the box. This process of strengthening the behavior with positive consequences is an illustration of the law of effect.

Cats Received a Fish Reward Whenever They Maneuvered Themselves Out