Exam 4: Applications of Behaviorist Principles

Ursula is always getting out of her seat at inappropriate times. As her teacher, you scold Ursula every time she does this, but her behavior seems to be getting worse rather than better. a. From a behaviorist perspective, why is Ursula's getting-out-of-seat behavior increasing rather than decreasing? b. How might you decrease her behavior by reinforcing an incompatible behavior? Describe your procedure in detail, specifying the reinforcer and the behavior you will reinforce.

In Mr. Greene's third-grade class, math problems are easy enough that students always solve them quickly and correctly. From the textbook's perspective, is this a good situation? Why or why not?

Describe the three components of traditional behavioral objectives. Write a behavioral objective that includes all three of these components, and identify each component within the objective you have written.

Develop an applied behavior analysis program to teach a 13-year-old girl to be more assertive. In your description, be sure to include and identify: a. The target behavior b. The method of measuring the target behavior c. How an appropriate reinforcer will be selected d. The treatment plan

Greg has terrible study habits: whenever he is given an assignment to be done either in class or at home, he doesn't begin the assignment until he has been repeatedly nagged by either his teacher or his parents. Furthermore, Greg seems unable to complete assignments without constant prodding to stay on task. Explain how you might use instrumental conditioning to help Greg develop better study habits. Be concrete and specific in your explanation of what you would do, and be sure to include each of the following in your description: a. The baseline b. The terminal behavior c. A secondary reinforcer you might use d. Shaping e. Some means of preventing extinction

The use of instructional objectives in instruction has several advantages. Which of the following is not a benefit that objectives provide?

Three of the following are recommended practices when using punishment to reduce an inappropriate behavior. Which one is not recommended?

Over the years people have voiced many concerns about the use of behaviorist techniques in the classroom. Some of these concerns are legitimate, but others are not. What might you say in rebuttal when someone makes each of the following complaints? a. "Why are you bribing students to learn their math facts?" b. "Punishing children for inappropriate behavior will make them feel badly about themselves." c. "When you reward a student for good behavior, you teach other students to misbehave so that they, too, can earn rewards."

In Marcia's first tennis lesson, her instructor Keith is trying to teach her the correct way to swing a tennis racket. Keith praises Marcia every time she hits the tennis ball over the net and into the "in bounds" area of the opponent's side of the court using the correct body position. Marcia shows little improvement during the one-hour lesson. From a behaviorist perspective, what mistake is Keith probably making in teaching Marcia to play tennis?

In programmed instruction, a branching program is different from a linear program in that a branching program:

From the standpoint of criteria described in the textbook, which one of the following objectives/goals should be most useful?

Eight-year-old Amy always seems to be in "overdrive"-she has trouble sitting still for any length of time. Her teacher occasionally gives her short breaks in which she can get up and move around a bit as a way of releasing pent-up energy. Such breaks occur unpredictably, without regard for whether Amy is behaving appropriately or inappropriately at the time. Research indicates that such noncontingent reinforcement:

If you wanted to encourage kindergartners to delay gratification, research indicates that an effective strategy would be to:

Many people object to the use of punishment in educational and/or therapeutic settings. But sometimes other means of discouraging inappropriate behaviors simply don't work. In five short paragraphs, describe five specific strategies you would use to a) maximize the effectiveness of punishment and/or b) minimize the occurrence of adverse side effects. Base your strategies on the textbook's discussion of punishment.

An essential element of a contingency contract in the classroom is that:

Ms. Hernandez is concerned about Brian, a student in her high school chemistry class who rarely interacts with other students. Ms. Hernandez decides to smile at Brian on those occasions when she happens to notice him talking with another student. Yet after three weeks she sees little change in his behavior. Based on this information, which one of the following is definitely wrong with Ms. Hernandez's approach?

Mr. Richards gives his class fifteen minutes of free time whenever at least 95% of the class gets a passing grade on a test. Mr. Richards is using:

If you were to apply the concept of terminal behavior in teaching a lesson, which one of these things would you do?

Which one of the following examples best illustrates the concept of baseline as behaviorists use the term?

In applied behavior analysis, it is often important to promote, quite explicitly, the generalization of newly acquired behavior to a variety of contexts. Three of the following are recommended strategies for promoting such generalization. Which one of the following, although possibly beneficial for other reasons, will not necessarily promote generalization?