Exam 5: Learning

Learning disabilities are largely due to __________.

In the classic treatment of bedwetting, which aspect of the therapy would be considered the conditioned response?

Dee Dee taught his dog Max to play dead whenever he made the sound of a gun being fired. After a while, Dee Dee got bored with the trick and allowed Max's behavior to extinguish. However, while Dee Dee was watching TV several months later, a small child on the TV began making the sound of a gun with his mouth. Upon hearing the sound, Max rolled over and played dead. Which principle of classical conditioning does this example illustrate?

When using Antabuse to treat alcoholism, what association is hopefully achieved so the alcoholic can stay away from alcohol?

Discuss what an "enriched environment" would look like for a child who is getting ready to go to school, and comment on how the presence or absence of such a setting might impact the likelihood that a child would develop a learning disorder.

Much of the early work on sensitization was done on __________.

What was the purpose of the classic study conducted by Skinner that investigated superstitious behaviors in pigeons?

Janet is really fed up with her husband, Paul. He constantly starts projects but rarely finishes them. He has at least ten different tasks that are all currently "in progress." When she asks him when he is going to finish, he is often evasive and makes no commitment, because he is already thinking about starting on something new. It is possible that Paul suffers from __________.

A puff of air is presented to the eye of an animal. The animal reflexively blinks in response to the puff of air. The puff of air is the __________.

When training animals, secondary reinforcers are needed. When a delay must occur between the behavior and the reward, often a __________ is used.

A fear of __________ may have helped early humans avoid injury or death.

Potty training is a process by which experience or practice results in a child using the toilet on a regular basis. This relatively permanent change in behavior is known as __________.

__________ is the result of two events occurring close together in time, even if they don't have anything in common.

Jesse's cat has been conditioned that the electric can opener signals the arrival of food, and the cat will run to the kitchen every time it hears the can opener. But Jesse then participates in a project at school where he must open 50 cans of beans and cook them. By the time Jesse gets halfway through the cans, he notices that the cat has disappeared. In this case, the can opener is no longer associated with the presentation of food. __________ to the can opener has occurred.

Even though Irma woke up late and ate breakfast at 10 a.m., when she looked at the clock at noon, she decided she felt hungry and wanted to each lunch. In this example, the conditioned response is __________.

Learning that applies to involuntary behavior is called __________, while learning that applies to voluntary behavior is called __________.

Scientists have discovered special cells in the brain that become excited when we observe someone else's behavior. These cells are called __________.

In an experiment, rats are exposed to a loud noise. One group is able to escape the noise by pushing a lever. The second group has no lever available and therefore cannot escape the noise. After several trials, both groups are put in situations where they can escape. The first group escapes the noise, but the second group just sits and cowers, refusing to attempt to escape the noise. The response of the second group is due to __________.

Compare and contrast the schedules of partial reinforcement, and comment on which schedule would be most likely to result in lasting behavioral change.

Loretta comes home from her day at high school terribly excited about the report card she has received. She has earned all A's and knows that her parents have promised her $10 for every A that she receives. Which of the following processes is probably taking place in her brain in anticipation of this monetary reward?