Exam 5: Section 3: Learning

The process of classical conditioning was accidentally discovered by Russian physiologist Ivan Pavlov who was studying the role of saliva in digestion.

Though sometimes it's a little early or a little late, your mail almost always arrives around 10:30 every morning. As it gets closer to 10:30, you tend to check the mailbox more often. This is an everyday example of a variable-interval schedule of reinforcement.

Based on his studies of cats that tried to escape a puzzle box, Edward L. Thorndike became convinced that animals use reasoning abilities and problem-solving thought processes that are very similar to those of humans.

A good method to reduce a problem behavior is to reinforce an alternative behavior that is both constructive and incompatible with the problem behavior.

Population Communications International is a nonprofit group that develops television and radio drama series that are based on the principles of observational learning.

Classical conditioning was discovered by behaviorist John B. Watson during the experimental research with "Little Albert."

A fixed-interval schedule typically produces a pattern of responding in which the number of responses tends to increase as the time for the next reinforcer draws near.

The respect of your peers, the approval of your instructors or managers, a smile, a touch, or a nod of recognition can all be possible examples of conditioned reinforcers.

Trophies, ribbons, certificates of achievement, and money are often used to reinforce behavior. Using operant conditioning terms, these would all be examples of primary reinforcers.

In a classic experiment, Albert Bandura used shaping and negative reinforcement to condition children to hit and kick a "Bobo" doll.

John Watson and Rosalie Rayner made no effort to eliminate the fear they conditioned in the infant called Little Albert.

Research on taste aversions demonstrated that classical conditioning can occur with a single pairing of the CS and the UCS.

Marlene intentionally parks her new sports car away from other cars in parking lots in order to keep her new car from getting dinged and chipped. Negative reinforcement is occurring in this example.

Tolman referred to learning that is not immediately demonstrated in observable behavior as latent learning.

Sexual arousal can be classically conditioned.

You make a comment in your workgroup meetings, and a coworker responds with a sarcastic remark. You no longer speak during your workgroup meetings. This is an example of negative reinforcement.

Punishment is one of the most effective operant conditioning techniques used to teach or promote new behaviors.

In Rescorla's experiment described in the text, the strongest fear response was shown by the rats that received 20 tone-shock pairings plus an additional 20 shocks with no tone.

The shuttlebox is used in an operant conditioning procedure to investigate learned helplessness in dogs.

Awards, frequent flyer points, and college degrees are examples of primary reinforcers.