Exam 5: Learning

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

When students repeatedly experience failure in academic settings and feel that they are unable to exert control over their schoolwork, they may develop learned helplessness.

The startle reflex will occur in response to a sudden or unexpected noise. Using Pavlov's terms, the sudden noise would be termed the conditioned stimulus, and the startle reflex would be termed the conditioned response.

According to the box entitled "Changing the Behavior of Others: Alternatives to Punishment," which of the following is NOT an effective way to change the behavior of others?

Which of the following scientists acknowledged the existence of "internal factors" but believed that internal thoughts, beliefs, emotions, or motives should not be included in an objective scientific explanation of behavior?

While his exhausted mother was taking a nap, four-year-old Dennis decided to help her out by doing the laundry. He dragged a stool over to the washing machine, stuffed clothes into it, turned it on, and dumped a box of detergent on top of the clothes. Which psychologist and which learning theory could best explain Dennis's behavior?

In psychology, the formal definition of learning is:

To avoid losing any data on his computer, Tom consistently backs up his computer data to a second hard drive. Using operant conditioning terms, Tom's behavior of backing up his data to a second hard drive is an example of:

_____ used a shuttlebox to demonstrate the phenomenon of _____.

Applications of operant conditioning techniques to increase the use of seat belts, to train Seeing Eye dogs, and to improve social skills in schoolchildren are all examples of behavior modification.

_____ began his research career by studying learned helplessness in dogs and later in humans. He applied his findings to psychological problems in humans, including major depressive disorder, and he investigated why some people succumb to learned helplessness while others persist in the face of obstacles.

Athletes who believe they have no control over factors that lead to poor performance are less likely to believe they can succeed in the future and are less likely to persist in the face of failure. This illustrates the phenomenon of:

An organism enhances its odds of survival by being responsive to the consequences of its actions, as in:

According to psychologist Edward C. Tolman, learning that is not immediately demonstrated in overt behavior is termed:

While at the airport, seven-year-old Ethan discovers a quarter in the coin return of a pay telephone. Ever since, Ethan checks the coin return of any pay telephone he sees. Using operant conditioning terms, the sight of a pay telephone is a discriminative stimulus.

Whenever Kim and Russ make love, they always play Ravel's classic instrumental work "Boléro" in the background. One day, as Kim is walking past a music appreciation class, she realizes that the class is listening to Ravel's "Boléro." As she continues to walk down the hall, she smiles to herself as erotic thoughts of Russ cross her mind. Which of the following best represents the unconditioned stimulus in this example?

What is the most valid conclusion about the different models of conditioning and learning?

Partial reinforcement is one of the most effective ways to maintain a high level of responding.

Psychologist John Garcia conditioned rats to have a taste aversion to sweet-tasting water by injecting them with a drug that made them ill. Using classical conditioning terminology, what was the unconditioned stimulus (UCS) in this experimental situation?

Psychologist John B. Watson strongly advocated the study of mental processes in order to understand how learning occurs in humans and other animals.