Deck 4: Reinforcement and Extinction of Operant Behavior

Question 1

What defines a contingency of reinforcement?

A) Discriminative stimulus
B) Operant
C) Reinforcement
D) All of these

Answer 1

D

Question 2

Consider the following example: "Joanne is very fair skinned. In order to not get sunburned, she puts on sunscreen before she goes to the beach." This is an example of ______.

A) Positive reinforcement
B) Negative reinforcement
C) Positive punishment
D) Negative punishment

Answer 2

B

Question 3

In negative punishment, a stimulus is ______ and as a result behavior ______.

A) Removed; decreases
B) Added; decreases
C) Removed; increases
D) Added; increases

Answer 3

D

Question 4

In terms of response stereotypes, variability, and reinforcement, the work by Barry Schwartz shows that reinforcement can produce _____ patterns of behavior while the work of Neuringer and colleagues indicates that reinforcement can produce ________.

A) Stereotyped; response stability
B) Stereotyped; response variability
C) Response variability; stereotyped
D) Response stability; response variability

Question 5

In terms of rewards and intrinsic motivation, Cameron et al. (2001) conducted a statistical procedure called _____ and one of the findings indicated that verbal rewards ____ performance and interest on tasks.

A) Multivariate analysis; increased
B) Multivariate analysis; decreased
C) Meta-analysis; decreased
D) Meta-analysis; increased

Question 6

To experimentally study the probability of response, a researcher uses ____ as the basic measure and follows the ____ method.

A) Operant rate; T-maze
B) Latency; T-maze
C) Operant rate; free operant
D) Latency; free operant

Question 7

Shaping of behavior involves:

A) The molding of a response class by the physical arrangement of the operant chamber
B) Reinforcing closer and closer approximations to the final performance
C) Withholding and giving food for correct performance of a specified level of response
D) None of the above

Question 8

Andrew spends a lot of time playing guitar and very little time studying. ______ suggest(s) that playing the guitar could be a reinforcer for studying.

A) Punishment theories
B) Respondent conditioning
C) Social-cognitive conditioning
D) The Premack principle

Question 9

Response deprivation has what effect on the response hierarchy in a free-choice setting?

A) Deprivation removes the free-choice element of decision-making
B) Deprivation can lead to the performance of all behaviors to increase in frequency creating excessive responding
C) Deprivation can lead to a behavior moving up on the response hierarchy, functioning as greater reinforcement at a given moment
D) Deprivation does not affect the response hierarchy

Question 10

Consider the following example: "Bob is running late for work so he drives faster than usual. As a result of his increased speed, Bob is pulled over by a police officer and receives a ticket. The next time Bob is running late for work he drives the correct speed." This is an example of _____.

A) Positive reinforcement
B) Negative reinforcement
C) Positive punishment
D) Negative punishment

Question 11

The Premack principle states that a higher-frequency behavior will:

A) Function as reinforcement for a lower-frequency behavior
B) None of these
C) Function as intermittent reinforcement for a low-frequency behavior
D) Function as punishment for a high-frequency behavior

Question 12

Which of the following is (are) involved in the partial reinforcement effect?

A) Discrimination between reinforcement and extinction is more rapid on CRF
B) Longer extinction on intermittent reinforcement compared with CRF
C) The higher the rate of reinforcement, the greater the resistance to change
D) All of these

Question 13

Consider the following example: "Kendra stays out two hours past curfew. As a result of her tardiness, her parents take away her privileges to go out for two weeks. The next time Kendra goes out she makes sure to come home on time." This is an example of _____.

A) Positive reinforcement
B) Negative reinforcement
C) Positive punishment
D) Negative punishment

Question 14

In positive reinforcement, a stimulus is ______ and as a result behavior _____.

A) Removed; decreases
B) Added; decreases
C) Removed; increases
D) Added; increases

Question 15

Consider the following example: "Your phone won't allow you to make a call so you turn it off and then back on again. After this your phone allows you to make a call." Identify the operant in this example.

A) Your phone allowing you to make calls
B) Your phone no longer allowing you to make calls
C) Turning the phone on and off
D) This is respondent, not operant, conditioning

Question 16

A classic experiment on the effects of extinction by Antonitis (1951) involved:

A) Nose poking by rats for food reinforcement
B) Photographs of the rats' position and body angle
C) Increased variability of nose poking during extinction
D) All of the above

Question 17

Which of the following is not one of the four basic contingencies?

A) Positive reinforcement
B) Positive extinction
C) Negative punishment
D) Negative reinforcement

Question 18

One of the main criticisms of behavioral rewards and reinforcement is the idea that ______.

A) External rewards will lead to lower intrinsic motivation
B) External rewards will lead to higher intrinsic motivation
C) Intrinsic motivation will not be effected by external motivation
D) Internal rewards will lead to lower intrinsic motivation

Question 19

The _______ is the behavior that produces the opportunity to engage in some activity.

A) Manipulative response
B) Instrumental response
C) Maladaptive response
D) Contingent response

Question 20

The term operant comes from the verb _________________ and refers to behavior that _____________.

A) Opponent; opposes its consequences in a given environment
B) Opendum; opens the door to its effects on a given occasion
C) Operate; operates on the environment to produce effects
D) Opara; presents the opportunity to respond on a given occasion

Question 21

Deprivation operations (such as not feeding an organism for several hours before a study begins) can only be said to have established the deprived stimulus as a reinforcer if:

A) The time of deprivation is sufficient to create a need for the response
B) The rate of response for the instrumental response increases when it provides contingent access to the deprived stimulus
C) The organism shows noticeable signs of distress
D) The organism's behavior shows the first stages of an extinction burst

Question 22

The extinction burst refers to:

A) An increase in frequency of the behavior when extinction is first started
B) An increase in the variability of behavior when extinction is first started
C) Increased emotional responding that occurs during extinction
D) The tendency for previously reinforced behavior to reappear during extinction

Question 23

In order to treat her son's frequent tantrums while out shopping, Ruby put his tantrum behavior on extinction by refusing to buy any treats when he tantrums in the store. This works and her son does not tantrum any more while shopping. Then, suddenly, the tantrum behavior reappears one day while they are out shopping. This reappearance of the previously extinguished behavior is an example of:

A) Reappearance
B) Spontaneous recovery
C) Generalization
D) Extinction burst

Question 24

During magazine training, when a pigeon is placed in a chamber for the first time it may demonstrate a variety of behavioral responses because of ________.

A) Conditioned aversive stimuli
B) Respondent conditioning to perceive the chamber as aversive
C) The novel features in the chamber that may serve as aversive stimuli
D) Conditioned positive stimuli that activate pleasure mechanisms in the bird's brain

Question 25

An operant class is:

A) All of the variations of behavior that produce the environmental changes required for reinforcement
B) The different types of reinforcers that can be produced by a particular behavior
C) All of the stimuli that set the occasion for a particular behavior
D) A specific instance of a stimulus-behavior-reinforcer relation

Question 26

Max finds that his new dog will work really hard for bites of a doggy treat at the beginning of a training session, but appears to lose interest in the treats the more that Max gives to him. This is an example of:

A) Extinction
B) Deprivation
C) Generalization
D) Satiation

Question 27

Which of the following statements most closely summarizes Skinner's criticism of Thorndike's law of effect?

A) Latency as a dependent variable doesn't tell us anything about how the behavior changes
B) Trial suggests that the organism is consciously working to understand the environment
C) The law of effect focuses too much on the internal thoughts of the organism
D) Puzzle boxes are too artificial an environment to understand real behavior change

Question 28

How does in-vitro reinforcement relate to Skinner's "atoms of behavior"?

A) Disproves Skinner by showing that reinforcement does not exist at the neural level
B) Disproves Skinner by showing that atoms do not generate behavior
C) Supports Skinner by showing that reinforcement exists at the neural level
D) Supports Skinner by showing that atoms generate behavior

Question 29

Neuringer's investigations into the effect of reinforcement on problem solving suggested that:

A) Reinforcement results in stereotyped behavior
B) Variability in responding is an operant that can be reinforced
C) The use of reinforcement results in highly rigid behavior
D) Stereotypy and rigidity are unavoidable consequences of reinforcement

Question 30

Skinner proposed that the basic datum (measure) for operant analysis should be:

A) Magnitude
B) Latency
C) Frequency
D) Rate

Question 31

Although she was happy in the relationship, Joan decided to break up with her boyfriend several weeks ago. He tried contacting her for several days afterward, but after several weeks without any response from Joan, he stopped trying to contact her. Then, one day, Joan accidentally sends her ex a text message asking about his day. After this message, he starts frequently texting and calling Joan again. This reappearance of the previously extinguished behavior is an example of:

A) Spontaneous recovery
B) Generalization
C) Reinforcement
D) Reinstatement of responding

Question 32

Kobayashi and colleagues demonstrated that the presentation of juice in the mouth following a spike in neural activity could be used as a reinforcer for activity in the _____ of Japanese monkeys.

A) Lateral prefrontal cortex (LPFC)
B) Visual cortex
C) The somatosensory cortex
D) The amygdala

Question 33

As you are examining the cumulative record produced by the rat you are training in the laboratory, you notice that the graph shows several spots where the line is very steep, followed almost immediately by the line going flat (horizontal). What does this change from a steep line to a horizontal line most likely mean has happened?

A) A reinforcer occurred for the target behavior
B) A punisher occurred for the target behavior
C) The rate of the target behavior reached its maximum
D) The organism stopped responding to explore other parts of the chamber

Question 34

Which of the following best illustrates a study using the free-operant method?

A) A rat receives an electric shock following a 5-second light-on interval
B) A rat is required to run in a maze until it finds the food box and is then removed from the box
C) A rat is placed in a chamber for one hour with a lever available that delivers food after every 10th response
D) A rat is given free access to high-calorie food, is subsequently euthanized, and then its brain is compared to the brains of rats that ate only low-calorie foods

Question 35

Before Frank could begin his research project, he had to train his rat to press the lever by reinforcing successive approximations of lever pressing. This technique is known as:

A) Extinction
B) Operant level
C) Shaping
D) Acquisition

Question 36

"Shooting a basketball consists of holding the ball in one hand while the knees are bent with feet shoulder-width apart, followed by pushing the feet into the floor, extending the arm, and flicking the wrist." This description is focusing on what element of behavior?

A) Topography
B) Function
C) Duration
D) Discriminative function

Question 37

Studies using Drosophila indicate that the gene ___________ is necessary for __________________ learning to occur.

A) FoxP; behavior consequence
B) FoxP; stimulus relations
C) HIF1⍺; behavior consequence
D) HIF1⍺; stimulus relations

Question 38

A "closed" sign on a store is an example of _____ for our door-opening behavior.

A) Discriminative stimulus
B) Partial reinforcement
C) Discriminated extinction
D) Shaping

Question 39

Williams (1959) found that the bedtime tantrum behavior of a 20-month-old was maintained by ___________________ and that the parents' behavior of giving in to the tantrum was maintained by ________________________.

A) Negative reinforcement; positive reinforcement
B) Positive reinforcement; negative reinforcement
C) Negative reinforcement; negative reinforcement
D) Positive reinforcement; positive reinforcement

Question 40

The major functional difference between forgetting and extinction is:

A) The opportunity to emit the behavior during extinction, but not forgetting
B) The opportunity to emit the behavior during forgetting, but not extinction
C) Extinction deals with behavior while forgetting deals with memory
D) Forgetting occurs mostly in older organisms while extinction can occur with individuals of any age