Deck 3: Classic Theories of Learning and Cognition

Question 1

Which of the following is NOT an example of learning ?

A) Abigail cries when she steps on a sharp pebble.
B) After many hours of heated debate, Brian begins to advocate political practices he previously opposed.
C) Cara suddenly recognizes how the division fact "24 / 4 = 6" is related to the multiplication fact "6 x 4 = 24."
D) David has been running away from German shepherds ever since he was bitten by a German shepherd two years ago.

Answer 1

A

Question 2

Pavlovian (classical) conditioning is to involuntary response as operant conditioning is to _______ response.

A) extinguished
B) generalized
C) fixed
D) voluntary

Answer 2

D

Question 3

Linda moved to Columbia, Missouri from New York City and uses New York phrases in her speech. Her classmates tease her when she uses New York phrases in order to influence her to quit using them. Linda has quit using New York phrases in her speech. The teasing is an example of

A) reinforcement of an incompatible behavior.
B) negative reinforcement.
C) shaping.
D) punishment.

Answer 3

D

Question 4

One characteristic of behaviorism is an emphasis on

A) observable events.
B) the importance of how people think and plan.
C) one-trial learning.
D) introspection.

Question 5

Chris Mullin wants her husband to fix the back porch. She nags and nags. He wants to escape from her nagging, so he fixes it. Her nagging is functioning as

A) negative reinforcement.
B) punishment.
C) classical conditioning.
D) shaping.

Question 6

Teresa has a painful experience at the dentist's office. The next time her mother brings her to the dentist's office, Teresa begins to get tense and anxious. In this situation, the dentist and dentist's office are

A) unconditioned stimuli.
B) unconditioned responses.
C) conditioned stimuli.
D) conditioned responses.

Question 7

Negative reinforcement does which of the following?

A) increases the probability of a behavior
B) functions as punishment and decreases behavior
C) delays behavior
D) creates a response cost

Question 8

Which of the following responses is most likely to be learned through classical conditioning?

A) waving to a friend
B) taking a walk on a nice day
C) doing homework
D) feeling fear around horses

Question 9

Mr. Johnson wants a hyperactive boy to be able to sit quietly for at least 15 minutes at a time. To do this, he begins praising the boy for sitting still for one minute, then for two minutes, and then for four minutes, and so on. Mr. Johnson's strategy best reflects which one of the following concepts?

A) shaping
B) generalization
C) intermittent reinforcement
D) discrimination learning

Question 10

Teresa has a painful experience at the dentist's office. The next time her mother brings her to the dentist's office, Teresa begins to get tense and anxious. Teresa's anxiety is a(n)

A) unconditioned stimulus.
B) operant response.
C) conditioned stimulus.
D) conditioned response.

Question 11

Mr. Brillhart teaches from a script that is provided by a publisher. The script explains new information clearly, and then calls for student responses. Mr. Brillhart aims for a student success rate of 80 percent on initial learning. He is likely using which form of instruction?

A) inquiry learning
B) instructional conversations
C) direct instruction
D) cognitive apprenticeships

Question 12

Which of the following supports the operant conditioning explanation for why some children become aggressive?

A) they mentally link aggression with negative consequences
B) they identify with aggressive characters on TV
C) when they are aggressive, they tend to get their way
D) their basic physiological needs are not met

Question 13

When a student gives a thoughtful answer that goes beyond the information in the textbook, teacher Kimba Wood has the class stand and run in place for a few seconds. Thoughtful answers have increased in the class. Running in place appears to be functioning as

A) punishment.
B) negative reinforcement.
C) reinforcement.
D) an unconditioned stimulus.

Question 14

Warren has earned himself a reputation for being the class clown. His teacher, Ms. Washington, used to laugh at Warren's funny remarks, but is now trying to discourage Warren's disruptive behavior by ignoring his jokes. In operant conditioning terminology, Ms. Washington is now trying to modify Warren's joke-telling behavior through

A) stimulus discrimination.
B) extinction.
C) shaping.
D) negative reinforcement.

Question 15

Generalizing from research on maintaining behavior over the long run, we can say that behavior that is reinforced intermittently is more resistant to extinction than behavior that is reinforced continuously.

A) true
B) false

Question 16

Which of the following is true about teacher attention?

A) It is always a reinforcer.
B) It can change behavior only in students to whom it was directed.
C) It may act as a reinforcer when intended as a punishment.
D) It does not reinforce behavior.

Question 17

Teresa has a painful experience at the dentist's office, so her mother takes Teresa to a new dentist, one who takes great care to make her visits painless. Teresa is anxious at first, but after a few visits, Teresa gradually becomes less resistant about going to the new dentist. Teresa's change in behavior can probably best be explained in terms of

A) extinction.
B) generalization.
C) higher-order conditioning.
D) sensory preconditioning.

Question 18

Of all the operant conditioning techniques and principles discussed in the text, which did Skinner (and others) recommend avoiding?

A) extinction
B) punishment
C) shaping
D) positive reinforcement

Question 19

Operant conditioning theorists use the term reinforcement rather than "reward" because

A) one type of reinforcement (negative reinforcement) is actually a form of punishment .
B) the term "reward" implies a desirable consequence, but not all reinforcers are desirable.
C) the term "reward" can refer only to a material reinforcer.
D) the term "reward" can refer only to a social reinforcer.

Question 20

Edward is severely beaten by his alcoholic father on several occasions. Before long, Edward begins to shake whenever his father approaches. In this situation, Edward's father is

A) an unconditioned stimulus.
B) a conditioned stimulus.
C) an unconditioned response.
D) a conditioned response.

Question 21

Why do constructivists advocate making student thinking public?

A) to help reveal student misconceptions
B) to improve student public speaking
C) so that other students do not make the same mistakes
D) to create a community of practice

Question 22

Object permanence refers to the belief that

A) objects cannot be destroyed.
B) objects continue to exist even when out of sight.
C) objects are permanent while beliefs are not.
D) infants cannot understand conservation of matter.

Question 23

A child who watches a chef in a pizza restaurant flatten a ball of dough into a crust may comment, "Wow! It sure got a lot bigger when you did that." This type of thinking is most closely associated with the Piagetian concept of

A) accommodation.
B) adaptation.
C) conservation.
D) disequilibrium.

Question 24

Which of the following is NOT an example of constructivist instruction?

A) inquiry approach
B) discovery learning
C) project-based learning
D) direct instruction

Question 25

One of the key criticisms of Piaget's theory of cognitive development centers on the fact that he

A) underestimated the intellectual capabilities of adolescents.
B) underestimated the intellectual capabilities of young children.
C) failed to consider the active role of children in their own development.
D) focused too much attention on the biological components of development.

Question 26

Which of the following best describes direct instruction?

A) Students are motivated as they discover concepts for themselves.
B) Students are explicitly taught everything they are supposed to know.
C) Each student constructs his or her own understanding.
D) Each teacher creates a curriculum based on his or her own strengths.

Question 27

Solomon's mother hides his sippy cup by first placing it under a blanket and then putting it under a nearby pillow, in Solomon's full view. Solomon responds by looking for the sippy cup under the blanket. This is an example of

A) conservation of matter.
B) A-not-B error.
C) deferred imitation.
D) animism.

Question 28

According to Piaget, for children to learn something they need which of the following?

A) explicit instruction
B) help with misconceptions
C) to create their own understanding
D) to have knowledge poured into their heads

Question 29

Which of the following is most likely to be a cultural tool?

A) going on a trip
B) zone of proximal development
C) Shakespeare
D) smartphone

Question 30

Mr. Silas wants his students to understand properties of air, so he has them fly kites, press inverted glasses into water, release smelly gases in a warm room and a cold room, blow up balloons, and so forth. His class could best be described as based on principles of

A) operant conditioning.
B) classical conditioning.
C) observational learning.
D) constructivist teaching.

Question 31

Private speech is normal and common in young children.

Question 32

Consider the following item: (do not answer it) All of the following sentences are true. What determines whether or not there is good weather?
1) Charlie is not swimming; Dave is boating; there is not good weather.
2) Charlie is not swimming; there is good weather; Dave is boating.
3) Charlie is swimming; there is not good weather; Dave is not boating.
4) Dave is not boating; there is good weather; Charlie is swimming.
Which of the following Piagetian stages is the item above designed to assess?

A) sensorimotor
B) preoperations
C) concrete operations
D) formal operations

Question 33

Preschoolers are presented with colored balls: 2 red and 5 blue. If they are asked whether there are "more balls or more blue balls" they are likely to answer

A) more balls.
B) more blue balls.
C) more red balls.
D) "I don't know."

Question 34

Serafina can go beyond what she sees in the real world and can consider possibilities and scenarios that don't exist. She is likely in which of Piaget's stages?

A) concrete operational
B) formal operational
C) egotistic
D) preoperational

Question 35

Children who are 5 years old and cannot decenter are likely in which of Piaget's stages?

A) preoperational
B) concrete operations
C) formal operations
D) sensorimotor

Question 36

Monica, a child, is alone in a room watching television. One of the TV characters suddenly slaps her daughter. Awhile later, Monica's mother comes into the room and Monica asks her mother, "Why did the mommy slap her daughter?" Monica's mother replies, "What mommy? What daughter?" Monica is showing

A) egocentrism.
B) concrete operational thought.
C) lack of conservation.
D) precausal reasoning.

Question 37

Newborns are in which Piagetian stage?

A) formal operations
B) preoperational
C) concrete operations
D) sensorimotor

Question 38

If a teacher is working with Sally in her zone of proximal development, it means

A) the teacher is improving Sally's competence by giving assistance.
B) Sally is being diagnosed for possible learning disabilities.
C) the school has an in-school suspension policy.
D) the teacher is avoiding scaffolding.

Question 39

Which form of conservation are children likely to master last?

A) volume
B) area
C) length
D) liquid

Question 40

The constructivist approach to instruction is most based upon the theories of

A) Bandura.
B) Harlow.
C) Skinner.
D) Piaget.

Question 41

The major purpose of reciprocal teaching is to improve what?

Question 42

A teacher reads text with students, models summarizing the text, predicting what might come next, and then scaffolds the students to do the same. The instruction is best described as an example of

A) direct instruction.
B) Piagetian constructivism.
C) reciprocal teaching.
D) distributed cognition.

Question 43

Which of the following is a key concept of Bandura's social cognitive theory?

A) reciprocal teaching
B) learning through observation
C) stages
D) influence of nature (genetics)

Question 44

Object permanence is emphasized in which of Piaget's stages?

Question 45

Ability to conserve is emphasized in which of Piaget's stages?

Question 46

B.F. Skinner, who trained rats in Skinner boxes, is associated with which theory of learning?

Question 47

Name two key attributes of constructivist instruction.

Question 48

Bandura's classic study, in which children viewed filmed models hit an inflatable punching doll, demonstrated that

A) children imitate aggressive behaviors that they view.
B) viewing aggression leads to major behavior problems in school.
C) children tend to misinterpret adult behavior.
D) children seldom imitate televised aggression.

Question 49

What is the term for a consequence that increases the probability of a behavior?