Deck 6: Learning

Question 1

John has to give his cat Garfield a pill every day. He always opens up the pill bottle (which makes a popping sound) and removes one pill before giving it to Garfield, and he follows this by giving him a treat as a reward. After a while, John notices that when he opens up the pill bottle, Garfield comes running to him right away. In this example, the __________ is the conditioned response.

A) sound of the pill bottle opening
B) pill-taking
C) cat running to John
D) treat

Answer 1

cat running to John

Question 2

John has to give his cat Garfield a pill every day. He always opens up the pill bottle (which makes a popping sound) and removes one pill before giving it to Garfield, and he follows this by giving him a treat as a reward. After a while, John notices that when he opens up the pill bottle, Garfield comes running to him right away. In this example, the __________ is the conditioned stimulus.

A) sound of the pill bottle opening
B) pill-taking
C) cat running to John
D) treat

Answer 2

sound of the pill bottle opening

Question 3

Learning to make a reflex response to a stimulus other than to the original, natural stimulus is called

A) classical conditioning.
B) operant conditioning.
C) memory linkage.
D) adaptation.

Answer 3

classical conditioning.

Question 4

Which observation led Pavlov to begin studying the process of classical conditioning?

A) Dogs salivate more to meat than to vegetables.
B) Dogs salivate when they expect to get food.
C) Dogs don't learn from punishment.
D) Dogs become accustomed to certain sounds and are able to ignore them.

Question 5

__________ is any relatively permanent change in behaviour brought about by experience or practice.

A) Adaptation
B) Muscle memory
C) Memory enhancement
D) Learning

Question 6

Who was the first person to describe learning as acquired through classical conditioning, while studying the digestive process of dogs?

A) John B. Watson
B) Albert Bandura
C) B.F. Skinner
D) Ivan Pavlov

Question 7

Which of the following events most intrigued Pavlov and led to his discoveries?

A) The dogs seemed to enjoy the food.
B) The assistant salivated along with the dogs when the dogs started to eat.
C) The dogs stopped salivating after seeing the assistant so many times.
D) The dogs started to salivate when they saw Pavlov's assistant and before they got the food.

Question 8

As an infant, Stephanie received many painful injections from a doctor. When she later saw a photographer in a white coat that was similar to the doctor's coat, she started to cry. This is an example of

A) instrumental learning.
B) observational learning.
C) classical conditioning.
D) habituation.

Question 9

__________ occurs when we respond more strongly over time to a repeated stimulus, and __________ occurs when we respond less strongly over time to a repeated stimulus.

A) Sensitization; habituation
B) Habituation; adaptation
C) Adaptation; sensitization
D) Habituation; sensitization

Question 10

The sound of an insect buzzing around your ear becomes more annoying over time and you just can't ignore it. Which form of learning does this represent?

A) habituation
B) shaping
C) latent inhibition
D) sensitization

Question 11

John has to give his cat Garfield a pill every day. He always opens up the pill bottle (which makes a popping sound) and removes one pill before giving it to Garfield, and he follows this by giving him a treat as a reward. After a while, John notices that when he opens up the pill bottle, Garfield comes running to him right away. In this example, the __________ is the unconditioned stimulus.

A) sound of the pill bottle opening
B) pill-taking
C) cat running to John
D) treat

Question 12

Trevor is trying to study in the library and is distracted by students who are talking at nearby tables. After a while, he does not notice them and is able to concentrate on his studying. What form of learning has Trevor experienced?

A) Sensitization
B) Habituation
C) Adaptation
D) Conditioning

Question 13

Nic smiled when he heard a song that reminded him of a great summer, years ago. That song was very popular that summer, so it became associated with a lot of fun events. Which type of learning does this represent?

A) shaping
B) habituation
C) classical conditioning
D) operant conditioning

Question 14

Learning is said to be a relatively permanent change in behaviour because

A) it is thought that learning changes the nerve fibre patterns in your muscles.
B) once you learn something, you will never fail to remember it or carry out the correct action.
C) it is thought that when learning occurs some part of the brain physically changes.
D) memory processes, unlike learning processes, are not permanent.

Question 15

Some stimuli elicit responses from us very naturally. Other stimuli are neutral and don't elicit any meaningful responses. If we learn to respond to a neutral stimulus because it has been paired with a meaningful stimulus, which type of conditioning is that?

A) Operant conditioning
B) Classical conditioning
C) Instrumental conditioning
D) Reinforcement conditioning

Question 16

Sarah learned to associate the smell of popcorn with watching movies. Which type of learning is this?

A) classical conditioning
B) sensitization
C) operant conditioning
D) habituation

Question 17

Which researchers is known for documenting and describing classical conditioning?

A) Skinner.
B) Thorndike.
C) Pavlov.
D) Watson.

Question 18

Pavlov placed meat powder in the mouths of dogs, and they began to salivate. In this example, what is the food?

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

Question 19

Normally, when food is placed in the mouth of any animal, the salivary glands start releasing saliva to help with chewing and digestion. In Pavlov's description of learning, salivation is

A) a digestive reflux.
B) conditioned response.
C) an unconditioned response.
D) a voluntary response.

Question 20

Which type of learning allows you to ignore irrelevant details about the world, in order to focus on what matters?

A) insight
B) shaping
C) sensitization
D) habituation

Question 21

Sue noticed that whenever she opened the squeaky door to the pantry, where the dog food is kept, her dog would come into the kitchen and act hungry, by drooling and whining. In this example, what is the sound of the squeaky door?

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

Question 22

In classical conditioning, acquisition can be described as the process in which

A) the CS produces the UCR.
B) the CR is weakened.
C) the CS is associated with the UCS.
D) the UCS produces the CR.

Question 23

Paul's cat gets fed first thing in the morning, as soon as he gets up. As soon as she hears Paul's alarm clock, the cat runs to the kitchen and waits for him by her bowl. In this example, what is the conditioned stimulus?

A) the cat
B) the food
C) the sound of the alarm clock
D) Paul

Question 24

Which of the following would be an unconditioned response (UCR) in an experiment like Pavlov's?

A) praise
B) food
C) dogs
D) salivation

Question 25

When Pavlov placed meat powder or other food in the mouths of canine subjects, they began to salivate. The salivation was a(n)

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

Question 26

Which of the following would be a conditioned response (CR) in an experiment like Pavlov's?

A) dogs
B) food
C) salivation
D) sounds

Question 27

Every time Maricella goes to work in the morning, she notices that her dog sulks in the corner of the room and looks very sad. Over several weeks, she notices that the dog gets unhappy when she picks up her car keys, immediately before leaving the house. Which phenomenon of learning best describes the dog's behaviour?

A) Classical conditioning
B) Innate learning
C) Punishment by removal
D) Instinctive drift

Question 28

Alan always turns the aquarium light on before putting fish food into the tank. After a while, he notices that the fish swim to the top to look for the food as soon as he turns on the light. In this example, the __________ is the unconditioned stimulus.

A) presence of Alan near the aquarium
B) fish swimming to the top
C) aquarium light
D) fish food

Question 29

Which of the following would be an unconditioned stimulus (UCS) in experiments like Pavlov's?

A) dogs
B) praise
C) sounds
D) food

Question 30

In Pavlov's "salivating dogs" studies, what term is used for salivation that is triggered by sounds rather than by the food itself?

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

Question 31

The conditioned stimulus is defined as

A) a response that triggers another response by acting as a stimulus.
B) the previously neutral stimulus that automatically produces the unconditioned response.
C) the previously neutral stimulus that has acquired the capacity to produce the conditioned response.
D) the stimulus that automatically produces the unconditioned response.

Question 32

Miranda notices that her cat salivates as soon as her cat hears the sound of the electric can opener. In this example, the sound of the can opener is the

A) primary stimulus.
B) positive reinforcer.
C) conditioned stimulus.
D) secondary reinforcer.

Question 33

In Pavlov's "salivating dogs" studies, what was the unconditioned stimulus (UCS)?

A) salivation.
B) sounds.
C) food.
D) time.

Question 34

According to the theory of classical conditioning, the unconditioned stimulus is

A) the stimulus that automatically triggers a response when presented.
B) the stimulus that triggers a conditioned response.
C) the stimulus that triggers a response after being paired with another stimulus.
D) the stimulus that triggers a response after being paired with a conditioned stimulus.

Question 35

Which of the following would be the conditioned stimulus (CS) in an experiment like Pavlov's?

A) food
B) salivation
C) dogs
D) sounds

Question 36

In Pavlov's "salivating dogs" studies, what was the unconditioned response (UCR)?

A) salivation.
B) biting.
C) sounds.
D) food.

Question 37

Harmony notices that her cat salivates as soon as her cat hears the sound of Harmony opening a can with an electric can opener. In this example, what is the conditioned stimulus?

A) can of cat food
B) sound of the electric can opener
C) taste of the food
D) salivation

Question 38

In Pavlov's classic experiments, the repeated presentation of sounds along with the food was called the __________ step of the classical conditioning process.

A) spontaneous recovery
B) extinction
C) testing
D) acquisition

Question 39

The conditioned response eventually disappears after repeated presentation of the conditioned stimulus alone. What term is used to describe this loss of the CR?

A) Acquisition
B) Habituation
C) Extinction
D) Spontaneous recovery

Question 40

In which of the following would the acquisition of a classically conditioned response be the fastest?

A) Hugh rings a bell immediately after he gives his dog a treat.
B) Hugh rings a bell and then gives his dog a treat 30 minutes later.
C) Hugh rings a bell often, and gives the dog a treat after every fifth ring.
D) Hugh rings a bell and then immediately gives his dog a treat.

Question 41

Extinction occurs when the __________ no longer produces the __________.

A) UCS; CR
B) UCS; UCR
C) CS; CR
D) CS; UCS

Question 42

If your dog gets excited and barks each time you walk in the kitchen (because you usually give him a treat in the kitchen) then which of the following processes could reduce your dog's excitement?

A) Acquisition
B) Spontaneous recovery
C) Extinction
D) Sensitization

Question 43

Tina thought that she was over her fear of dogs. When she was a child, she was bitten by her uncle's dog and developed a serious phobia. Since then, she has learned to be calm around dogs and has even learned to like some dogs. But yesterday, Tina visited her uncle's house and the fear all came back. According to the principles of classical conditioning, this would be an example of

A) latent inhibition.
B) the renewal effect.
C) extinction.
D) stimulus generalization.

Question 44

Ben's mouth waters every time he hears the ice cream truck's familiar song in the distance. One day, a slightly different song is heard in the distance, and Ben's mouth waters. Ben's behaviour illustrates

A) stimulus discrimination.
B) stimulus generalization.
C) stimulus assimilation.
D) stimulus recovery.

Question 45

You train your dog, Milo, to salivate at the sound of a bell. Then you ring the bell every five minutes and don't follow the ringing with food for Milo. He salivates less and less and finally stops salivating at all when the bell rings. But the next morning, when you ring the bell, Milo salivates! What term is used to explain the reappearance of this response?

A) Counterconditioning
B) Instinctive drift
C) Spontaneous recovery
D) Stimulus discrimination

Question 46

Kyle and Ben were in a car accident. After the accident, Kyle feels some fear whenever he drives anywhere whereas Ben only gets nervous when he is near the site of the original accident. In this example, Kyle seems to have experienced ______ whereas Ben has experienced ________________.

A) Stimulus discrimination; stimulus generalization
B) Stimulus generalization; stimulus discrimination
C) Stimulus habituation; generalization gradient
D) Generalization gradient; stimulus habituation

Question 47

Which of the following is an example of the renewal effect?

A) Stacy can deal with her spider phobia in the therapist's office, but still experiences a lot of fear in her own basement.
B) Jack no longer craves alcohol, after several years of avoiding it.
C) Mia always smiles whenever she walks into her grandmother's kitchen.
D) Bo becomes more and more irritated by the sound of the neighbours' television.

Question 48

Arthur learns to fear white rats, but he does not fear white rabbits or other small white animals. This example illustrates

A) spontaneous recovery.
B) stimulus discrimination.
C) acquisition.
D) stimulus generalization.

Question 49

After a CS comes to elicit the CR, the CS now can be paired with a new neutral stimulus, and this new neutral stimulus will start to elicit a CR. This process is called

A) generalization.
B) operant conditioning.
C) higher-order conditioning.
D) neoclassical conditioning.

Question 50

The reappearance of a learned response after extinction has occurred is called

A) counterconditioning.
B) instinctive drift.
C) spontaneous recovery.
D) stimulus discrimination.

Question 51

Ursula is afraid of some rodents, after she was bitten by a rat. She is afraid of all rats, as well as mice and hamsters, but is not afraid of guinea pigs or gerbils. Ursula's responses best demonstrate that

A) stimulus generalization has occurred.
B) stimulus discrimination has occurred.
C) stimulus generalization occurs along a gradient.
D) stimulus discrimination is unpredictable.

Question 52

Pavlov conditioned a dog to salivate at a bell sound that was paired with a meat stimulus. After the CS-UCS linkage was strongly established, Pavlov then presented the dog with several flashes of a light followed by the bell sound. After a few days, when the light flashes were presented by themselves, the dog salivated. This is an example of

A) spontaneous recovery.
B) higher-order conditioning.
C) stimulus generalization.
D) extinction.

Question 53

When the CS is repeatedly presented in the absence of the UCS (food, in this case), the CR will weaken in a process called

A) CR fading.
B) extinction.
C) habituation.
D) generalization fading.

Question 54

When a strongly conditioned CS is used to make another neutral stimulus into a second CS, the effect is known as

A) spontaneous recovery.
B) higher-order conditioning.
C) stimulus generalization.
D) extinction.

Question 55

An animal is conditioned to salivate to the sound of a bell, using Pavlovian procedures. After the conditioning is established, the animal is then put through an extinction procedure and the conditioned salivation disappears. Then the animal is removed from the test situation for several days. When returned to the test situation, which of the following would be evidence of spontaneous recovery?

A) the animal doesn't seem to even notice the bell
B) the animal only eats when the bell rings
C) the animal salivates when the bell rings
D) the animal becomes aggressive in the test chamber

Question 56

While on a cruise ship, Kevin became sick after eating a seafood dinner. His food poisoning coupled with sea sickness led to a terrible vacation, and, consequently, Kevin shivers at the mere sight of cruise ships. Kevin's response to any cruise ship, and not just the one that he was on, illustrates the process of

A) acquisition.
B) generalization.
C) discrimination.
D) scapegoating.

Question 57

If an advertiser wanted to use higher-order conditioning to get you to like a new product, what should the advertiser pair with that new product?

A) Something that naturally elicits positive feelings.
B) Something that you've already learned to like.
C) Uplifting music.
D) Large discounts.

Question 58

Andrew is a heroin addict, and he usually shoots up at his friend Dave's place. Following an intervention and treatment, Andrew is trying very hard to stop using heroin but finds that when he goes over to Dave's place, his craving for the drug is very strong. In this example, Dave's place serves as

A) an unconditioned response.
B) a conditioned stimulus.
C) a source of stimulus generalization.
D) a form of aversive conditioning.

Question 59

The tendency to respond to a stimulus that is similar to the original conditioned stimulus is called

A) stimulus generalization.
B) stimulus adaptation.
C) higher-order conditioning.
D) shaping.

Question 60

After Pavlov's dogs became conditioned to salivate at the sound of the bell, he experimented with ringing the bell and then failing to present the dogs with any food right away. Soon they stopped salivating to the sound of the bell. This represents the process called

A) acquisition.
B) testing.
C) extinction.
D) spontaneous recovery.

Question 61

What would you predict about Little Albert based on the principle of spontaneous recovery?

A) Even after his fear of rats was extinguished, the fear could come back.
B) After his fear of loud noises was extinguished, the fear could come back.
C) His fear of rats would disappear if he saw a rat without hearing a loud noise.
D) His fear of loud noises would disappear if he heard a loud noise without a rat present.

Question 62

The typical effect of heroin is a decrease in blood pressure (the UCR), whereas the cues associated with taking heroin, such as a bathroom stall in a seedy nightclub, will, through conditioning, come to elicit an increase in blood pressure (the CR). This means that when the addict enters the bathroom stall, she will experience an immediate increase in blood pressure, which then helps to prevent blood pressure from dropping too low when the heroin is injected. This experience occurs due to

A) pseudoconditioning.
B) conditioned compensatory responses.
C) classically conditioned fetishism.
D) latent inhibition.

Question 63

In the study of Little Albert, a cute white rat was paired with a frightening noise, which led Little Albert to be somewhat afraid of the white rat, as well as to some other white fuzzy animals and stimuli. In this study, what is the cute white rat?

A) conditioned stimulus
B) stimulus generalization
C) an unconditioned stimulus
D) a discriminative stimulus

Question 64

In the "Little Albert" study that was intended to show how phobias develop, the fear-producing stimulus used as a UCS was the

A) white rat.
B) loud noise.
C) fear of the rat.
D) fear of the noise.

Question 65

One of the effects of alcohol is to slow the heart rate. People who are addicted to alcohol may have an increase in heart rate when they smell or see alcohol. What is the term for this learned reaction?

A) habituation response
B) conditioned compensatory response
C) aversive conditioning response
D) operant response

Question 66

Advertisers pair their products with things that most people enjoy, like pleasant music, beautiful scenery, or pictures of attractive people smiling. If you think more positively about the advertised products as a result of these pairings, then your positive feelings represent

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

Question 67

Bennett cut his hand while washing dishes, and now he is nervous whenever he reaches into the soapy water. His nervousness when reaching into the water is

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

Question 68

Young Albert is initially not afraid of white rats, but if white rats and loud noises are presented together, Albert may learn to fear rats. In this example, white rats would be the

A) CR.
B) UCR.
C) UCS.
D) CS.

Question 69

Which of the following processes would be most helpful for treating a phobia or serious fear response?

A) Instinctive drift
B) Latent inhibition
C) Punishment
D) Extinction

Question 70

In the study of Little Albert, a cute white rat was paired with a frightening noise, which led Little Albert to be somewhat afraid of the white rat, as well as to some other white fuzzy animals and stimuli. In this study, what is Albert's fear of the frightening noise?

A) an unconditioned response
B) stimulus generalization
C) a conditioned response
D) discrimination

Question 71

Whenever Claire goes to the dentist, she becomes anxious and cries. She was not afraid of the dentist on her first visit, so her fear was a learned behaviour. The UCS in this case was probably

A) an uncomfortable procedure.
B) sweet toothpaste.
C) the dentist's beard.
D) small prizes given after the exam.

Question 72

Based on the classical conditioning model of drug tolerance, which of the following situations should elicit the largest conditioned compensatory response associated with alcohol tolerance?

A) Drinking alcohol in a completely novel environment.
B) Drinking a new flavor of alcohol.
C) Drinking at a steady pace, not too fast and not too slow.
D) Drinking a familiar alcohol in a familiar environment.

Question 73

After Little Albert acquired a conditioned fear of rats, Watson wanted to see how he would react to a white rabbit, cotton wool, and a Santa Claus mask. He was studying whether or not __________ had occurred.

A) behaviour modification
B) shaping
C) extinction
D) stimulus generalization

Question 74

Watson and his colleagues conditioned a fear of white rats in a young child named Little Albert, by pairing a rat with a frightening noise. What could Watson have done to eliminate Little Albert's conditioned fear of the white rat?

A) Show Albert a toy dog instead of a live rat
B) Let Albert touch a Santa Claus beard, or other white fuzzy stimuli, repeatedly
C) Show Albert a rat many times without a loud noise following
D) Have Albert hear a loud noise many times without a rat present

Question 75

Watson's experiment with Little Albert demonstrated that fears might be

A) based on classical conditioning.
B) deeply rooted in the innate unconscious of infants.
C) based on the principle of observational learning.
D) based on Skinner's analysis of positive reinforcement.

Question 76

Which of the following situations would most likely lead to heroin overdose, according to the conditioned compensatory response model of drug tolerance?

A) Using heroin in a familiar environment.
B) Using heroin in an unfamiliar environment.
C) Using heroin in conjunction with stimulants.
D) Using heroin daily, for months at a time.

Question 77

In the study of Little Albert, a cute white rat was paired with a frightening noise, which led Little Albert to be somewhat afraid of the white rat, as well as to some other white fuzzy animals and stimuli. In this study, what is Albert's fear of the other white fuzzy stimuli?

A) an unconditioned response
B) stimulus generalization
C) stimulus discrimination
D) an extinction effect

Question 78

Darcy wants to change her image, so that people see her as more mature and professional now that she is an adult with degree and a good job. She has changed the way she dresses, speaks more formally, and even started wearing glasses to appear more serious. No matter what she tries, her friends and family still think of her as silly and immature. Which conditioning phenomenon is most similar to this example?

A) higher-order conditioning.
B) latent inhibition.
C) aversive conditioning.
D) conditioned compensatory responses.

Question 79

Shelly has developed a fear of bridges due to the recent graphic news coverage of people falling from a collapsed bridge. In this example, which of the following is the CS?

A) Fear
B) People falling
C) Graphic news coverage
D) Bridges

Question 80

In a famous study about fear conditioning, Dr. Watson offered a live white rat to Little Albert and then made a loud noise behind the baby's head by striking a steel bar with a hammer. The white rat served as the __________ in his study.

A) discriminative stimulus
B) counterconditioning stimulus
C) conditioned stimulus
D) unconditioned stimulus