Question 1

________________ is a drug that employs the principles of classical conditioning in an attempt to create an aversion to alcohol.

Accepted Answer

A)  Alprazolam 
B)  Disulfiram 
C)  Fluoxitine 
D)  aspirin

Question 2

Under which of the following schedules does reinforcement follow a set number of responses?

Accepted Answer

A)  variable-ratio 
B)  variable-interval 
C)  fixed-ratio 
D)  fixed-interval

Question 3

Juan hears his older brother using curse words around his friends, and now Juan uses curse words. Bandura would call Juan's learning __________.

Accepted Answer

A)  discrimination 
B)  modeling 
C)  imprinting 
D)  habituation

Question 4

What did B. F. Skinner conclude about the effectiveness of reinforcements and punishments?

Accepted Answer

A)  Reinforcements and punishments are equally effective at changing the frequency of a behavior. 
B)  Reinforcements are more effective than punishments at changing the frequency of a behavior. 
C)  Punishments are more effective than reinforcements at changing the frequency of a behavior. 
D)  Reinforcements and punishments are not effective at changing the frequency of a behavior.

Question 5

Dharma was bitten by a spider and developed an intense phobia of them. In an effort to cure Dharma's phobia, a psychologist gradually exposed her to spiders. After many sessions of having nonthreatening experiences with spiders, Dharma's phobia was cured. In other words, Dharma's spider phobia was
__________.

Accepted Answer

A)  generalized 
B)  recovered 
C)  extinguished 
D)  punished

Question 6

Making Connections in Learning: According to the Feist and Rosenberg text, the best explanation for why people begin their habits of smoking cigarettes is __________.

Accepted Answer

A)  social learning 
B)  operant conditioning 
C)  classical conditioning 
D)  filial imprinting

Question 7

The Feist and Rosenberg text cites the real-life example of Ben Darras and Sarah Edmondson, who went on a killing spree after taking drugs and watching the movie Natural Born Killers. Psychologists explain Darras and Edmondson's criminal behavior as an unfortunate example of which type of learning?

Accepted Answer

A)  operant conditioning 
B)  observational learning 
C)  classical conditioning 
D)  all of these

Question 8

Which of the following is an example of positive reinforcement?

Accepted Answer

A)  Tomas is tired so he drinks coffee to stay awake. 
B)  Cindy has a temper tantrum so her mother gives her a "time out." 
C)  Greta gets caught speeding and the police officer gives her a ticket. 
D)  Moe tells jokes and his friends laugh hysterically.

Question 9

What is the distinction between negative reinforcement and punishment?

Accepted Answer

A)  Negative reinforcement seeks to increase the frequency of a behavior, and punishment seeks to decrease the frequency of a behavior. 
B)  Negative reinforcement seeks to decrease the frequency of a behavior, and punishment seeks to increase the frequency of a behavior. 
C)  Negative reinforcement uses biologically rewarding stimuli, and punishment uses biologically aversive stimuli. 
D)  none of these; there is no distinction between negative reinforcement and punishment.

Question 10

Making Connections in Learning: Thelma is trying to quit smoking, and her therapist tells Thelma to reward herself with one dollar for clothes shopping every time she successfully fights off the craving for a cigarette. The therapist is using __________.

Accepted Answer

A)  conditioned taste aversion 
B)  modeling 
C)  classical conditioning 
D)  behavior modification

Question 11

Another term for the word conditioned is _________.

Accepted Answer

A)  recovered 
B)  extinguished 
C)  learned 
D)  motivated

Question 12

I want to teach a dolphin to swim through a hoop. First, I reward the dolphin for swimming near the hoop. Next, I reward the dolphin for touching the hoop. Then, I reward the dolphin for sticking his nose through the middle of the hoop. Finally, I reward the dolphin for swimming through the hoop. Psychologists call this process __________.

Accepted Answer

A)  shaping 
B)  modeling 
C)  stimulus generalization 
D)  imprinting

Question 13

A potential reinforcer that becomes pleasant to us because of its association with something biologically rewarding is known as a ________________ reinforcer.

Accepted Answer

A)  positive 
B)  primary 
C)  secondary 
D)  negative

Question 14

Which of the following is true with respect to Albert Bandura's social learning theory?

Accepted Answer

A)  It was the first to acknowledge that learning tied to biology is extremely powerful. 
B)  It claims that animals are primed from birth to readily learn some things but not others. 
C)  It described how a previously neutral stimulus can come to be associated with a meaningful one. 
D)  It noted that observation and modeling are major forms of learning.

Question 15

Removing a stimulus or condition to increase the frequency of a behavior is known as __________.

Accepted Answer

A)  positive reinforcement 
B)  negative reinforcement 
C)  positive punishment 
D)  negative punishment

Question 16

Tracy was bitten by her neighbor's aggressive dog, and now she will not go near any household pets. Tracy has _________________ her fear of dogs to other animals.

Accepted Answer

A)  generalized 
B)  extinguished 
C)  shaped 
D)  reinforced

Question 17

Matthew has been playing the clarinet for many years, and he can play musical scales without giving much thought to the finger positions involved in the process. Matthew's mastery of the clarinet is likely a result of __________.

Accepted Answer

A)  the resting potential of neurons associated with the storage and retrieval of musical information 
B)  strong synaptic connections that have been built up over years of practice and playing 
C)  years of classical conditioning leading to a permanent increase in GABA (gamma-aminobutyric acid) activity 
D)  consolidation of episodic memories by the limbic system

Question 18

Making Connections in Learning: Some people continue cigarette smoking because it reduces stress, social isolation, and appetite. From a learning perspective, smoking would likely continue because these reductions can be considered __________.

Accepted Answer

A)  positive reinforcers 
B)  negative reinforcers 
C)  positive punishments 
D)  negative punishments

Question 19

The biological constraint model of learning suggests that __________.

Accepted Answer

A)  maladaptive responses are more likely to be reinforced 
B)  some behaviors are more likely to be learned than others 
C)  most animals learn through classical and not operant conditioning 
D)  none of these

Question 20

An unconditioned response (UCR) is __________.

Accepted Answer

A)  automatic 
B)  natural 
C)  inborn 
D)  all of these

Exam 8: Learning