Question 1

What is a disadvantage of continuous reinforcement?

Accepted Answer

A) It is not convenient to do so for an extended time period. 
B) It is not effective when compared to the effects of punishment. 
C) The individual cannot adapt the target behavior to new stimuli. 
D) The individual will eventually become desensitized to the target behavior.

Question 2

A consequence that eliminates or reduces the frequency of a behavior by applying an aversive stimulus is referred to as ____.

Accepted Answer

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

Question 3

Thorndike's law of effect states that behavior is ____.

Accepted Answer

A) based on a strong relationship between conditioned and unconditioned stimuli 
B) an adaptation based on imitation 
C) "stamped into" an animal relative to the consequences of the behavior 
D) predetermined by the type of organism

Question 4

Copying a behavior that is unlikely to occur naturally and spontaneously is referred to as ____.

Accepted Answer

A) imitation 
B) duplication 
C) imprinting 
D) mirroring

Question 5

Which of the following is a primary advantage of observational learning?

Accepted Answer

A) It synchronizes behaviors,particularly between two unacquainted individuals. 
B) It creates imprinting in both human beings and lower animal species. 
C) It transmits information across generations within families and cultures. 
D) It provides rapid adaptation to situations beyond our control.

Question 6

The reinforcement of a desired behavior on some occasions but not others is called ____ reinforcement.

Accepted Answer

A) fragmented 
B) partial 
C) fractional 
D) incomplete

Question 7

Which of the following is likely to be the most effective form of punishment?

Accepted Answer

A) Marjorie promptly takes away her son Ben's crayons each time he refuses to share with his younger brother,causing Ben to cry. 
B) Alice catches her daughter Debby smoking in the attic and shouts: "Just wait until your father gets home this weekend!" 
C) Ken sometimes yells at his son Artie for coming home later than his curfew. 
D) Jane sends her son Josh to bed without supper when he uses swear words at the dinner table;although hungry,Josh uses this time to read in his room.

Question 8

In Garcia and Koelling's taste aversion study,why were the rats unable to associate a bright-noisy stimulus with feeling ill?

Accepted Answer

A) The rats lacked the cognitive ability to do so. 
B) The rats enjoyed the bright-noisy stimulus enough to tolerate their illness. 
C) The rats relied more on taste and smell rather than vision and hearing for identifying food. 
D) The rats were so distracted or frightened by the bright-noisy stimulus they did not notice they were ill.

Question 9

Who is likely to discontinue his or her behavior first if reinforcement completely stops?

Accepted Answer

A) Penny,who plays the slot machines 
B) Sam,who receives $20 on every Thursday when he mows his neighbor's lawn 
C) Ralph,who is out on his boat fishing for striped bass 
D) Wendy,who repeatedly checks for e-mail while studying

Question 10

Which process gives organisms the flexibility to survive in a changing world?

Accepted Answer

A) Learning 
B) Instincts 
C) Reflexes 
D) Variable action patterns

Question 11

What is true of operant conditioning?

Accepted Answer

A) It involves either voluntary or involuntary behaviors depending on the response state. 
B) It involves either voluntary or involuntary behaviors depending on the stimulus. 
C) It generally involves involuntary behaviors. 
D) It generally involves voluntary behaviors.

Question 12

An environmental cue or event whose significance is learned is referred to as a(n)____.

Accepted Answer

A) unconditioned stimulus 
B) conditioned stimulus 
C) characteristic stimulus 
D) uncharacteristic stimulus

Question 13

Why does associative learning provide an enormous survival advantage?

Accepted Answer

A) Organisms are able to instinctively and rapidly respond to threats. 
B) Organisms can comprehend the complex relationship between environment and habitant. 
C) Organisms can predict the future and thus are given time to prepare for future events. 
D) Organisms can change their behaviors and unpredictably protects them from natural enemies.

Question 14

A father sings a catch phrase from a classic television commercial to his children as he pours milk over the cereal in their bowls.Now that his children are grown and started families,they sing the same catch phrase to his grandchildren when they pour milk over the cereal in the grandchildren's bowls.In this scenario,the catch phrase is an example of a

Accepted Answer

A) secondary reinforce. 
B) negatively reinforced behavior. 
C) meme. 
D) vicarious punishment.

Question 15

How does the presence of other people alter performance?

Accepted Answer

A) It causes the extinction of the performance of a simple task and facilitates that of a complex task. 
B) It causes the extinction of the performance of a complex task and facilitates that of a simple task. 
C) It enhances the performance of a simple task but hinders that of a complex task. 
D) It enhances the performance of a complex task but hinders that of a simple task.

Question 16

What is a token economy?

Accepted Answer

A) Tokens are exchanged for valued reinforcers to increase the frequency of a desired behavior. 
B) Tokens gradually replace negative reinforcers to increase the frequency of a desired behavior. 
C) Tokens are provided at fixed intervals to increase the frequency of a desired behavior. 
D) Tokens are provided at variable intervals to increase the frequency of a desired behavior.

Question 17

Which process best illustrates the effect of development stages on the interaction between instinct and learning?

Accepted Answer

A) Imprinting 
B) Facilitating 
C) Conditioning 
D) Engulfing

Question 18

Learning is traditionally divided into three categories: associative,nonassociative,and ____.

Accepted Answer

A) classical 
B) operant 
C) conditioned 
D) observational

Question 19

After a stressful day of work,Jamie often takes two aspirin,which she feels helps to relieve her stress and anxiety.This type of behavior is an example of ____.

Accepted Answer

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

Question 20

Tim would like to stop drinking alcohol,but he is finding it difficult to resist the urge to drink when he meets up with friends.Tim's therapist assures him that if he can resist the urge to drink during these social events,his cravings for alcohol will diminish even further,eventually fading away.What process is Tim's therapist describing?

Accepted Answer

A) Avoidance 
B) Systematic desensitization 
C) Spontaneous dissipation 
D) Extinction

Exam 8: The Adaptive Mind Learning