Deck 12: Bfskinner: Reinforcement Theory

Question 1

Skinner's treatment of personality is unusual because he

A) made no references to internal, subjective accounts for behavior.
B) approached personality from a physiological viewpoint.
C) stressed conscious but not unconscious processes.
D) emphasized the past and the future.

Answer 1

A

Question 2

The essential truth about B.F.Skinner's research is that

A) it is more similar to Adler's than Freud's.
B) it relies on factor analysis.
C) it is based on clinical studies of neurotics.
D) his study of behavior is the antithesis of the psychoanalytic, trait, life span, cognitive and humanistic approaches.

Answer 2

D

Question 3

The research supporting Skinner's theory was conducted on

A) rats and pigeons.
B) college students seeking to understand the world they live in.
C) troubled people undergoing psychotherapy.
D) those rare people who could be called self-actualized.

Answer 3

A

Question 4

Skinner was taught by his parents to

A) "think clearly, rationally, and objectively."
B) "fear God, the police, and what people think."
C) "love, listen, and be creative."
D) "be judgmental, serious, and honest."

Question 5

When a specific stimulus elicits a response,it is called

A) operant conditioning.
B) fixed-interval reinforcement.
C) respondent behavior.
D) extinction.

Question 6

Skinner's research subjects were mainly

A) exceptionally intelligent adults.
B) animals.
C) emotionally disturbed persons.
D) normal or average persons.

Question 7

Skinner's childhood was characterized by

A) sibling rivalry.
B) a strong Oedipus complex.
C) parental warnings that influenced his adult behavior.
D) compensation for physical inferiority.

Question 8

The truth is that B.F.Skinner

A) had almost no lasting impact on psychology.
B) lived a personal life most of us would find revolting.
C) has rendered all the other theories you studied obsolete.
D) did not offer a personality theory at all.

Question 9

We get a glimpse of Skinner's later work in his childhood love of

A) dissecting frogs and other laboratory animals.
B) constructing mechanical devices.
C) listening sympathetically to the fears and worries of his young friends.
D) pretending to be a preacher delivering sermons on hellfire and damnation.

Question 10

At age 22,Skinner experienced

A) feelings of success and self-esteem.
B) an identity crisis.
C) jealousy of an older brother.
D) a late-blooming Oedipus complex.

Question 11

Skinner argued that psychology is the science of

A) normal adults.
B) conscious processes.
C) individual differences.
D) behavior.

Question 12

Skinner's behavioral approach is

A) untried in the real world.
B) of no value for neurotics and psychotics.
C) used in schools, correctional institutions, and hospitals.
D) of value only for animals.

Question 13

Skinner rejected ____ as a valid personality characteristic.

A) traits
B) unconscious influences
C) defense mechanisms
D) all of the answers

Question 14

Skinner believed that physiological processes are

A) irrelevant for mental activities.
B) less important than conscious processes.
C) only relevant for the lower needs.
D) highly important as the foundation of behavior.

Question 15

Skinner described human beings as

A) empty organisms.
B) having rational thought.
C) genetically bound.
D) ruled by unconscious motivation.

Question 16

Skinner's influence on psychology

A) is negligible.
B) is only seen with abnormal patients.
C) is overshadowed by Rotter.
D) has wide practical applications.

Question 17

In his early adulthood,Skinner

A) began the cognitive revolution.
B) formed the basis of his approach to writing.
C) decided he would study human behavior by the methods of science rather than the methods of fiction.
D) became an accomplished writer of non-fiction.

Question 18

Skinner believed that behavior can be controlled by

A) its consequences.
B) social learning.
C) respondent conditioning.
D) the reinforcement that precedes the behavior.

Question 19

Skinner believed people are subjects who express

A) overt responses and nothing more.
B) sexual and aggressive conflicts.
C) future goals and aspirations.
D) lower and higher needs.

Question 20

In Skinner's fictional community of Walden Two,

A) punishment is applied only to children.
B) neuroses are treated by psychoanalysis.
C) only group therapy is used to treat neuroses.
D) life is controlled by positive reinforcement.

Question 21

Skinner's term for voluntary,explorative behavior is

A) respondent behavior.
B) operant behavior.
C) fixed behavior.
D) extinguishable behavior.

Question 22

In a fixed-interval reinforcement schedule,if the interval between reinforcements is shortened the response rate will

A) extinguish.
B) increase.
C) decrease.
D) remain the same, but extinction will take longer.

Question 23

Compared to fixed-interval schedules,fixed-ratio schedules

A) provide reinforcement independent of response rate.
B) produce lower response rates.
C) produce higher response rates.
D) take forever to extinguish.

Question 24

Skinner believed that personality is a(n)

A) network of respondent behaviors.
B) enduring, unique cluster of reinforcements.
C) pattern or collection of operant behaviors.
D) set of traits determined by past reinforcements.

Question 25

Slot machines operate on a ____ schedule of reinforcement.

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

Question 26

According to Skinner,parental disapproval of a child's behavior will

A) foster the child's hostility and aggression.
B) inhibit the child's tendency to self-actualize.
C) probably lead to the cessation of that behavior.
D) reinforce the behavior.

Question 27

According to Skinner,operant behavior

A) involves emitted (not elicited) responses.
B) is modified by the reinforcement that follows the behavior.
C) produces a change in the organism's environment.
D) all of the answers.

Question 28

A good example of a variable-ratio schedule of reinforcement is

A) weekly pay.
B) piece-rate pay.
C) fishing.
D) casino gambling.

Question 29

In his famous salivating dog experiment,Ivan Pavlov demonstrated that

A) animals other than humans can exhibit higher intelligence.
B) learning is primarily a mental activity.
C) reinforcement is necessary for learning.
D) all animals are governed by the laws of operant behavior.

Question 30

Shaping a behavior that is not likely to occur spontaneously is accomplished by

A) self-actualization.
B) successive approximation.
C) variable-interval reinforcement.
D) accident or luck.

Question 31

The secret to shaping behavior is

A) reinforcing whenever possible.
B) reinforcing only successive approximations of the final behavior desired.
C) punishing any behaviors other than the desired final behavior.
D) extinguishing competing behavior.

Question 32

To condition a dog to salivate at the sound of a bell,Pavlov

A) reinforced the dog after it smelled meat powder.
B) rang the bell shortly before the dog smelled meat powder.
C) rang the bell after the dog smelled meat powder.
D) presented the meat powder and the bell at precisely the same time.

Question 33

In fixed-interval reinforcement,

A) rats press the lever very rapidly.
B) response rate declines when the interval between reinforcements is shortened.
C) responses extinguish faster than under continuous reinforcement.
D) reinforcement is unrelated to the number of responses.

Question 34

A rat pressing a lever in a Skinner box is showing ____ behavior.

A) emitted
B) elicited
C) punished
D) extinguished

Question 35

When Skinner failed to reinforce rats in a Skinner box continuously,the rats

A) looked for food elsewhere in the box.
B) ran wildly around the box.
C) eventually stopped pressing the lever.
D) did nothing.

Question 36

In Skinner's research,food-deprived rats pressed a lever to receive a food pellet.The rat will eventually press the lever

A) and receive an electric shock.
B) at a decreasing rate.
C) because he will understand that he will be reinforced for his behavior with a food pellet.
D) since the lever is the reinforcer for the food pellet.

Question 37

An employee paid on a weekly basis operates under a ____ schedule of reinforcement.

A) continuous
B) fixed-ratio
C) fixed-interval
D) positive

Question 38

Ivan Pavlov's classical conditioning involves

A) substituting one stimulus for another.
B) unconditioned responses becoming conditioned responses.
C) reflex behavior.
D) all of the answers.

Question 39

The _______ becomes the reinforcer for the rat to receive a reward for his behavior.

A) electric shock
B) food
C) Skinner Box
D) the experimenter

Question 40

Skinner believed that respondent behavior

A) produces a change in the organism's environment.
B) must occur before reinforcement can occur.
C) is emitted in the absence of a stimulus.
D) does not account for most human behavior.

Question 41

Superstitious behavior is learned quickly when there are

A) long intervals between reinforcements.
B) short intervals between reinforcements.
C) animal subjects rather than human.
D) functional relationships between behavior and reinforcement.

Question 42

When a token economy was instituted in a psychiatric hospital,

A) there was a dramatic increase in appropriate patient behaviors.
B) patient behavior improved, but only when staff were watching.
C) initial patient improvements were quickly lost when the novelty wore off.
D) there was no improvement until real money was substituted for the tokens.

Question 43

An example of negative reinforcement is

A) putting coins in a broken soft drink machine.
B) giving bonuses to workers who excel.
C) threatening to spank a child unless he cleans up his room.
D) spanking a child to make him stop using curse words.

Question 44

According to Skinner,negative reinforcement is

A) the same as punishment.
B) less effective than positive reinforcement.
C) more effective than intermittent reinforcement.
D) more successful with neurotics.

Question 45

In behavior modification,Skinner advocated using

A) both punishment and positive reinforcement.
B) only extinction.
C) only positive reinforcement.
D) both positive and negative reinforcement.

Question 46

Skinner's assessment techniques include

A) free association.
B) dream analysis.
C) projective techniques.
D) laboratory experiments.

Question 47

Functional analysis

A) assesses behavior.
B) involves the frequency of behavior, the situation, and the reinforcement associated with the behavior.
C) does not claim to assess personality.
D) all of these

Question 48

Each of the following is a factor in Skinner's functional analysis except

A) the frequency of the behavior.
B) the situation in which the behavior occurs.
C) the reinforcement associated with the behavior.
D) the motivation behind the behavior.

Question 49

In behavior modification therapy,unconscious motivating forces are

A) brought to the surface.
B) ignored.
C) eliminated by negative reinforcement.
D) extinguished.

Question 50

The successive approximation method

A) was developed by Pavlov.
B) is an example of variable-ratio reinforcement.
C) is successful with animals but not humans.
D) is also called shaping.

Question 51

Skinner believed people function

A) by free will.
B) by genetic factors.
C) like machines.
D) by unconscious conflicts.

Question 52

The followers of Skinner assess behavior, (not personality)using all of the following techniques except

A) free association, dream analysis, and projective techniques.
B) direct observation of behavior.
C) self-report procedures.
D) physiological measurements.

Question 53

According to Skinner,human behavior is controlled by

A) conscious decisions.
B) internal stimuli.
C) needs and drives.
D) reinforcers.

Question 54

For changing behavior,Skinner believed punishment is

A) more effective than positive reinforcement.
B) as effective as negative reinforcement.
C) less effective than extinction.
D) often effective, but has undesirable side effects.

Question 55

Skinner believed people are not responsible for their actions,because

A) instincts of aggression and are inborn.
B) all behavior is determined.
C) the inherent tendency of the human species is selfishness.
D) of free will.

Question 56

To Skinner,self-control means

A) the conscious control of behavior.
B) positively reinforced behaviors.
C) control of external variables that determine behavior.
D) will power that has been conditioned.

Question 57

Which one of the following best describes Skinner's image of human nature?

A) We have individual free choice.
B) We are totally controlled by the environment.
C) We are determined by childhood experiences.
D) We are controlled by the environment, but we can control ourselves by changing the environment.

Question 58

Skinner suggests all of the following techniques of self-control except

A) satiation (overdoing problem behavior).
B) setting up unpleasant consequences for problem behavior.
C) physical punishment administered by a friend.
D) avoiding stimuli for problem behavior.

Question 59

In a token economy experiment,psychotic patients

A) became less dependent and more responsible.
B) were released from the hospital within a month.
C) developed insight into their unconscious motivations.
D) showed dramatic personality changes.

Question 60

Behavior modified in a token economy

A) usually reverts to its original state when tokens are no longer provided.
B) never reverts to its original state.
C) remains modified to some degree, even outside the institution.
D) becomes resistant to partial reinforcement

Question 61

Shaping,according to Skinner,is the same thing as respondent behavior,which involves a response made or elicited by a specific stimulus.

Question 62

Skinner called the ability to alter the impact of external successive approximation.

Question 63

Through the technique of self-administering satiation,we can cure ourselves of bad habits by overdoing the behavior.

Question 64

Therapeutic techniques derived from Skinner's research are being applied in clinical settings to treat a variety of disorders including psychoses,mental retardation,and autism.

Question 65

Punishment is a better parenting technique,according to Skinner,than positive reinforcement.

Question 66

In the application of Skinner's behavior modification techniques,

A) it is necessary to assess genetic factors.
B) it is necessary to first assess specific behaviors.
C) it is necessary to assess parental style in childhood.
D) it is necessary to assess childhood memories with free association and dream analysis.

Question 67

To Skinner,respondent behavior was less important than operant behavior.

Question 68

A token economy is descriptive of what Skinner believed the country had become in his time.

Question 69

Skinner's fundamental idea is that the collective unconscious can be set free to increase behavioral responses in the subject.

Question 70

Skinner's research on reinforcement schedules provides an effective technique for controlling,modifying,and shaping behavior.

Question 71

Skinner's methodological approach to the study of behavior is to

A) observe the subject, have the subject do self-reports, and do physiological measurements.
B) study psychological cognitive processes.
C) compare average responses of large groups of subjects.
D) study large groups of animals and/or humans.

Question 72

Skinner exclusively used animals (rather than people)in his research on behavioral responses to stimuli.

Question 73

Gambling is usually considered to be based on a variable-interval schedule of reinforcement.

Question 74

Persistent behavior that has a coincidental and not a functional relationship to the reinforcement received is called superstitious behavior.

Question 75

Skinner believed that valid and replicable results could be obtained without ____________ as long as sufficient data were collected from a single-subject under well-controlled circumstances.

A) analyzing conditionally
B) analyzing cognitions
C) analyzing behavior
D) statistical analysis

Question 76

All of the following are criticisms of Skinner's system except which?

A) Operant conditioning cannot change behavior.
B) Research from pigeons cannot be extrapolated to humans.
C) It is too deterministic.
D) It ignores human qualities such as conscious free will.

Question 77

In the fixed-ratio schedule of reinforcement,the reinforcer is presented following the first response that gives the experimenter an average number of responses.

Question 78

Operant behavior involves a response made or elicited by a specific stimulus.

Question 79

Skinner's assessment methods

A) followed mainstream experimental psychology.
B) rely primarily on correlation.
C) preferred the intensive study of a single subject at a time.
D) used data from the average performance of groups of subjects.

Question 80

Operant conditioning is the procedure by which a change in the consequences of a response will affect the rate at which the response occurs.