Module 3.8a Quiz

Colleen uses reinforcement with her kids to cause a behavior to

• stop.

• weaken.

• continue.

• occur for only a limited amount of time.

Which of the following scenarios best demonstrates negative reinforcement?

• Joachim stops fouling other players in basketball because his coach benches him when he does.

• Beatriz studies hard because it earns him “A” grades in math.

• Charles often does yoga, because he feels less anxious after doing yoga.

• Osel stopped walking by his neighbor’s house because a dog growls at him each time he walks by.

Dr. Bumpers studies how behaviors followed by a favorable consequence become more likely to be repeated. Dr. Bumpers studies Thorndike’s principle called

• the law of effect.

• operant conditioning.

• shaping.

• respondent behavior.

Which of the following is a conditioned reinforcer?

• Rats are rewarded with food in a Skinner box.

• Becca drinks cold water on a hot day.

• Xavier earns a high score on an exam after studying.

• Marco receives a big hug from his mother.

Rey’s chore in her home is to feed the dog. Her mother wanted Rey to remember to feed the dog each day, so she tested some methods to try to ensure that Rey fed the dog every day. For 2 weeks, she gave Rey $1 each time Rey fed the dog (Method A). For another 2 weeks, she gave Rey $5 if she remembered to feed the dog at least once in the past week (Method B). Her mother tracked how each method affected Rey’s dog-feeding behavior.

Which schedule of reinforcement corresponds to Method B?

• Fixed-ratio schedule of reinforcement

• Fixed-interval schedule of reinforcement

• Variable-ratio schedule of reinforcement

• Variable-interval schedule of reinforcement

Rey’s chore in her home is to feed the dog. Her mother wanted Rey to remember to feed the dog each day, so she tested some methods to try to ensure that Rey fed the dog every day. For 2 weeks, she gave Rey $1 each time Rey fed the dog (Method A). For another 2 weeks, she gave Rey $5 if she remembered to feed the dog at least once in the past week (Method B). Her mother tracked how each method affected Rey’s dog-feeding behavior.

Looking at the graph shown here, which label should be applied to the bar that is black?

• Method A

• Method B

• Methods A and B

• No label is needed here.

Every time he prepares to putt a golf ball into the hole, Loxley looks up at the sky, because he has made winning putts after he first checked for rain clouds in the sky. Which of the following best explains Loxley’s superstitious behavior?

• Loxley experienced a conditioned response (CR) before a conditioned stimulus (CS).

• Loxley gradually reduced the reward associated with putting.

• Loxley was accidentally reinforced for a response that is unrelated to golfing.

• Loxley failed to monitor how often he engaged in his desired behaviors.

Dad is frustrated because three-year-old Maya has started to throw her toys often. He takes away one of her toys every time she throws one, and eventually Maya stops throwing her toys. This is an example of

• positive reinforcement.

• negative reinforcement.

• punishment.

• shaping.

Lennox agrees with the law of effect. Which statement would she most likely say?

• Punished behaviors tend to reoccur.

• Rewarded behaviors tend to reoccur.

• Positive reinforcement is more effective than negative reinforcement.

• A fixed ratio schedule of reinforcement is more effective than a fixed interval schedule.