+ or - Punishment
A child loses iPad time for not cleaning their room. What kind of punishment is this?
Negative punishment (something desirable is taken away)
Which psychologist created the puzzle box experiments with cats to study learning?
Edward Thorndike
When a consequence happens immediately after a behavior, punishment is more effective. Which variable is this?
Contiguity
Instead of punishing a child for forgetting their homework, a teacher decides to reward them each time they remember it. Which alternative to punishment is being used?
Positive Reinforcement
A parent gives extra chores after their teen breaks curfew. What kind of punishment is this?
Positive punishment (adding an undesirable task)
Thorndike’s Law of Effect states that behaviors followed by satisfying consequences will do what?
Become more likely to occur.
A punishment works best when the behavior reliably leads to that consequence every time. What variable does this describe?
Contingency
A parent stops giving attention to a child’s whining instead of punishing the whining directly. Over time, the whining decreases. What alternative to punishment is this?
Extinction
A student talks during a lecture, so the teacher takes away their participation points for the day. What type of punishment is this?
Negative punishment (removing a positive consequence)
Who developed operant conditioning and focused on how consequences shape behavior?
B.F. Skinner
A mild punishment often doesn’t work unless it starts strong enough to matter. Which variable explains this?
Introductory Level of Punisher
A coach wants players to hustle during drills. When the team works at full effort, the coach removes the extra conditioning at the end of practice. Which alternative to punishment is in effect?
Negative reinforcement.
A coach makes the whole team run laps because one player was late to practice. What kind of punishment is being used?
Positive punishment (adding an unpleasant activity)
Which psychologist argued that behavior should be studied through observable actions rather than internal thoughts, shaping early behaviorism?
B.F. Skinner
Punishment becomes weaker when the punished behavior keeps getting reinforced in other ways. Which variable is this?
Reinforcement of the Punished Behavior
An employee misses a deadline. Their supervisor publicly scolds them at a meeting, and later the employee stops giving suggestions altogether.
What type of punishment is being used?
Positive punishment (adding public scolding)
Skinner believed that learning does not require insight or sudden understanding. Instead, behavior changes gradually based on reinforcement and punishment. Which of Thorndike’s ideas supports this view, and how?
Thorndike’s Law of Effect supports it. Both theories argue that learning occurs through consequences rather than sudden insight. Behaviors that lead to satisfying outcomes strengthen over time.
If a person has strong motivation to get something from a behavior, punishment becomes less effective. Which variable is this referring to?
Motivating Operations