Classical Conditioning
What is the unconditioned stimulus (US) in Pavlov’s experiment?
Food
Who created the “Skinner Box”?
B.F. Skinner
Which schedule is used in slot machines?
Variable ratio
Who conducted the Bobo doll experiment?
Albert Bandura
What’s the difference between positive and negative reinforcement?
Positive reinforcement involves adding a desirable stimulus to increase a behavior.
Negative reinforcement involves removing an aversive stimulus to increase a behavior
A student feels nervous every time they hear the dentist’s drill. Identify the CS, US, and CR.
CS: drill sound
US: pain
CR: fear
A rat presses a lever and gets food. Is this positive reinforcement, negative reinforcement, or punishment?
Positive Reinforcement
Which schedule is used when determining temperature or calendar years?
Interval ratio
According to Bandura, what are the 4 key processes in observational learning?
Attention, Retention, Reproduction, and Motivation
Why is partial reinforcement more resistant to extinction than continuous reinforcement?
In continuous reinforcement, the subject expects a reward every time. When the reward stops, they quickly notice and the behavior fades.
In partial reinforcement, the subject only gets rewarded sometimes. They learn that persistence might eventually pay off. When reinforcement stops, they keep trying longer because they’re used to uncertainty.
A war veteran panics when hearing fireworks. Explain how classical conditioning accounts for this.
PTSD trigger through pairing of loud sounds and fear response
A teacher gives stickers for homework completion. Later, students keep doing homework even when stickers stop. Why?
Effect of past reinforcement - resistance to extinction
A student studies regularly because surprise quizzes happen at random. Which schedule is this?
Variable interval
A child sees their sibling punished for yelling and avoids yelling themselves. What type of learning is this?
Vicarious punishment
A child is grounded for missing curfew but later sneaks out anyway. Explain using operant conditioning why punishment may fail.
Inconsistency, reinforcement of other behaviors, etc.