Operant conditioning

Directions

Study the definitions below, then identify them in each of the situations that follow.

Definitions

• Operant conditioning: learning that takes place when a spontaneous behavior is reinforced or punished.

• Spontaneous behavior (sb): any voluntary or nonreflexive action.

 
• Stimulus (s): something in the environment that causes a response.

 
• Response (r): a unit of behavior.

 
• Consequences (c): the positive or negative results of a behavior.

 

Situations

• A guy sends his girlfriend flowers because he loves her. She asks, "What did you do wrong?" He never again sends her a surprise gift.
Sb:

C:

S:

R:
 

• A teenager stays out past her curfew. Her parents ground her. Next time out, she comes in on time.

Sb:

C:

S:

R:

A crawling baby reaches for an expensive vase on a table. He is told, "NO! NO!" Whenever he crawls in that room, he avoids the table.

Sb:

C:

S:

R:

A girl complains to her boyfriend about his inattentiveness to her. He doesn’t talk to her for days. Next time she has a complaint, she holds her feelings in.

Sb:

C:

S:

R:

A father lends his son the family car. The young man returns it with the gas tank practically empty. Next time his son asks, the father won’t lend him the car.

Sb:

C:

S:

R:

A dog let out of the house without a leash is given food whenever she comes right in after being called. Whenever she comes into the house, she goes right to her dish.

Sb:

C:

S:

R:

A teacher assigns homework. If her students don’t do it, they get a zero. If they lie when she asks whether it is done, she gives them a zero. A student who doesn’t do her homework lies and gets a double zero. Next time, she raises her hand when the teacher asks who didn’t do the homework.

Sb:

C:

S:

R: