Ch. 9

Question 1

Negative reinforcement is associated with two types of behavior

Answer 1

escape behavior

And

Avoidance behaviour

Question 2

escape behavior,

Answer 2

in which performance of the behavior terminates the aversive stimulus

Question 3

avoidance behavior

Answer 3

in which performance of the behavior prevents the aversive stimulus from occurring.

Question 4

shuttle avoidance procedure,

Answer 4

_{Typically, one first learns to escape from an aversive stimulus and then to avoid it.}

in which an animal has to shuttle back and forth in a box to avoid an aversive stimulus.

Question 5

Two-Process Theory of Avoidance

Answer 5

Mower’s two-process theory of avoidance proposes that avoidance behavior is the result of two distinct processes:

(1) classical conditioning, in which a fear response comes to be elicited by a CS; and

(2) operant conditioning, in which moving away from the CS is negatively reinforced by a reduction in fear.

_{It is relatively easy to understand the process underlying escape conditioning because the organism moves from a(n) aversive situation to a
nonaversive situation. By contrast, it is more difficult to understand avoidance conditioning because the organism moves from a(n) nonaversive another
nonaversive situation.}

_{One problem was that avoidance responses are often extremely persistent.}

Question 6

problems with two-process theory

Answer 6

1. One apparent problem with two-process theory is that, even after hundreds of trials, the avoidance response does not seem to e extinguish.
2. However, according to the anx
   anxiety conservation hypothesis, avoidance responses usually occur so quickly that exposures to the CS are too brief for extinction to take place.
3. A second problem with Mower’s theory is that after sufficient experience with avoiding the aversive CS, the animals no longer show any fear, yet they continue to make the avoidance response.
   — Levis, however, contends that such
   animals are nevertheless still slightly fearful, otherwise the avoidance response would extinguish.

Question 7

One process theory

Answer 7

_{Other theories have also been proposed to account for avoidance behavior.}

According to the one-process theory of avoidance, the avoidance response is negatively reinforced by a reduction in overall rate of aversive stimulation, as opposed to a reduction in fear.

The attractive aspect of this theory is that it does away with any reference to an internal state of fear, the existence of which has to be inferred.

The overall reduction in aversive stimulation that accompanies avoidance is instead regarded as a sufficient explanation for the behavior.

Question 8

According to Mineka, a limitation of applying experimental models of avoidance to phobias is that experimental avoidance seems to condition ___ readily than does phobic avoidance.

Answer 8

1. Less

Experimental avoidance often requires a few conditioning trial(s), while phobic avoidance usually requires one trial(s); additionally, experimental avoidance will in some cases eventually extinguish.

Question 9

1. A critical aspect of Stampfl’s experimental analogue of phobic conditioning is that the avoidance response can occur ___ in the sequence of events leading up to the feared Cs, thereby ___ the amount of effort involved in making the response.

Answer 9

1. Early
2. Minimizing

This results in little exposure to the feared CS, thereby greatly reducing the likelihood that the fear response will be extinguished.

Question 10

obsessive-compulsive disorder (OCD)

Answer 10

a disorder characterized by persistent thoughts, impulses, or images (called obsessions), and repetitive, stereotyped actions (called compulsions) that are carried out in response to the obsessions.

_{For example, a person might have an obsessive worry about contacting germs; this leads to a compulsive tendency to take a shower and clean the house many times each day.}

Note that the person recognizes that the compulsive behavior is clearly excessive but nevertheless feels compelled to perform the action.

In general, obsessional thoughts are associated with an increase in anxiety, whereas compulsive behaviors are associated with a decrease in anxiety.

_{From the perspective of two-process theory, this decrease in anxiety likely functions as an negative reinforcer for the compulsive behavior.}

Question 11

Exposure and response prevention (ERP) therapy

Answer 11

for OCD involves prolonged exposure to anxiety-arousing events while not engaging in the compulsive behavior that serves to reduce the anxiety.

ERP is similar to systematic desensitization in that exposure to the anxiety-provoking event is usually gradual. It is similar to flooding therapy in that exposure to the anxiety-provoking event is prolonged.

Question 12

People with OCD

Answer 12

People with OCD are usually unable to recall a particular conditioning event that was the cause of the obsessional anxiety response.

The disorder often arises, however, during times of stress.

This suggests that a process of sensitization: may exacerbate normal concerns about cleanliness and safety.

People with OCD fail to realize that intrusive thoughts are common and that such thoughts are often uncontrollable. They also take responsibility for highly improbable events.

Question 13

The role of avoidance in OCD is virtually the same as in phobic behavior, except that ___

Answer 13

OCD typically involves an active avoidance response while phobic behavior typically involves a passive avoidance response.

That is, a person with OCD will generally do something in order to reduce anxiety (such as showering), while a person with a phobia will generally not do something in order to reduce anxiety (such as not go near a dog).

_{Nevertheless, individuals with OCD can also utilize passive avoidance responses (e.g., by avoiding garbage whenever possible) such that some of their behavior patterns can also be characterized as phobic.}

Question 14

approach-avoidance conflict,

Answer 14

involving events that are in some ways rewarding and in some ways punishing, that is, the events have both appetitive and aversive aspects to them.

The critical factor governing this conflict is the manner in which distance affects the strength of these different consequences.

_{immediacy has a strong effect on the value of a reward, with immediate rewards typically being much stronger than delayed rewards. As it turns out, immediacy can have an even more powerful effect on punishers, with immediate punishers being far stronger than delayed punishers.}

What this means is that when an event is still some distance away (in either time or space), the rewarding aspects of the event may outweigh the aversive aspects of the event.

_{This process may also account for why some couples repeatedly break up and get back together again.}

_{They originally broke up because the aversive aspects of the relationship were beginning to outweigh the rewarding aspects.}

_{After breaking up, however in which case they are now more “distant” from each other the rewarding aspects of the relationship come to the fore.}

_{They think more often about the good times they had together and begin to lament ever having broken up.}

_{But if they get back together again, the aversive aspects now become salient, and they break up again.}

Question 15

Time-out

Answer 15

_{basic type of negative punishment}

involves the loss of access to positive reinforcers for a brief period of time following the occurrence of a problem behavior.

An advantage of a time-out procedure is that one does not have to clearly identify a specific reinforcer before implementing the procedure.

Question 16

Problems with Time-out

Answer 16

It is likely to be ineffective if the time-out setting is actually more reinforcing than the setting from which the child was removed.

Another problem is the time-outs are often too long.

_{The purpose of time-out is not to get the child “out of your hair” for a period of time but to facilitate the development of more appropriate behaviors.}

_{Those appropriate behaviors need to be reinforced, which cannot be done if the child is sitting in their room for hours on end.}

in some cases, a time-out that lasts a minute may be all that is required to effectively decrease the future occurrence of the unwanted behavior, especially if one immediately sets out to reinforce more appropriate behaviors as soon as the child is returned to the normal setting

Question 17

response cost

Answer 17

_{basic type of negative punishment}

Which is the removal of a specific reinforcer following the occurrence of a problem behavior.

An advantage of a response cost procedure is that one can easily adjust the severity of the punishment to suit the behavior being punished.

A drawback to response cost, however, is that you must clearly identify a reinforcer that, if removed, will have an impact on behavior.

It therefore requires a more careful analysis of the situation than a time-out procedure does.

Question 18

If the frequency of a behavior decreases because performing the behavior no longer results in a treat, the process involved is ____.

If the If the frequency of a behavior decreases because each time you perform the behavior, it leads to the removal of a treat that you already have, the process involved is ___ ___.

Answer 18

1. extinction
2. negative punishment

Question 19

Intrinsic punishment

Answer 19

is punishment that is an inherent aspect of the behavior being punished.

In other words, the activity itself is punishing, such that the person performing the behavior is now less likely to repeat it.

_{Doing push-ups is intrinsically punishing if you are less likely to do push-ups in the future because of how unpleasant it was.}

Question 20

Extrinsic punishment

Answer 20

is punishment that is not an inherent aspect of the behavior being punished, but is the result of an event that follows the behavior.

This event is what we would call an extrinsic punisher.

_{Being chastised after lighting up a cigarette (“Are you still indulging in that filthy habit?”) is extrinsically punishing if it subsequently reduces how frequently you smoke.}

Question 21

primary (or unconditioned) punisher

Answer 21

is an event that is innately punishing.

Loosely speaking, these are events that we are born to dislike.

_{Electric shock, intense heat, and loud noise are examples of primary punishers.}

Question 22

secondary (or conditioned) punisher

Answer 22

is an event that has become punishing because it has in the past been associated with some other punisher.

Human behavior is often under the control of secondary punishers.

_{A traffic ticket can effectively punish our tendency to speed}

Question 23

generalized (or generalized secondary) punisher

Answer 23

which is an event that has become punishing because it has in the past been associated with many other punishers.

_{The icy stare is probably best categorized as a generalized punisher because disapproving looks have no doubt been associated with numerous unpleasant events such as reprimands as a child, relationship arguments as an adult, and disciplinary action during one’s stint in the army.}

Question 24

Problems with the Use of Punishment

—Punishing the act of playing aggressively with other children will not automatically result in the child playing more cooperatively.

Answer 24

_{Although many people believe that behaviorists promote the use of punishment, behaviorists in fact have a general bias against it.}

_{This bias results from several problems that are associated with punishment:}

1. Punishment of maladaptive behavior doesn’t directly strengthen the occurrence of adaptive behavior, which is what one typically hopes to achieve.

Question 25

Problems with the Use of Punishment

—A child who has been punished for playing aggressively will not necessarily begin playing more cooperatively; they might instead simply stop playing with other children, which is not at all what was intended.

Answer 25

2. Punishing one behavior may simply result in a generalized suppression of other behaviors.

Question 26

Problems with the Use of Punishment

—The child, for example, might come to view one parent as a discriminative stimulus for punishment and therefore continue to misbehave when that parent is absent. The child has thus learned not to get caught misbehaving, rather than not to misbehave.

Answer 26

3. The person delivering the punishment could become an SD for punishment, with the result that the unwanted behavior is selectively suppressed only when that person is present.

Question 27

Problems with the Use of Punishment

—A child who is often punished by one parent might begin minimizing the time they spend with that parent. This would obviously be less than ideal, especially because the parent and child would miss out on positive interactions.

Answer 27

4. Punishment might simply teach the individual to avoid the person who delivered the punishment.

Question 28

Problems with the Use of Punishment

5. Punishment is likely to elicit a strong emotional response.

Answer 28

—This is especially the case with the use of positive punishment, such as spanking or yelling, which is likely to result in crying or other displays of distress.
— These strong emotional responses are not only unpleasant but will also interfere with any subsequent attempt to teach the child more appropriate behavior. A child who is crying uncontrollably is not in an ideal state for learning anything new, such as how to play appropriately.

Question 29

Problems with the Use of Punishment

6. Punishment can sometimes elicit an aggressive reaction.

Answer 29

— This anger can be directed toward the individual responsible for the aversive event or, if there are inhibitions about doing so, can be directed toward a substitute target.
—Thus, a child who is harshly punished for being noisy might not aggress toward the parent who spanked them but instead aggress toward their younger sibling when the parents have left the room.

Question 30

Problems with the Use of Punishment

7. The use of punishment, through the process of modeling, could teach the person that punishment is an acceptable means of controlling behavior.

Answer 30

—As a result, children whose behavior is being controlled through the use of punishment may themselves begin punishing others to control the behavior of others.

Question 31

Problems with the Use of Punishment

— If hitting one’s children has the immediate effect of getting them to stop making noise (an immediate negative reinforcer), then the behavior of hitting them has been strongly reinforced. The use of punishment can therefore be quite seductive, enticing the parent to use it more and more frequently, and becoming abusive.

Answer 31

8. Because punishment often has an immediate effect in stopping an unwanted behavior, the use of punishment is often strongly reinforced.

Question 32

Punishment, especially ___ punishment, can often elicit a strong ____ reaction. This reaction might include ___ that, if not directed toward the punisher, might be directed toward a substitute target.

Punishment of an inappropriate behavior __ directly strengthen the occurrence of an appropriate behavior. It might even result in a ____ suppression of behavior.

The use of punishment could, through the process of ___ teach the recipient that punishment is an acceptable means for modifying a person’s behavior.

4. If punishment has an ___ effect in getting someone to stop annoying us, this result can act as a strong ____ ____ for us to use punishment in the future.

Answer 32

1. Positive
2. Emotional
3. Aggression
4. will not
5. Generalized
6. Modelling
7. immediate
8. negative reinforcer

Question 33

conditioned suppression theory of punishment

Answer 33

assumes that punishment does not weaken a behavior but instead produces an emotional response that interferes with the occurrence of the behavior.

Question 34

avoidance theory of punishment

Answer 34

punishment actually involves a type of avoidance conditioning in which the avoidance response consists of any behavior other than the behavior being punished.

assumes that punishment does not directly weaken a behavior.

It simply replaces the punished behavior with an avoidance response of some sort.

A disadvantage of this theory, however, is that it carries with it all of the theoretical difficulties associated with avoidance conditioning,

Question 35

Premack principle of punishment,

Answer 35

_{the Premack principle holds that a high-probability behavior (HPB) can be used to reinforce a low-probability behavior (LPB).}

an LPB can be used to punish an HPB.

Note that this approach implicitly assumes that punishment is the opposite of reinforcement:

If reinforcement strengthens behavior, punishment weakens behavior. In this sense, it differs from the previous two theories in that it views punishment as the mirror opposite of reinforcement.

Question 36

Learned Helplessness

Answer 36

The original experiments on learned
helplessness revealed that dogs that had first been exposed to inescapable shock had difficulty learning an escape response when later exposed to escapable shock.

It seemed as though these dogs had learned that there is not a contingency between their behavior and the offset of shock.

This effect can be overcome by forcing the dogs to make an escape response.

As well, dogs that have had previous exposure to escapable shock are less susceptible to becoming helpless when later exposed to inescapable shock.

Learned helplessness may account for various difficulties in humans, including the clinical disorder known as
depression

Question 37

Masserman’s Experimental Neurosis

Answer 37

recall, experimental neurosis is an experimentally produced disorder in which animals exposed to unpredictable events develop neurotic-like symptoms.

In these situations, normally quiet cats became restless and agitated, whereas normally active cats became withdrawn and passive.

When food was paired with unpredictable shock, the cats also developed phobic and counter responses to the counterphobic food.

Evidence suggests that neurotic symptoms are more likely to develop when the traumatic event occurs in an environment that a person generally regards as safe.

Learned helplessness results from repeated exposure to aversive events that are uncontrollable; experimental neurosis results from exposure to
events that are unpredictable