Chapter 5

Question 1

Explain what an unconditioned reinforcer is. Give two examples.

Answer 1

Stimuli that are reinforcing without prior learning or conditioning
Example: food for a hungry person, water for a thirsty person, warmth for someone who is cold, and sexual contact for someone that has been deprived

Question 2

What are tokens?

Answer 2

Tokens are conditioned reinforcers that can be accumulated and exchanged for backup reinforcers

Question 3

Explain in two or three sentences what a token economy is.

Answer 3

A behaviour modification program in which individuals can earn tokens for specific behaviours and can cash in their tokens for backup reinforcers

Question 4

Distinguish between a simple conditioned reinforcer and a generalized conditioned reinforcer. Explain why a generalized conditioned reinforcer is more effective than a simple conditioned reinforcer.

Answer 4

Simple conditioned reinforcer - a conditioned reinforcer that is paired with a single backup reinforcer
Generalized conditioned reinforcer - stimulus that is paired with more than one kind of backup reinforcer
A generalized reinforcer is more effective because it provides more than one kind of backup reinforcer to increase the target behaviour

Question 5

Unaware-misapplication pitfall (Conditioned reinforcer)

Answer 5

Unaware-misapplication pitfall - unknown pairing of conditioned reinforcers with stimuli that are meant for punishing. Example is when an adult frequently reprimands a child for behaving inappropriately but (a) never provides any “backup punisher” and (b) the reprimand is accompanied by other aspects of adult attention that are likely to have acquired conditioned reinforcing value because of previous pairings with reinforcers

Question 6

Partial knowledge misapplication pitfall (conditioned reinforcer)

Answer 6

Ceasing to pair a conditioned reinforcer with a backup reinforcer can have unfortunate results for those who are not aware that this will cause a conditioned reinforcer to lose its value
Example: a teacher who awards stamped happy faces as tokens for good behaviour but fails to use effective backup reinforcers. The result is that the stamped happy face eventually lose whatever reinforcing power they may have had when they were first introduced