From Karen Pryor; “Don’t Shoot The Dog”

Question 1

Define Positive Reinforcement

Answer 1

“…anything which, occurring in conjunction with an act, tends to increase the probability that the act will occur again.” Ch 1, pg 1

Question 2

What are the two kinds of reinforcement?

Answer 2

Positive and negative
Ch1, pg1

Question 3

Define Positive Reinforcement

Answer 3

“A positive reinforcement is something the subject wants, such as food, petting or praise.”
Ch1, pg 1

Question 4

Define Negative Reinforcement

Answer 4

“A negative reinforcement is something the subject wants to avoid—a blow, a frown, an unpleasant sound (the warning buzzer in cars if you don’t fasten your seatbelt is a negative reinforcement).” Ch1, pg1

Question 5

“A major point in training reinforcement is that you can’t ________ behavior that is ______ ___________.”

Answer 5

reinforce
not occurring
Ch1,pg2

Question 6

How can the individual use positive reinforcement to change personal behavior on a small scale leading to situational improvements?

Answer 6

By changing self talk from cursing one’s errors to using personal praise when wanted behaviors occur. Ch 1, pgs 2&3

Question 7

Reinforcements are relative, not absolute. In order to be reinforcing, the item chosen must be something the subject ________.

Answer 7

wants.
For example, rain is a positive reinforcement to ducks, a negative reinforcement for cats and cows are indifferent to rain. Ch 1,pg 3

Question 8

“it is useful to have a variety of ____________ for any training situation.”

Answer 8

reinforcements
Ch 1, pg 3

Question 9

Describe negative reinforcement and give an example.

Answer 9

“Negative reinforcement is something a subject will work to avoid.” Examples are a draft that makes you move to a warmer seat, or at the extreme an electric shock. Ch 1, pg 4&5.

Question 10

Negative reinforcement is not ______________.

Answer 10

punishment.
“Negative reinforcement is not punishment. Punishment comes after the behavior it is meant to affect.” Ch1, pg 5

Question 11

Discuss the differences between negative reinforcement and punishment.

Answer 11

Timing is a key feature in that punishment comes AFTER the unwanted behavior. Conversely negative reinforcement comes at the time of the behavior and can be stopped or avoided if the behavior is stopped. Ch1, pg 5.

Question 12

What role does “timing” play in reinforcement?

Answer 12

“Reinforcement must occur in conjunction with the act it is meant to modify.” Ch 1, pg 6

Question 13

What is one of the biggest challenges with reinforcement the beginning trainer faces?

Answer 13

“Laggardly reinforcement is the beginning trainer’s biggest problem.” Timing of reinforcement is challenging because by the time you can get to the reinforcement it may be late, and therefore less effective or not effective at all. Ch 1, pg 6

Question 14

When you find you’re having difficulties in a training situation what is the first question to ask yourself and what would a remedy for that problem be?

Answer 14

“Am I reinforcing too late?”
A remedy may be, if working with an animal, having a colleague observe for late reinforcement. Ch 1, pg 6

Question 15

Why is reinforcing too early a problem?

Answer 15

It can lead to unwanted behaviors. For example, bribery or reinforcement of behavior that hasn’t happened yet can lead to reinforcing the wrong behaviors. (Gorilla example) Ch 1, pg 7

Question 16

Define “bribery”.

Answer 16

Reinforcing behavior that hasn’t happened yet. For example, waving food to get the animal to come to you, or throwing treats to reinforce going into the kennel before the act. Ch 1, pg 7

Question 17

Why is the timing of a reinforcement so important?

Answer 17

For reinforcements to truly be effective they must come at the time of the behavior; not too early or too late. When the reinforcements are made is when they are associated with a particular behavior in the continuum. Ch 1, pg 7&8

Question 18

What happens when the negative reinforcement lasts longer than the behavior?

Answer 18

The negative reinforcement becomes “noise” to the subject and therefore ignored or ineffective. Ch 1, pg 8

Question 19

The physical size of a reinforcement can allow for more reinforcement per session. True or false?

Answer 19

True! A rule of thumb is you can count on an animal working for approximately 1/4 of their daily rations in training. Use the smallest pieces possible. Ch1, pgs 8,9.

Question 20

What percentage of the animals total ration per day can be used for reinforcement sessions?

Answer 20

Approximately 1/4 of their daily rations.Ch 1, pgs 8,9

Question 21

What is a good ration percentage per day per training session if you use 1/4 of the animals food daily ration?

Answer 21

1/4 of the total daily rations in a total of no more than 80 reinforcements divided into 20 reinforcements per session. Ch 1, pg 9.

Question 22

Bigger jobs in reinforced behavior require bigger rewards. True or False?

Answer 22

True! Ch 1, pg 10

Question 23

A large reward, sometimes 10 x bigger than a regular reinforcement, that comes as a surprise to the subject leading to behavior change is a _______.

Answer 23

A Jackpot. This reward can help change a subject from reluctant to willing. Ch 1, pgs 10,11.

Question 24

Define “conditioned reinforcer” and give an example.

Answer 24

A conditioned reinforcement is initially a meaningless signal that is deliberately associated with a reinforcement. Looking forward to the mail is an example. For an animal it can be a whistle or a comment I.e. “Good”. Ch 1 pgs 12- 14

Question 25

Give an example of pairing a conditioned reinforcer with a primary reinforcement.

Answer 25

Money is a conditional reinforcer that pairs with almost everything. It is an extremely generalized conditional reinforcer. ch 1 pg 14

Question 26

A conditional reinforcer can be used meaninglessly.

Answer 26

False. Doing so will dilute the force of a conditional reinforcer. Ch 1, pg 14

Question 27

Constant positive reinforcement is needed throughout a subjects life or they will stop doing the behavior. T or F?

Answer 27

False. Positive reinforcement should only be used in the learning stage with the subject. I.E. a toddler needs constant positive reinforcement for potty training, but after mastering the concept, for example, then does not need constant praise. Ch 1, pg16.

Question 28

To maintain an already-learned behavior it’s essentially to ___ reinforce it on a a regular basis.This is termed a ________ schedule of reinforcement.

Answer 28

Not, variable A variable schedule of reinforcement is used on a random or unpredictable basis and only occasionally. Ch 1, pg 16

Question 29

In humans, gambling is an example of a ________ schedule of reinforcement.

Answer 29

Variable. “The power of the variable schedule is at the root of all gambling.” Ch 1, pg17

Question 30

The ______ (longer, shorter) the variable schedule, the more powerfully it maintains behavior.”

Answer 30

Longer. The exception is if employed while trying to extinguish a behavior. Ch 1, pg 18.

Question 31

Exceptions to variable reinforcement schedules once the behavior is learned are in solving a puzzle or taking a ______.

Answer 31

For example, a dog trained to choose a single object from a group of miscellaneous items has to be reinforced for a correct choice each time. Ch 1, pg 19.

Question 32

Fixed schedules of reinforcement requires the subject to work for a ________ (predetermined, variable, or single) length of time or accomplish a _______(predetermined, variable or single) number of behaviors for one reinforcement.

Answer 32

Predetermined, predetermined. Ch 1, pg 20.

Question 33

Two phenomena that can occur with extremely long reinforcement schedules are point __ __ ______ and ____ starts.

Answer 33

Of no return, slow. Ch1, pg 21.

Question 34

One way to overcome the slow start is to introduce reinforcement for getting started. T, F.

Answer 34

True! Small reinforcement helped Dr Pryor to get to her Graduate classes after work each week using a desired reinforcement (chocolate) each time she completed a step to get there. Ch 1, pg 23.

Question 35

Wearing your football team’s colors on game day thinking that will be “lucky” and the team will win, because they have won before while you’ve worn the same colors is called _________ behavior or _______ reinforcement.

Answer 35

Superstitious behavior or accidental reinforcement. Ch1, pgs 22-23.

Question 36

Accidental behavior in evolution has a place. Superstitious behavior can occur when the behavior is unrelated to the consequence but becomes fixed in the subjects mind as necessary for reinforcement. True or False?

Answer 36

True Ch 1, pg 23

Question 37

Animals can develop superstitious behavior and adding _______ (variations, no variation) in training can help alleviate development of superstitious behaviors.

Answer 37

Variations Ch 1, pg 24

Question 38

Animals and people have a clear sense of ______ (time, place) intervals.

Answer 38

Time intervals. Ch 1, pg24

Question 39

The concept of superstitious behavior permeates many aspects of the human experience. An example is attaching the thought of being successful in a sport with a certain club, blade, ball, etc. True or False?

Answer 39

True. In addition, some people believe that certain behaviors ,such as corporal punishment, create respect. They are traditions with no clear reinforcement. Ch 1, pgs 24, 25

Question 40

One way to get rid of superstitious behaviors is to become aware that it has no relation to reinforcement. True or False?

Answer 40

True. Ch 1, pg 25.

Question 41

Reinforcing yourself is necessary. Some healthy ways of self reinforcement are __________.

Answer 41

Time away from a task, talk with friends, good book, walk outdoors. Ch 1, p31.

Question 42

Shaping is also termed “successive approximation”. T,F.

Answer 42

True. ch 2, pg 33.

Question 43

Shaping behavior depends on ___________(persistence, luck, or the skill of the trainer).

Answer 43

Persistence. Pgs 34,35.

Question 44

It’s good ________ ( shaping, luck), not just good methods, that makes training effective.

Answer 44

Shaping. Ch 2, pg 36.

Question 45

How many rules of shaping does Dr Pryor talk about?

Answer 45

Ten. Ch 2, pg 36.

Question 46

“The fastest way to shape behavior-sometimes the only way-is to raise criteria at whatever interval it takes to make it easy for the subject to improve steadily.” This refers to ________(shaping, withholding).

Answer 46

Shaping. Ch 2, pg 39

Question 47

A key to successful shaping is ______ (consistency, speed).

Answer 47

Consistency. Speed is counterproductive. Ch 2, pg 39.

Question 48

Dr Pryor enumerates 10 rules of shaping. True or False?

Answer 48

True. Ch 2, pg 37.

Question 49

The first rule of shaping discusses raising criteria in (small, large) increments to reinforce within the range the subject is already achieving.

Answer 49

Small. Don’t go faster in reinforcements than the subject can realistically achieve or you risk failure. Ch 2, pg 38.

Question 50

The second rule of shaping involves training ___ thing(s) at a time.

Answer 50

One. Don’t try to shape for two criteria simultaneously. That does not preclude training one subject two separate behaviors on the same day. Ch 2, pg 39,40.

Question 51

The third rule of shaping is to “always put the current level of response onto a _____ (variable, static) schedule of reinforcement before adding or raising criteria.”

Answer 51

Variable. Using a variable schedule of reinforcement that reinforces only occasionally to maintain a behavior’s current level. This law is the crux of the shaping process. Ch 2, pg 41.

Question 52

The fourth rule of shaping involves when a new criterion is introduced, an old one is temporarily _______ (reduced, used more).

Answer 52

Reduced. I.E. “New tank syndrome” in which a new criterion interferes with previously learned behavior temporarily. Ch 2, pg 42.

Question 53

The fifth rule of shaping states “Stay ahead of your _______ (subject, timeline).

Answer 53

Subject. You should create a training plan before starting with small step benchmarks and if a subject gets it quickly and needs to jump ahead you are prepared to do so. ch 2, pg 44.

Question 54

The sixth rule of shaping is not to change _______ (trainers, subjects) in the middle of the stream.

Answer 54

Trainers. Changing trainers during shaping for one subject, one behavior slows the process and is unfair to the student. The only exception to this would be if the training is going nowhere. Ch 2, pg 44,45.

Question 55

The seventh rule of shaping is “if one shaping procedure is not eliciting progress, find _______ (another, more time).”

Answer 55

Another. There are a multitude of ways to train and not all plans work for each subject. Be malleable! Ch 2, pgs 46,47.

Question 56

The eighth rule of shaping is “Don’t interrupt a training session gratuitously; that constitutes a ________ (punishment, reward) .”

Answer 56

Punishment. Does not apply to casual training and, perhaps, praising schoolwork. It refers to the breaking of the contract between teacher and student by leaving, chatting w/a bystander, or otherwise taking your attention off what you should be doing; training. Ch 2, pgs 46,47.

Question 57

The ninth rule of shaping states “if a learned behavior deteriorates, review the ______ (shaping, book).”

Answer 57

Shaping. Many times if you don’t use it, you start to lose it. I.E. language accusation. If it’s been years since you actively spoke Spanish then you may have to go back and review/relearn. Ch 2, pgs 48,49.

Question 58

The tenth rule of shaping is to “Quit while you’re ahead.” True or False?

Answer 58

True. As a trainer, you should stop on a good response even if you have to force yourself. “The enemy of good is better…” loosely quoting Voltaire. Ch 2, pgs 49,50.

Question 59

Shaping is a _____ (verbal, non verbal) skill.

Answer 59

Non verbal. Meaning it must be practiced, not just learned. Ch 2, pg 51.

Question 60

In playing the “Training Game”, it becomes apparent that “whatever goes wrong is a function of the training, not the trainee.” True or False?

Answer 60

True. Read the section on The Training Game. Ch 2, pgs 51-58.

Question 61

Targeting is a shaping shortcut that involves shaping an animal to touch a target. True or False?

Answer 61

True. Shaping to a target can include a dogs nose to a target, a group of tourists to follow a flag or slapping our thighs to get a dog to come to us. Ch 2, pg 58.

Question 62

Shaping shortcuts include _______, _______ and modelling.

Answer 62

Targeting, mimicry. Ch 2, pgs 58-60

Question 63

Mimicry comes naturally to some animals, such as people, birds and cats. Are dogs good at mimicry? Yes or no?

Answer 63

No. Ch 2, pg 59.

Question 64

Modeling is a shaping behavior that uses the trainer putting the dog in position. I.E. modeling a retriever to carry a bird. Dr Pryor states modeling should heavily rely on the shaping process together to be successful. T or F?

Answer 64

True. While putting the subject in position, being sensitive to the smallest effort on the subject’s part should be reinforced. Ch 2, pg62.

Question 65

Shaping is also known as behavior _______. (Shifting, modification)

Answer 65

Modification. Many programs for humans exist, such as Weight Watchers , which require self reinforcement. Ch 2, pg 64.

Question 66

Formal shaping programs, for example meditation or money management, benefit from ______ _______.

Answer 66

Record keeping, which potentially shows progress and is reinforcing. Ch 2, pg 64.

Question 67

Training by ________ is an innovative way to use novel, amusing or notable treatments to reinforce behavior and is becoming increasingly popular in our society today.

Answer 67

Computer. Ch 2, pg 66..

Question 68

Anything that causes some kind of behavioral response is called a ________.

Answer 68

Stimulus. Ch 3, pg 71.

Question 70

Unconditioned, or ______ stimuli, are things like smells beckoning you to the kitchen or the need to blink at the flash of a bright light.

Answer 70

Primary. Ch 3, pg 71.

Question 71

Learned signals, such as responding to our name being called, are learned by association and termed conditioned, or _________ stimuli.

Answer 71

Secondary. Ch 3, pg 71.

Question 72

What is “bringing behavior under stimulus control’?

Answer 72

Obidience. Ch 3, pg 72.

Question 74

Brainwashing is a possibly related phenomenon to learned helplessness. T ir F?

Answer 74

True. Dr Pryor uses the example of Patty Hearst on page 68, 69.