Name: _____________________________
Date: _______________
Learning Test
AP Psychology
Mr. Gambale
1. With which of the following quotes would you most associate B .F. Skinner?
a. “To my mind, empathy in itself is a healing agent.”
b. “Just as hunger impels a person to eat, so does dissonance impel a person
to change his opinions or behavior.”
c. “Operant conditioning shapes behavior as a sculptor shapes a lump of
clay.”
d. “Most human behavior is learned by observation through modeling.”
e. “Dreams are the royal road to the unconscious.”
2. A driver stops for a “STOP” sign but not for other red signs. This is an example of
a. discrimination
b. modeling
c. temporal conditioning
d. trace conditioning
e. higher order conditioning
3. Which of the following is NOT a valid difference between classical and operant
conditioning?
a. In classical conditioning the learner associates two stimuli, one of which
originally elicits a response, while operant conditioning involves an
association between a response and a resulting consequence.
b. Classical conditioning is more reflexive and involuntary, while operant
conditioning is more a matter of a chosen response that is followed by a
consequence.
c. In classical conditioning the CS and the UCS are presented independent of
the learner’s behavior, while operant conditioning is dependent first on
some behavior by the learner.
d. Classical conditioning and operant conditioning can elicit discrimination
and generalization
e. Operant conditioning is based on the Law of Effect, while classical
conditioning is not.
4. In studying the impact of reinforcement on the performance of rats in running a
maze, Edward Tolman discovered that rats often seemed to have previously
learned the maze but only demonstrated their learning when reinforced for doing
so. He called this
a. insight learning
b. manifest content
c. latent learning
d. negative reinforcement
e. vicarious reinforcement
5. In the 1920’s, Mary Cover Jones (acting on her belief that if fear could be
conditioned by associating some object with distressing experiences that the fear
could be de-conditioned by pairing that thing with pleasurable experiences,)
helped a boy overcome his fear of rabbits by having him eat his favorite cookies
as a rabbit was gradually brought closer and closer to him. This is an example of
a. higher order conditioning
b. counterconditioning
c. the Law of Effect
d. flooding
e. implosion
6. In classical conditioning, Robert Rescorla’s argument for contingency contends
that conditioning will likely occur only if
a. the CS and the UCS are presented simultaneously
b. the CS and the UCS have been presented to the learner previously
c. the CS and the UCS have not ever been presented to the learner previously
d. there is a biological predisposition in the learner to associate the CS and
the UCS
e. the presentation of the CS reliably predicts the presentation of the UCS
7. A student continually pleads with a teacher to change his grade on a paper from a
“B” to an “A.” Finally, to stop what he sees as irritating behavior, the teacher
agrees. This resolution serves as ______ for the teacher and ______ for the
student.
a. the conditioned stimulus; the unconditioned stimulus
b. the unconditioned stimulus; the conditioned stimulus
c. acquisition; discrimination
d. positive reinforcement; negative reinforcement
e. negative reinforcement; positive reinforcement
8. You are awaiting an important piece of mail that you know will arrive on
Saturday. The Saturday mail delivery always comes at exactly 10:30 A.M., so you
do not check the mailbox before then but do check at 10:30. You are essentially
on
a. an extinction schedule
b. a fixed interval schedule of reinforcement
c. a variable interval schedule of reinforcement
d. a stimulus response learning schedule
e. an avoidance learning schedule
9. A father attempts to modify his daughter’s behavior by using the promise of a
higher probability behavior (playing in the swimming pool) to reinforce a lower
probability behavior (cleaning her room). This is an application of
a. the Premack Principle
b. classical conditioning
c. simultaneous conditioning
d. insight learning
e. contiguity
10. Alex is excited about the start of third grade. He consistently raises his hand to
volunteer in class but is never called upon by the teacher. Soon, Alex stops
volunteering altogether. This is an illustration of which of the following principles
in operant conditioning?
a. extinction
b. chaining
c. discrimination
d. generalization
e. blocking
11. By pushing vending machine buttons, children often learn that this action is
associated with the delivery of a candy bar. This process best illustrates:
a. latent learning
b. respondent behavior
c. spontaneous recovery
d. operant conditioning
e. habituation
12. Which of the following is an unconditioned response?
a. playing jump rope
b. shivering in cold weather
c. running through a maze to get a food reward
d. clapping after a thrilling concert performance
13. A geometric figure is most likely to become sexually arousing if presented shortly
___________ an appropriate __________.
a. after; UCR
b. after; UCS
c. before; UCR
d. before; UCS
e. after; CS
14. Kathleen developed an intense fear of flying 5 years ago when she was in a plane
crash. The fact that today she can again fly without distress indicates that her fear
has undergone:
a. spontaneous recovery
b. extinction
c. generalization
d. discrimination
15. Monica’s psychotherapist reminds her so much of her own father that she has
many of the same mixed emotional reactions to him that she has to her own dad.
Her reactions to her therapist best illustrate the importance of:
a. delayed reinforcement
b. latent learning
c. generalization
d. habituation
e. shaping
16. Humans most easily develop a conditioned aversion to alcohol if its taste is
associated with a(n):
a. anger-producing punishment
b. nausea-producing food
c. pain-producing accident
d. fear-producing threat
17. Laurie’s thumbsucking has become habitual because she begins to feel less
anxious whenever she sucks her thumb. This best illustrates the process of:
a. generalization
b. extinction
c. classical conditioning
d. operant conditioning
e. latent learning
18. B.F. Skinner’s work elaborated what E.L. Thorndike had called:
a. shaping
b. behaviorism
c. observational learning
d. the law of effect
e. latent learning
19. A Skinner box is a(n):
a. soundproofed cubicle in which organisms are classically conditioned in
the absence of distracting noise.
b. aversive or punishing event that decreases the occurrence of certain
undesirable behaviors.
c. special “slot machine” that is used to study the effects of partial
reinforcement on gambling behavior
d. chamber containing a bar or key that an animal can manipulate to obtain a
reinforcer
e. television projection device designed for use in laboratory studies of
observational learning.
20. An animal trainer is teaching a miniature poodle to balance on a ball. Initially, he
gives the poodle a treat for approaching the ball, then only for placing its front
paws on the ball, and finally only for climbing on the ball. The trainer is using
the method of:
a. shaping
b. delayed reinforcement
c. partial reinforcement
d. classical conditioning
e. secondary reinforcement
21. A fixed-ratio schedule of reinforcement is one in which a response is reinforced
only after a(n):
a. specified time period has elapsed
b. unpredictable time period has elapsed
c. specified number of responses have been made
d. unpredictable number of responses have been made
22. Paul and Michael sell magazine subscriptions by telephone. Paul is paid $1.00 for
every 5 calls he makes, while Michael is paid 1 dollar for every subscription he
sells, regardless of the number of calls he makes. Paul’s telephoning is reinforced
on a ______ schedule, whereas Michael’s is reinforced on a ________ schedule.
a.
b.
c.
d.
fixed-ratio; variable-ratio
variable-ratio; fixed-ratio
fixed-ratio; variable-interval
fixed-interval; variable-ratio
23. Children learn to fear spiders more easily than they learn to fear guns. This best
illustrates the impact of _____ on learning.
a. spontaneous recovery
b. secondary reinforcers
c. shaping
d. cognitive processes
e. biological predispositions
24. Who would be most likely to emphasize the importance of observational
learning?
a. Watson
b. Bandura
c. Skinner
d. Pavlov
25. Being randomly assigned to the experimental condition in a research project
involves being assigned:
a. to that condition by chance
b. to the condition in which participants are representative of people in
general
c. in a fashion that ensures that the independent variable will have a strong
impact
d. to the condition in which participants are all very similar in personality
characteristics
e. being assigned by demographic characteristics
26. Prediction is to ______ as explanation is to ______.
a. case study; survey
b. correlation; experimentation
c. random assignment; random sampling
d. independent variable; dependent variable
e. the hindsight bias; false consensus
27. The part of the brainstem that controls heartbeat and breathing is called the:
a. cerebellum
b. medulla
c. reticular formation
d. thalamus
e. hypothalamus
28. Lawrence Kohlberg used the fictional Heinz Dilemma to assess the development
of moral reasoning in children. One child is asked, “Would you steal a drug in
order to save a life?” and the child responds “No, because stealing is against the
law.” At which point would Kohlberg likely place such an answer in his
theoretical framework?
a.
b.
c.
d.
e.
level 1: preconventional
level 2: conventional
level 3: postconventional
level 4: formal operational
level 5: abstract
29. Which of the following is NOT true of the rods in the human visual system?
a. They are specialized for black and white vision.
b. They are not found on the fovea.
c. They function best under conditions of low illumination.
d. They are heavily clustered in the center of the retina and help immensely
with visual clarity.
e. Along with the cones they receive information from the environment and
activate bipolar cells, which in turn activate ganglion cells.
30. A volunteer in a sleep study is systematically awakened upon entering R.E.M.
sleep. When then allowed to sleep normally the individual has more frequent and
longer lasting R.E.M. periods. This phenomenon is known as
a. R.E.M. rebound
b. paradoxical sleep
c. active sleep
d. a circadian rhythm
e. delta sleep