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AP Psychology
Name__________________________Date________Per.______
Learning Theories: Practice
OPERANT CONDITIONING
TERMS
Reinforcement
(Increase the behavior)
Punishment
(Decrease the behavior)
Positive
(Present a stimulus)
Present a good stimulus to increase
the behavior.
Ex: You get $5 for doing your
chores.
Present a bad stimulus to decrease
the behavior.
Ex: Giving you a detention to
prevent you from being late to class.
Negative
(Remove a stimulus)
Take away a bad stimulus to increase
the behavior.
Ex: Your mother stops nagging you
when you clean your room.
Take away a good stimulus to
decrease the behavior.
Ex: Losing your senior privileges so
that you stop being tardy/truant.
Part A: Operant Conditioning Examples: Identify whether the following examples are positive
reinforcement, negative reinforcement, positive punishment, or negative punishment.
_________________________ 1. After missing your curfew several times, your parents take away your
driving privileges.
________________________ 2. Mickey’s mother nags him until he finally cleans his room.
________________________ 3. When 6-year-old Josie pushes in her chair at the end of the day, her
teacher gives her a sticker.
_________________________ 4. If Thomas is late to practice, his coach makes him do extra push-ups.
_________________________ 5. Margaret was given a standing ovation after singing karaoke. Now she
goes to sing karaoke almost every other day.
_________________________ 6. Oliver does his laundry frequently so that his room no longer smells.
_________________________ 7. You study for math tests in order to be exempt from taking the final
exam.
Part B: Classical or Operant Conditioning?: Decide whether each of the following is operant or classical
conditioning. If it is operant conditioning, decide whether it is positive/negative reinforcement,
positive/negative punishment. If it is classical conditioning, identify the US, UR, CS, and CR.
1. Every time your psychology instructor enters the classroom, she goes straight to the board to write an outline
on it. Unfortunately, she has long finger nails and each time she writes the outline, her nails screech on the
board, making you wince. After a few weeks of this, you wince at the sight of the teacher entering the
classroom.
2. Your father gives you a credit card at the end of your first year in college because you did so well. As
a result, your grades continue to get better in your second year.
3. The door to your house squeaks loudly when you open it. Soon, your dog begins wagging its tail when the
door squeaks.
4. When Donna “talks back” to her mother, her mother washes her mouth out with soap. As a result, Donna
does not talk back to her mom.
5. Your car has a red, flashing light that blinks annoyingly if you start the car without buckling the seat belt.
You become more likely to buckle your seatbelt when you first get into the car.
6. Arnie recently had surgery on his shoulder, and was in a lot of pain. While recovering in the hospital, he
watched a lot of re-runs of “I Love Lucy”. Months later, seeing an episode of “I Love Lucy” sends a brief twinge
of pain through his shoulder.
7. When Jennifer’s mother drops her off at day care one morning, Jennifer screams and yells. Her mother stays
and pays attention to her in order to make her stop screaming.
8. A lion in a circus learns to stand up on a chair and jump through a hoop to receive a food treat.
9. The police takes away your driving privileges so that you do not drive under the influence.
Part C: Schedules of Reinforcement
For the following examples, decide which schedule of reinforcement is described (variable-ratio, variableinterval, fixed-ratio, fixed-interval).
______________________________ 1. A child is given a quarter for every five minutes she practices the
piano.
______________________________ 2. Rolling a pair of dice and getting doubles.
______________________________ 3. Waiting for a taxi in the city.
______________________________ 4. A frequent flyer program gives a free flight after accumulating a
certain number of flight miles.
______________________________ 5. Playing the slot machines at the casino.
______________________________ 6. Carpet cleaner who takes a break only after having cleaned three
rooms.
______________________________ 7. An athlete signs a contract in which his salary increases are renegotiated every two years.
______________________________ 8. A teacher gives pop quizzes throughout the semester.
______________________________ 9. A seal at the zoo is given a fish for every two times he claps his
flippers on command.
______________________________ 10. A fly-fisherman casts and reels back several times before
catching a fish.