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Quizzes > Health & Medicine > Psychology & Mental Health

Behavioural Learning Theories Quiz - Can You Master Behaviorism?

Think you can ace these behaviorism questions? Start the learning theories quiz now!

Difficulty: Moderate
2-5mins
Learning OutcomesCheat Sheet
Paper art illustration of brain book and question mark for behavioural learning theories quiz on coral background

This behavioural learning theories quiz helps you practice behaviorism by working through classical and operant conditioning, reinforcement, and real-life examples, so you can spot gaps before a test or class. Along the way you'll see ideas from Pavlov to Skinner, and you can keep going with educational psychology or conditioning and learning .

Who is considered the pioneering researcher in classical conditioning?
Ivan Pavlov
Albert Bandura
John Watson
B.F. Skinner
Ivan Pavlov's experiments with dogs demonstrated that a neutral stimulus can come to elicit a reflexive response when paired with an unconditioned stimulus. His work laid the foundation for the study of associative learning known as classical conditioning. Pavlov's findings showed that behaviors could be modified through stimulus pairing rather than by conscious thought.
In Pavlov's experiments, the sound of the bell originally served as which stimulus before conditioning?
Unconditioned stimulus
Neutral stimulus
Unconditioned response
Conditioned response
Before conditioning, the bell did not elicit salivation on its own and was therefore considered a neutral stimulus. After consistent pairing with food, the bell became a conditioned stimulus that evoked the salivation response. This illustrates how neutral stimuli can acquire significance through association.
What term describes the process of reinforcing successive approximations toward a target behavior?
Negative reinforcement
Shaping
Chaining
Punishment
Shaping is the operant technique of reinforcing progressively closer approximations to a desired behavior. It allows complex behaviors to be taught by rewarding small steps toward the goal. This method was famously used by B.F. Skinner in his operant conditioning research.
Skinner's operant chamber is primarily used to study which learning principle?
Operant conditioning
Insight learning
Classical conditioning
Observational learning
The operant chamber, also known as the Skinner box, was designed to examine how behaviors are influenced by their consequences. In operant conditioning, subjects learn to increase or decrease a behavior based on reinforcement or punishment. Skinner's apparatus allowed precise control over stimuli and rewards.
What distinguishes negative reinforcement from punishment?
Presentation of an aversive stimulus to decrease behavior
Presentation of a pleasant stimulus to increase behavior
Removal of an aversive stimulus to increase behavior
Removal of a pleasant stimulus to decrease behavior
Negative reinforcement strengthens a behavior by removing or avoiding an aversive stimulus after the behavior occurs. This contrasts with punishment, which aims to decrease a behavior by presenting or removing stimuli. Negative reinforcement is often misunderstood as punishment, but it actually increases response frequency.
Which reinforcement schedule produces a post-reinforcement pause and high response rates?
Variable ratio
Variable interval
Fixed ratio
Fixed interval
A fixed-ratio schedule delivers reinforcement after a set number of responses, leading to high rates of responding followed by a pause after each reinforcement. This 'break-and-run' pattern is distinctive to fixed-ratio schedules. Variable schedules do not produce the same post-reinforcement pause.
During classical conditioning, what leads to extinction of the conditioned response?
Presenting the CS without the US repeatedly
Presenting the US without the CS
Reinforcing the CR intermittently
Pairing a new CS with the US
Extinction occurs when the conditioned stimulus (CS) is presented repeatedly without the unconditioned stimulus (US), causing the conditioned response (CR) to weaken and eventually disappear. It demonstrates that conditioned associations are not permanent. Spontaneous recovery can occur later, showing that the original learning is suppressed, not erased.
Stimulus generalization occurs when?
Only the original CS elicits the response
Responses are elicited by stimuli similar to the original CS
A new response is learned to a different stimulus
The CR stops after extinction
Stimulus generalization happens when a conditioned response extends to stimuli that resemble the conditioned stimulus. This shows that learners do not restrict their responses to an exact stimulus but apply learning more broadly. It is contrasted with discrimination, where responses are limited to the original CS.
Which effect describes why behaviors reinforced on a partial schedule resist extinction longer than those on a continuous schedule?
Intermittent reinforcement principle
Schedule resistance effect
Partial reinforcement extinction effect
Dilution extinction effect
The partial reinforcement extinction effect (PREE) refers to the phenomenon where behaviors learned under intermittent reinforcement are more resistant to extinction than behaviors learned under continuous reinforcement. It challenges early conditioning theories that expected continuous schedules to produce stronger learning. PREE is a key finding in operant conditioning research.
According to the Premack principle, a high-probability behavior can reinforce a low-probability behavior. Which example best illustrates this?
A child can play video games after finishing homework
A dog salivates when it sees food
A worker receives a break every hour regardless of productivity
A rat receives food when it presses a lever rarely
The Premack principle states that an activity with higher probability (playing video games) can serve as a reinforcer for an activity with lower probability (doing homework). This principle shows how preferred behaviors can increase the occurrence of less preferred ones. It is widely used in educational and behavioral therapy settings.
What is spontaneous recovery in classical conditioning?
Increase in response strength during reinforcement
Occurrence of a new response due to a novel stimulus
Decrease in response over continuous trials
Reappearance of an extinguished response after a rest period
Spontaneous recovery is the return of a previously extinguished conditioned response after a period without exposure to the conditioned stimulus. It suggests that extinction suppresses rather than erases the original learning. The strength of the response is usually weaker than before extinction.
What is the discriminative stimulus in operant conditioning?
A stimulus that has been paired with an unconditioned stimulus
Unconditioned stimulus that elicits a natural response
A neutral stimulus before conditioning
Stimulus that signals the availability of reinforcement for a particular response
A discriminative stimulus (Sd) indicates that a specific response will be reinforced if performed in its presence. It sets the occasion for operant behaviors by signaling when consequences are available. Discriminative stimuli help organisms adapt behavior to changing environments.
Which concept explains the biological limitations on learning, such as why animals more readily develop a taste aversion than other associations?
Law of effect
Drive reduction theory
Biological constraints
Equipotentiality principle
Biological constraints refer to inherent biological factors that limit or bias the types of associations an organism can readily learn. For example, taste aversion develops quickly because it has high survival value, whereas other associations are harder to form. This concept demonstrates that learning mechanisms are not entirely general-purpose.
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Study Outcomes

  1. Understand core behavioural learning principles -

    Describe the foundational concepts of classical and operant conditioning that drive behaviourism and effective learning strategies.

  2. Differentiate classical vs operant conditioning -

    Distinguish between Pavlov's stimulus-response associations and Skinner's reinforcement models, reinforcing insights from the classical conditioning quiz.

  3. Analyze behaviorism questions -

    Interpret quiz feedback to pinpoint your strengths and knowledge gaps in key behaviourist constructs and terminology.

  4. Apply behaviourist techniques -

    Develop simple reinforcement and punishment strategies based on quiz scenarios to optimize real-world learning outcomes.

  5. Evaluate real-world learning scenarios -

    Critically assess everyday situations through a behaviourist lens and propose evidence-based interventions to enhance learner engagement.

Cheat Sheet

  1. Classical Conditioning -

    Understand Pavlov's classical conditioning formula: US + NS → UR; CS → CR. In this behaviorism quiz context, the unconditioned stimulus (US) like food naturally triggers salivation (UR), while a neutral stimulus (NS) such as a bell becomes a conditioned stimulus (CS) that evokes the conditioned response (CR). Mnemonic: "US before CS, learned response success!"

  2. Operant Conditioning -

    Review B.F. Skinner's model of reinforcement and punishment crucial for behaviorism questions: R → S+ (positive reinforcement), R → S− (negative reinforcement), P+ (positive punishment), P− (negative punishment). For example, a Skinner box rat learns to press a lever to receive food (R → S+). Remember "R's raise response, P's put an end!"

  3. Schedules of Reinforcement -

    Differentiate fixed-ratio, variable-ratio, fixed-interval, and variable-interval schedules in the learning theories quiz. Slot machines use a variable-ratio schedule for high response rates, while checking the mailbox follows a fixed-interval pattern. Use the acronym "FR, VR, FI, VI" to recall Frequency (ratio) vs. Interval timing.

  4. Extinction, Generalisation & Discrimination -

    Know how conditioned responses extinguish when the CS no longer predicts the US, such as a bell ringing without food leading to lost salivation. Generalisation (responding to similar stimuli) versus discrimination (differentiating between stimuli) is key in a classical conditioning quiz - think Little Albert's fear of white rabbits vs. furry animals. This trio explains why we sometimes over- or under-respond to environmental cues.

  5. Shaping & Chaining -

    Master how complex behaviors evolve via successive approximations (shaping) and how sequences of behaviors form smooth routines (chaining). In behaviorism quizzes, shaping a dog to fetch starts with rewarding any movement toward the ball, then only closer approaches. Chain each rewarded step using the acronym "S-S" (Step by Step) for systematic skill-building.

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