GRE Psychology Subject Test
Questions and Answers 100% Pass
Learning - ✔✔The relatively permanent or stable change in behavior as the result of
experience
E.L. Thorndike - ✔✔This man suggested the law of effect, precursor of operant
conditioning.
Law of Effect - ✔✔E.L. Thorndike's idea that postulated a cause-and-effect chain of
behavior revolving around reinforcement. Any behavior that is followed by reward is
likely to be repeated. One followed by unpleasant consequences is likely to be stopped.
Kurt Lewin - ✔✔This man developed the theory of association, forerunner of
behaviorism.
Theory of Association - ✔✔Organisms associate certain behaviors with certain rewards
and certain cues with certain situations. Precursor to Pavlov's Classical Conditioning.
Ivan Pavlov - ✔✔He is famous for work on digestion. Developed Classical
Conditioning.
Brittie Donald, All Rights Reserved © 2025 1
,Classical/ Pavlovian Conditioning - ✔✔A concept that involves teaching an organism
to respond to a neutral stimulus by pairing the neutral stimulus with a not-so-neutral
stimulus.
John B. Watson - ✔✔He founded the school of behaviorism. He believed that
everything can be explained by stimulus-response chains and that conditioning was the
key factor in developing these chains. ONLY OBJECTIVE and OBSERVABLE elements
were of importance to organisms and psychology.
B.F. Skinner - ✔✔This man developed operant conditioning.
Operant Conditioning/ Instrumental Conditioning - ✔✔This concept of behavior being
influenced primarily by reinforcement. The Skinner Box was used to develop this idea:
to condition rats to perform an unnatural behavior--pressing the lever in the skinner
box.
Neutral Stimulus - ✔✔A stimulus that does not produce a specific response on its own.
Unconditioned Stimulus - ✔✔Without conditioning, this stimulus elicits a response.
Conditioned Stimulus - ✔✔The neutral stimulus once it has been paired with the UCS.
Unconditioned Response - ✔✔The naturally occurring response to the UCS.
Conditioned Response - ✔✔The response that the CS elicits after conditioning. Often
times, it is the same as the UCR.
Brittie Donald, All Rights Reserved © 2025 2
,Simultaneous Conditioning - ✔✔A conditioning technique where the UCS and the CS
are presented at the same time.
Higher Order/ Second-Oder Conditioning - ✔✔A conditioning technique in which a
previous CS now acts as a UCS.
Forward Conditioning - ✔✔A conditioning technique in which the CS is presented
before the UCS
Delayed Conditioning - ✔✔The presentation of the CS begins before that of the UCs
and lasts until the UCS is presented.
Trace Conditioning - ✔✔The CS stimulus is presented and terminated before the UCS is
presented.
Backward Conditioning - ✔✔A conditioning technique in which the CS is presented
after the UCS is presented. It proves to be ineffective. Produces an inhibitory
conditioning effect.
Shaping/ Differential Reinforcement of Successive Approximations - ✔✔A process
where the experimenter gradually molds an organism by reinforcing any responses
similar to the desired response.
Primary Reinforcement - ✔✔Something that is reinforcing on its own without the
requirement of learning. Ex. Water and Food.
Brittie Donald, All Rights Reserved © 2025 3
, Secondary Reinforcement - ✔✔A learned reinforcer, often learned through society. Ex.
Money
Positive Reinforcement - ✔✔A type of reward or positive event acting as a stimulus that
increases the likelihood of a particular response.
Negative Reinforcement - ✔✔Reinforcement through the removal of a negative event.
Continuous Reinforcement Schedule - ✔✔A schedule where every correct response is
met with some form of reinforcement. This type of reinforcement strategy facilitates the
quickest learning but most fragile learning (as soon as the rewards stop coming, the
animal stops performing).
Partial Reinforcement Schedule - ✔✔In this schedule, not all correct responses are met
with reinforcement. This type of reinforcement strategy may require a longer learning
time, but once learned, these behaviors are more resistant to extinction. There are four
types of this schedule.
Fixed Ratio Schedule - ✔✔A partial reinforcement schedule where a reinforcement is
delivered after a consistent number of responses. The power of drug addiction has been
proven using this schedule. The behavior is vulnerable to extinction.
Variable Ratio Schedule - ✔✔In this partial reinforcement schedule, reinforcements are
delivered after different numbers of correct responses. The ratio cannot be predicted.
Brittie Donald, All Rights Reserved © 2025 4
Questions and Answers 100% Pass
Learning - ✔✔The relatively permanent or stable change in behavior as the result of
experience
E.L. Thorndike - ✔✔This man suggested the law of effect, precursor of operant
conditioning.
Law of Effect - ✔✔E.L. Thorndike's idea that postulated a cause-and-effect chain of
behavior revolving around reinforcement. Any behavior that is followed by reward is
likely to be repeated. One followed by unpleasant consequences is likely to be stopped.
Kurt Lewin - ✔✔This man developed the theory of association, forerunner of
behaviorism.
Theory of Association - ✔✔Organisms associate certain behaviors with certain rewards
and certain cues with certain situations. Precursor to Pavlov's Classical Conditioning.
Ivan Pavlov - ✔✔He is famous for work on digestion. Developed Classical
Conditioning.
Brittie Donald, All Rights Reserved © 2025 1
,Classical/ Pavlovian Conditioning - ✔✔A concept that involves teaching an organism
to respond to a neutral stimulus by pairing the neutral stimulus with a not-so-neutral
stimulus.
John B. Watson - ✔✔He founded the school of behaviorism. He believed that
everything can be explained by stimulus-response chains and that conditioning was the
key factor in developing these chains. ONLY OBJECTIVE and OBSERVABLE elements
were of importance to organisms and psychology.
B.F. Skinner - ✔✔This man developed operant conditioning.
Operant Conditioning/ Instrumental Conditioning - ✔✔This concept of behavior being
influenced primarily by reinforcement. The Skinner Box was used to develop this idea:
to condition rats to perform an unnatural behavior--pressing the lever in the skinner
box.
Neutral Stimulus - ✔✔A stimulus that does not produce a specific response on its own.
Unconditioned Stimulus - ✔✔Without conditioning, this stimulus elicits a response.
Conditioned Stimulus - ✔✔The neutral stimulus once it has been paired with the UCS.
Unconditioned Response - ✔✔The naturally occurring response to the UCS.
Conditioned Response - ✔✔The response that the CS elicits after conditioning. Often
times, it is the same as the UCR.
Brittie Donald, All Rights Reserved © 2025 2
,Simultaneous Conditioning - ✔✔A conditioning technique where the UCS and the CS
are presented at the same time.
Higher Order/ Second-Oder Conditioning - ✔✔A conditioning technique in which a
previous CS now acts as a UCS.
Forward Conditioning - ✔✔A conditioning technique in which the CS is presented
before the UCS
Delayed Conditioning - ✔✔The presentation of the CS begins before that of the UCs
and lasts until the UCS is presented.
Trace Conditioning - ✔✔The CS stimulus is presented and terminated before the UCS is
presented.
Backward Conditioning - ✔✔A conditioning technique in which the CS is presented
after the UCS is presented. It proves to be ineffective. Produces an inhibitory
conditioning effect.
Shaping/ Differential Reinforcement of Successive Approximations - ✔✔A process
where the experimenter gradually molds an organism by reinforcing any responses
similar to the desired response.
Primary Reinforcement - ✔✔Something that is reinforcing on its own without the
requirement of learning. Ex. Water and Food.
Brittie Donald, All Rights Reserved © 2025 3
, Secondary Reinforcement - ✔✔A learned reinforcer, often learned through society. Ex.
Money
Positive Reinforcement - ✔✔A type of reward or positive event acting as a stimulus that
increases the likelihood of a particular response.
Negative Reinforcement - ✔✔Reinforcement through the removal of a negative event.
Continuous Reinforcement Schedule - ✔✔A schedule where every correct response is
met with some form of reinforcement. This type of reinforcement strategy facilitates the
quickest learning but most fragile learning (as soon as the rewards stop coming, the
animal stops performing).
Partial Reinforcement Schedule - ✔✔In this schedule, not all correct responses are met
with reinforcement. This type of reinforcement strategy may require a longer learning
time, but once learned, these behaviors are more resistant to extinction. There are four
types of this schedule.
Fixed Ratio Schedule - ✔✔A partial reinforcement schedule where a reinforcement is
delivered after a consistent number of responses. The power of drug addiction has been
proven using this schedule. The behavior is vulnerable to extinction.
Variable Ratio Schedule - ✔✔In this partial reinforcement schedule, reinforcements are
delivered after different numbers of correct responses. The ratio cannot be predicted.
Brittie Donald, All Rights Reserved © 2025 4
