PSY 1101 CHAPTER 7 EXAM QUESTIONS WITH VERIFIED ANSWERS LATEST UPDATE 2026/2027
Learning - Answers A relatively permanent change in behavior or mental processes that occurs from our
interactions with the environment
Reflex - Answers A involuntary response to a stimulus. A reflex does not count as learning, we were born
with reflexes.
Innate - Answers A term for something you are born to do
Reflex Relationship - Answers A type of stimulus-response relationship which is either learned or innate.
This relationship indicates behaviour comes automatically in response to a stimulus.They are triggered
by environmental stimuli
Pavlovian Or classical conditioning - Answers A previously neutral stimulus elicits a response because it
signals another stimulus. This occurs when we associate two events, a signal, and what's signalled.
Pavlovian conditioning takes advantage of reflexes and involves associating a previously neutral stimulus
with an already-meaningful stimulus
A conditional response occurs in preparation for - Answers The unconditional response
Stimulus in classical conditioning - Answers An event in the situation that tells us about our environment
and what to do.
An unconditional stimulus - Answers A type of stimulus in pavlovian conditioning in which a biologically
important event requires no conditioning to affect behaviour. This is a reflex
An unconditional response - Answers A response in pavlovian conditioning in which a biologically
important response occurs because of an unconditional stimulus. This is a reflex
Stimulus - Answers Informative events or objects that can be measure
A conditional stimulus - Answers An event in pavlovian conditioning that requires learning to be
meaningful and is only meaningful due to its connection to the unconditional stimulus. This is a
conditional reflex
Neutral Stimulus - Answers A reflex that does not naturally elicit a response In Pavlovian conditioning,
we aim to change this neural stimulus.
Pavlov's neural stimulus to conditional stimulus - Answers The initial neutral stimulus was the laboratory
coat. Over time this neutral stimulus is repeatedly presented just before an unconditional stimulus
(meat powder). In doing so the meat powder becomes a conditional stimulus.
Conditional response - Answers A learned response that occurs to the conditioned stimulus in
preparation for the unconditioned stimulus. This is a reflex.
In classical conditioning how do we know if learning has occurred? - Answers If a conditional stimulus
forces a conditional response, learning has occurred.
, Operant/instrumental conditioning - Answers How we learn what happens when we do something. The
likelihood of a response happening depends on its consequences. Based on E.L Thorndike's law of effect
and B.F skinners operant processes and radical behaviorism.
Antecedents - Answers Anything in the physical environment that we can detect and that tells us
something about the consequences of our actions. Happens before behavior
Behaviours - Answers Any observable action (words, gestures, responses, and more) that can be
repeatedly measured and are affected by a situation to produce or remove some outcome, can also be
on a biological and cellular level.
Consequences - Answers The outcome of behaviour that affects what we'll do in the future. These are
stimuli that can increase or decrease the probability of future behavior. Consequences are events that
happen after and due to a response or after behaviour.
Operant processes - Answers Antecedents, behaviours, consequences
What is the most effective operant contingency? - Answers Positive reinforcement
Operational contingencies - Answers B.F skinners names for if then relationships.
Reinforcements - Answers The consequences of a response increase the probability of a behavior. Can
be broken into positive reinforcement (social approval, praise, generally applying positive stimulus to
increase a behavior) or negative reinforcement (escape, avoidance, removing an unpleasant stimulus to
strengthen a behaviour that led to its removal).
Punishments - Answers Decreases the probability of the behaviour. Often used to decrease the
frequency of undesirable behaviour can be broken into positive punishment (Adding an undesirable
consequence to decrease the behaviour) and negative punishments (taking a desirable stimulus away to
weaken the behaviour that led to its removal)
Negative contingencies - Answers Your response takes away a stimulus or event. In negative
reinforcements the removal makes you more likely to repeat the behavior, in negative reinforcements
you will be less likely to repeat this behaviour.
Escape - Answers A negative reinforcement procedure in which something you want to stop is
happening, your response makes it stop, and you become more likely to respond this way in the future.
Begins with an aversive stimulus being present and a response removes or stops the aversive stimulus
Avoidance - Answers A negative reinforcement procedure in which an aversive stimulus is not currently
present but will occur unless you produce a response to cancel the unpleasant event (taking steps to
avoid).
The law of effect - Answers The law of effect refers to the consequences of behaviour. Behaviours that
yielded in satisfying (stamping in) consequences are more likely to recur and behaviours that result in
discomfort (stamping out) are less likely to be repeated
Social or observational conditioning - Answers An observer imitates another person's behaviour
Learning - Answers A relatively permanent change in behavior or mental processes that occurs from our
interactions with the environment
Reflex - Answers A involuntary response to a stimulus. A reflex does not count as learning, we were born
with reflexes.
Innate - Answers A term for something you are born to do
Reflex Relationship - Answers A type of stimulus-response relationship which is either learned or innate.
This relationship indicates behaviour comes automatically in response to a stimulus.They are triggered
by environmental stimuli
Pavlovian Or classical conditioning - Answers A previously neutral stimulus elicits a response because it
signals another stimulus. This occurs when we associate two events, a signal, and what's signalled.
Pavlovian conditioning takes advantage of reflexes and involves associating a previously neutral stimulus
with an already-meaningful stimulus
A conditional response occurs in preparation for - Answers The unconditional response
Stimulus in classical conditioning - Answers An event in the situation that tells us about our environment
and what to do.
An unconditional stimulus - Answers A type of stimulus in pavlovian conditioning in which a biologically
important event requires no conditioning to affect behaviour. This is a reflex
An unconditional response - Answers A response in pavlovian conditioning in which a biologically
important response occurs because of an unconditional stimulus. This is a reflex
Stimulus - Answers Informative events or objects that can be measure
A conditional stimulus - Answers An event in pavlovian conditioning that requires learning to be
meaningful and is only meaningful due to its connection to the unconditional stimulus. This is a
conditional reflex
Neutral Stimulus - Answers A reflex that does not naturally elicit a response In Pavlovian conditioning,
we aim to change this neural stimulus.
Pavlov's neural stimulus to conditional stimulus - Answers The initial neutral stimulus was the laboratory
coat. Over time this neutral stimulus is repeatedly presented just before an unconditional stimulus
(meat powder). In doing so the meat powder becomes a conditional stimulus.
Conditional response - Answers A learned response that occurs to the conditioned stimulus in
preparation for the unconditioned stimulus. This is a reflex.
In classical conditioning how do we know if learning has occurred? - Answers If a conditional stimulus
forces a conditional response, learning has occurred.
, Operant/instrumental conditioning - Answers How we learn what happens when we do something. The
likelihood of a response happening depends on its consequences. Based on E.L Thorndike's law of effect
and B.F skinners operant processes and radical behaviorism.
Antecedents - Answers Anything in the physical environment that we can detect and that tells us
something about the consequences of our actions. Happens before behavior
Behaviours - Answers Any observable action (words, gestures, responses, and more) that can be
repeatedly measured and are affected by a situation to produce or remove some outcome, can also be
on a biological and cellular level.
Consequences - Answers The outcome of behaviour that affects what we'll do in the future. These are
stimuli that can increase or decrease the probability of future behavior. Consequences are events that
happen after and due to a response or after behaviour.
Operant processes - Answers Antecedents, behaviours, consequences
What is the most effective operant contingency? - Answers Positive reinforcement
Operational contingencies - Answers B.F skinners names for if then relationships.
Reinforcements - Answers The consequences of a response increase the probability of a behavior. Can
be broken into positive reinforcement (social approval, praise, generally applying positive stimulus to
increase a behavior) or negative reinforcement (escape, avoidance, removing an unpleasant stimulus to
strengthen a behaviour that led to its removal).
Punishments - Answers Decreases the probability of the behaviour. Often used to decrease the
frequency of undesirable behaviour can be broken into positive punishment (Adding an undesirable
consequence to decrease the behaviour) and negative punishments (taking a desirable stimulus away to
weaken the behaviour that led to its removal)
Negative contingencies - Answers Your response takes away a stimulus or event. In negative
reinforcements the removal makes you more likely to repeat the behavior, in negative reinforcements
you will be less likely to repeat this behaviour.
Escape - Answers A negative reinforcement procedure in which something you want to stop is
happening, your response makes it stop, and you become more likely to respond this way in the future.
Begins with an aversive stimulus being present and a response removes or stops the aversive stimulus
Avoidance - Answers A negative reinforcement procedure in which an aversive stimulus is not currently
present but will occur unless you produce a response to cancel the unpleasant event (taking steps to
avoid).
The law of effect - Answers The law of effect refers to the consequences of behaviour. Behaviours that
yielded in satisfying (stamping in) consequences are more likely to recur and behaviours that result in
discomfort (stamping out) are less likely to be repeated
Social or observational conditioning - Answers An observer imitates another person's behaviour
