SPCE 609 COMPREHENSIVE FINAL EXAM QUESTIONS WITH CORRECT ANSWERS LATEST UPDATE
2026
A ______________ is behavior that is elicited by a biologically relevant stimulus while a/an
_______________ is behavior controlled by its consequences. - Answers Reflex; operant
According to Baer, Wolf, and Risley (1968), what is the difference between basic and applied behavior
analysis? - Answers Basic research is likely to look at any behavior and variable, and applied research
looks at variables that could improve behavior
Learning refers to: - Answers The acquisition of behavior
Correct! All of these
The maintenance of behavior
The change in behavior as a result of events
The behavior of an organism: - Answers Is everything an organism does, including thinking and feeling
Analysis of behavior becomes experimental when it involves: - Answers The manipulation of a
condition to see how behavior is affected
Which of the following statements best describes the goals of behavior analysis? - Answers Describe
the principles and rules of behavior, apply them across species, and develop technologies for behavior
change
Applied behavior analysis is: - Answers The use of behavior principles to solve practical problems
In operant conditioning, a stimulus that reliably precedes an operant response (SD) is said to: -
Answers Set the occasion for the response
Which of the following is not an example of operant conditioning: - Answers Flinching slightly when
the nurse tells you that they are about to give you a shot
Behavior analysts recognize the importance of _____________________, but tend to focus more on
____________________. - Answers Biology; environment
Skinner's model of selection by consequences assumes that behavior: - Answers Naturally varies in
form and frequency
Skinner argued that internal events such as feelings, thoughts, and intentions: - Answers Are
behaviors that need to be explained
The idea that successful behaviors will increase in likelihood while unsuccessful behaviors will
decrease in likelihood was first described in: - Answers Thorndike's law of effect
According to a behavior analyst, thinking is: - Answers Private behavior that can be explained using
the same principles as public behavior
The term _____________refers to behavior that is elicited and the term ____________ refers to
behavior that is emitted: - Answers Respondent; operant
Any stimulus (or event) that follows a response and increases its frequency is said to have: - Answers
A reinforcement function
In functional analysis, positive and negative reinforcers are examples of: - Answers Stimulus classes
In terms of behavior-environmental relations, establishing operations: (choose all that apply) -
Answers Are used to construct the foundations of behavior
Correct! Increase the momentary effectiveness of reinforcement
Correct Answer Increase momentarily responses that have produced reinforcement
Produce serotonin in the brain, initiating the behavioral response
The variable manipulated by the experimenter is the ______________ and the measured effect is the
______________. - Answers Independent; dependent
In terms of the reversal design and behavioral experiments: - Answers The design is used in single-
subject experiments
The A-phase is called the baseline
The B-phase is the experimental manipulation
, Correct! All of these
Functional analysis involves classifying behavior according to ____________, and analyzing the
environment in terms of _________. - Answers Response functions; stimulus functions
A(n) ____________ refers to all of the forms of a behavior that have a similar function. - Answers
Response class
When stimuli vary physically but have a common effect on behavior, they are part of the same
___________. - Answers Stimulus class
Negative reinforcers: - Answers Increase behavior when removed
Which of the following would be an example of an abolishing operation (AO) for eating? - Answers
Smelling rancid food
A researcher examined the possibility that additional recess time would increase the number of math
facts learned over a one-month period. The procedure tested this hypothesis using a first-grade
classroom with extended recess time a second-grade classroom with regular recess time. In this study,
the amount of recess time would be considered: - Answers The independent variable
Which of the following is not one of the conditions tested by Iwata and associates (1994) in their
functional analysis of the cause of self-injurious behavior (SIB) in children with developmental
disabilities? - Answers Peer interaction
Max conducted a study in which he moved the recycling bin in the hallway close to the classroom
door for a week and then a week with the recycling bin about 10 feet from the door of the classroom.
The trash bin remained constant at about 5 feet from the classroom door. At the end of each day,
Max measured the amount of recycling in the bin. What is the dependent variable for this study? -
Answers The amount of trash in the recycling bin
Which of the following would likely be the best research question to address using an A-B-A-B reversal
design? - Answers The effect of extra credit on time spent studying for an exam
When evaluating the immediacy of change in order to determine experimental control, behavioral
analysts recommend using the last ____________ sessions of baseline and the first _____________
sessions of the treatment phase. - Answers 3; 3
What defines a contingency of reinforcement? - Answers Discriminative stimulus
Correct! All of these
Operant
Reinforcement
Which of the following is NOT one of the four basic contingencies? - Answers Positive extinction
The Premack principle states that a higher-frequency behavior will: - Answers Function as
reinforcement for a lower-frequency behavior
Shaping of behavior involves: - Answers Reinforcing closer and closer approximations to the final
performance
Consider the following example: "Joanne is very fair skinned. In order to not get sunburned, she puts
on sunscreen before she goes to the beach." This is an example of _______________. - Answers
Negative reinforcement
Consider the following example: "Bob is running late for work so he drives faster than usual. As a
result of his increased speed, Bob is pulled over by a police officer and receives a ticket. The next time
Bob is running late for work he drives the correct speed." This is an example of ____________. -
Answers Positive punishment
Consider the following example: "Kendra stays out two hours past curfew. As a result of her tardiness,
her parents take away her privileges to go out for two weeks. The next time Kendra goes out, she
makes sure to come home on time." This is an example of __________. - Answers Negative
punishment
In positive reinforcement, a stimulus is __________ and as a result behavior __________. - Answers
Added; increases
One of the main criticisms of behavioral rewards and reinforcement is the idea that __________. -
Answers External rewards will lead to lower intrinsic motivation
Skinner proposed that the basic datum (measure) for operant analysis should be: - Answers Rate
2026
A ______________ is behavior that is elicited by a biologically relevant stimulus while a/an
_______________ is behavior controlled by its consequences. - Answers Reflex; operant
According to Baer, Wolf, and Risley (1968), what is the difference between basic and applied behavior
analysis? - Answers Basic research is likely to look at any behavior and variable, and applied research
looks at variables that could improve behavior
Learning refers to: - Answers The acquisition of behavior
Correct! All of these
The maintenance of behavior
The change in behavior as a result of events
The behavior of an organism: - Answers Is everything an organism does, including thinking and feeling
Analysis of behavior becomes experimental when it involves: - Answers The manipulation of a
condition to see how behavior is affected
Which of the following statements best describes the goals of behavior analysis? - Answers Describe
the principles and rules of behavior, apply them across species, and develop technologies for behavior
change
Applied behavior analysis is: - Answers The use of behavior principles to solve practical problems
In operant conditioning, a stimulus that reliably precedes an operant response (SD) is said to: -
Answers Set the occasion for the response
Which of the following is not an example of operant conditioning: - Answers Flinching slightly when
the nurse tells you that they are about to give you a shot
Behavior analysts recognize the importance of _____________________, but tend to focus more on
____________________. - Answers Biology; environment
Skinner's model of selection by consequences assumes that behavior: - Answers Naturally varies in
form and frequency
Skinner argued that internal events such as feelings, thoughts, and intentions: - Answers Are
behaviors that need to be explained
The idea that successful behaviors will increase in likelihood while unsuccessful behaviors will
decrease in likelihood was first described in: - Answers Thorndike's law of effect
According to a behavior analyst, thinking is: - Answers Private behavior that can be explained using
the same principles as public behavior
The term _____________refers to behavior that is elicited and the term ____________ refers to
behavior that is emitted: - Answers Respondent; operant
Any stimulus (or event) that follows a response and increases its frequency is said to have: - Answers
A reinforcement function
In functional analysis, positive and negative reinforcers are examples of: - Answers Stimulus classes
In terms of behavior-environmental relations, establishing operations: (choose all that apply) -
Answers Are used to construct the foundations of behavior
Correct! Increase the momentary effectiveness of reinforcement
Correct Answer Increase momentarily responses that have produced reinforcement
Produce serotonin in the brain, initiating the behavioral response
The variable manipulated by the experimenter is the ______________ and the measured effect is the
______________. - Answers Independent; dependent
In terms of the reversal design and behavioral experiments: - Answers The design is used in single-
subject experiments
The A-phase is called the baseline
The B-phase is the experimental manipulation
, Correct! All of these
Functional analysis involves classifying behavior according to ____________, and analyzing the
environment in terms of _________. - Answers Response functions; stimulus functions
A(n) ____________ refers to all of the forms of a behavior that have a similar function. - Answers
Response class
When stimuli vary physically but have a common effect on behavior, they are part of the same
___________. - Answers Stimulus class
Negative reinforcers: - Answers Increase behavior when removed
Which of the following would be an example of an abolishing operation (AO) for eating? - Answers
Smelling rancid food
A researcher examined the possibility that additional recess time would increase the number of math
facts learned over a one-month period. The procedure tested this hypothesis using a first-grade
classroom with extended recess time a second-grade classroom with regular recess time. In this study,
the amount of recess time would be considered: - Answers The independent variable
Which of the following is not one of the conditions tested by Iwata and associates (1994) in their
functional analysis of the cause of self-injurious behavior (SIB) in children with developmental
disabilities? - Answers Peer interaction
Max conducted a study in which he moved the recycling bin in the hallway close to the classroom
door for a week and then a week with the recycling bin about 10 feet from the door of the classroom.
The trash bin remained constant at about 5 feet from the classroom door. At the end of each day,
Max measured the amount of recycling in the bin. What is the dependent variable for this study? -
Answers The amount of trash in the recycling bin
Which of the following would likely be the best research question to address using an A-B-A-B reversal
design? - Answers The effect of extra credit on time spent studying for an exam
When evaluating the immediacy of change in order to determine experimental control, behavioral
analysts recommend using the last ____________ sessions of baseline and the first _____________
sessions of the treatment phase. - Answers 3; 3
What defines a contingency of reinforcement? - Answers Discriminative stimulus
Correct! All of these
Operant
Reinforcement
Which of the following is NOT one of the four basic contingencies? - Answers Positive extinction
The Premack principle states that a higher-frequency behavior will: - Answers Function as
reinforcement for a lower-frequency behavior
Shaping of behavior involves: - Answers Reinforcing closer and closer approximations to the final
performance
Consider the following example: "Joanne is very fair skinned. In order to not get sunburned, she puts
on sunscreen before she goes to the beach." This is an example of _______________. - Answers
Negative reinforcement
Consider the following example: "Bob is running late for work so he drives faster than usual. As a
result of his increased speed, Bob is pulled over by a police officer and receives a ticket. The next time
Bob is running late for work he drives the correct speed." This is an example of ____________. -
Answers Positive punishment
Consider the following example: "Kendra stays out two hours past curfew. As a result of her tardiness,
her parents take away her privileges to go out for two weeks. The next time Kendra goes out, she
makes sure to come home on time." This is an example of __________. - Answers Negative
punishment
In positive reinforcement, a stimulus is __________ and as a result behavior __________. - Answers
Added; increases
One of the main criticisms of behavioral rewards and reinforcement is the idea that __________. -
Answers External rewards will lead to lower intrinsic motivation
Skinner proposed that the basic datum (measure) for operant analysis should be: - Answers Rate
