WGU D564 Theories of Personality Exam
Practice Questions and Answers 2025/2026
primary drives - CORRECT ANSWER-in learning theories, a drive that is innate to an organism, such as
the hunger drive.
,secondary drives - CORRECT ANSWER-in learning theories, a drive that is learned through its
association with primary drives, and includes drives for love, prestige, money, power, and the avoidance
of fear and of humiliation.
frustration-aggression hypothesis - CORRECT ANSWER-in Dollard and Miller's social learning theory,
the hypothesis that frustration automatically creates an impulse toward aggression.
approach-avoidance conflict - CORRECT ANSWER-in Dollard and Miller's social learning theory, the
psychological conflict induced by a stimulus that is at once attractive and aversive (e.g., sky-diving).
shaping - CORRECT ANSWER-the idea similar to that of a sculptor that shapes a piece of clay into a
statue by gradually shaving here and there until a square block comes to resemble a person or an
animal.
punishment - CORRECT ANSWER-an aversive consequence that follows an act in order to stop the act
and prevent its repetition.
five principles of how to punish - CORRECT ANSWER-1. availability of alternatives (e.g., Halloween
party so kids avoid pranks) 2. behavioral and situational specificity 3. timing and consistency (e.g., hitting
dog for making mess hours earlier) 4. conditioning secondary punishing stimuli (e.g., counting to 3) 5.
avoiding mixed messages (e.g., cuddling with child after punishing)
dangers of punishment - CORRECT ANSWER-1. punishment arouses emotion 2. it is difficult to be
consistent 3. it is difficult to gauge the severity of punishment 4. punishment teaches misuse of power 5.
punishment motivates concealment
habit hierarchy - CORRECT ANSWER-in Dollard and Miller's social learning theory, all of the behaviors
an individual might do, ranked in order from most to least probable.
drive - CORRECT ANSWER-in learning theories, a state of psychological tension, the reduction of which
feels good.
, five key assumptions of the approach-avoidance conflict - CORRECT ANSWER-1. an increase in drive
strength will increase the tendency to approach or avoid a goal. 2. whenever there are two competing
responses, the stronger one (i.e., the one with greater drive strength behind it) will win out. 3. the
tendency to approach a positive goal increases the closer one gets to the goal. 4. the tendency to avoid
a negative goal also increases the closer one gets to that goal 5. most important, tendency 4 is stronger
than tendency 3.
expectancy value theory - CORRECT ANSWER-Rotter's theory of how the value and perceived
attainability of a goal combine to affect the probability of a goal-seeking behavior.
expectancy - CORRECT ANSWER-in Rotter's social learning theory, the degree to which an individual
believes a behavior will probably attain its goal.
efficacy expectations - CORRECT ANSWER-in Bandura's social learning theory, one's belief that one can
perform a given goal-directed behavior.
learning - CORRECT ANSWER-in behaviorism, a change in behavior as a result of experience.
behaviorism - CORRECT ANSWER-the theoretical view of personality that focuses on overt behavior
and the ways in which it can be affected by rewards and punishments in the environment.
functional analysis - CORRECT ANSWER-in behaviorism, a description of how a behavior is a function of
the environment of the person or animal that performs it.
empiricism - CORRECT ANSWER-the idea that everything a person knows comes from experience.
tabula rasa - CORRECT ANSWER-Latin for 'blank slate,' term used by 19th century philosopher John
Locke used to describe the mind of a newborn baby ready to be written on by experience.
associationism - CORRECT ANSWER-the idea that all complex ideas are combinations of two or more
simple ideas.
Practice Questions and Answers 2025/2026
primary drives - CORRECT ANSWER-in learning theories, a drive that is innate to an organism, such as
the hunger drive.
,secondary drives - CORRECT ANSWER-in learning theories, a drive that is learned through its
association with primary drives, and includes drives for love, prestige, money, power, and the avoidance
of fear and of humiliation.
frustration-aggression hypothesis - CORRECT ANSWER-in Dollard and Miller's social learning theory,
the hypothesis that frustration automatically creates an impulse toward aggression.
approach-avoidance conflict - CORRECT ANSWER-in Dollard and Miller's social learning theory, the
psychological conflict induced by a stimulus that is at once attractive and aversive (e.g., sky-diving).
shaping - CORRECT ANSWER-the idea similar to that of a sculptor that shapes a piece of clay into a
statue by gradually shaving here and there until a square block comes to resemble a person or an
animal.
punishment - CORRECT ANSWER-an aversive consequence that follows an act in order to stop the act
and prevent its repetition.
five principles of how to punish - CORRECT ANSWER-1. availability of alternatives (e.g., Halloween
party so kids avoid pranks) 2. behavioral and situational specificity 3. timing and consistency (e.g., hitting
dog for making mess hours earlier) 4. conditioning secondary punishing stimuli (e.g., counting to 3) 5.
avoiding mixed messages (e.g., cuddling with child after punishing)
dangers of punishment - CORRECT ANSWER-1. punishment arouses emotion 2. it is difficult to be
consistent 3. it is difficult to gauge the severity of punishment 4. punishment teaches misuse of power 5.
punishment motivates concealment
habit hierarchy - CORRECT ANSWER-in Dollard and Miller's social learning theory, all of the behaviors
an individual might do, ranked in order from most to least probable.
drive - CORRECT ANSWER-in learning theories, a state of psychological tension, the reduction of which
feels good.
, five key assumptions of the approach-avoidance conflict - CORRECT ANSWER-1. an increase in drive
strength will increase the tendency to approach or avoid a goal. 2. whenever there are two competing
responses, the stronger one (i.e., the one with greater drive strength behind it) will win out. 3. the
tendency to approach a positive goal increases the closer one gets to the goal. 4. the tendency to avoid
a negative goal also increases the closer one gets to that goal 5. most important, tendency 4 is stronger
than tendency 3.
expectancy value theory - CORRECT ANSWER-Rotter's theory of how the value and perceived
attainability of a goal combine to affect the probability of a goal-seeking behavior.
expectancy - CORRECT ANSWER-in Rotter's social learning theory, the degree to which an individual
believes a behavior will probably attain its goal.
efficacy expectations - CORRECT ANSWER-in Bandura's social learning theory, one's belief that one can
perform a given goal-directed behavior.
learning - CORRECT ANSWER-in behaviorism, a change in behavior as a result of experience.
behaviorism - CORRECT ANSWER-the theoretical view of personality that focuses on overt behavior
and the ways in which it can be affected by rewards and punishments in the environment.
functional analysis - CORRECT ANSWER-in behaviorism, a description of how a behavior is a function of
the environment of the person or animal that performs it.
empiricism - CORRECT ANSWER-the idea that everything a person knows comes from experience.
tabula rasa - CORRECT ANSWER-Latin for 'blank slate,' term used by 19th century philosopher John
Locke used to describe the mind of a newborn baby ready to be written on by experience.
associationism - CORRECT ANSWER-the idea that all complex ideas are combinations of two or more
simple ideas.
