ABA Concepts & Principles of Behavior Analysis 2 — Questions and Answers
Question 1: Which schedule of reinforcement produces the highest and most consistent rate of responding?
- Fixed ratio
- Variable ratio (Correct answer)
- Fixed interval
- Variable interval
Correct answer: Variable ratio
Variable ratio schedules produce the highest, most persistent rates of responding because reinforcement is unpredictable, preventing extinction.
Question 2: A child cries every time a parent leaves the room, and crying increases over time. This best illustrates:
- Negative punishment
- Positive reinforcement (Correct answer)
- Negative reinforcement
- Extinction
Correct answer: Positive reinforcement
If the behavior (crying) increases because it produces a consequence (parent returns/attends), that consequence is a positive reinforcer.
Question 3: What term describes the degree to which behaviors are controlled by stimuli that were present during previous reinforcement?
- Stimulus discrimination
- Stimulus generalization
- Stimulus control (Correct answer)
- Conditioned stimulus
Correct answer: Stimulus control
Stimulus control exists when a specific antecedent stimulus reliably evokes a behavior because that behavior was previously reinforced in its presence.
Question 4: Deprivation of a reinforcer is classified as which type of motivating operation?
- Conditioned establishing operation
- Unconditioned abolishing operation
- Unconditioned establishing operation (Correct answer)
- Conditioned abolishing operation
Correct answer: Unconditioned establishing operation
Deprivation is an unconditioned establishing operation (UEO) because it is biologically based and increases the value of the deprived stimulus without prior learning.
Question 5: An individual continues to respond during extinction because intermittent reinforcement was used previously. This phenomenon is called:
- Behavioral momentum
- Spontaneous recovery
- Extinction burst
- Resistance to extinction (Correct answer)
Correct answer: Resistance to extinction
Resistance to extinction is the persistence of responding during extinction, which is greater when the behavior was previously maintained on intermittent reinforcement.
Question 6: Which concept explains why a neutral stimulus paired repeatedly with an unconditioned stimulus eventually elicits the same response as the unconditioned stimulus?
- Operant conditioning
- Respondent conditioning (Correct answer)
- Stimulus delta
- Differential reinforcement
Correct answer: Respondent conditioning
Respondent (Pavlovian) conditioning pairs a neutral stimulus with an unconditioned stimulus until the neutral stimulus becomes a conditioned stimulus eliciting the conditioned response.
Question 7: A teacher provides praise immediately after a student raises their hand, and hand-raising increases. After a week, the teacher delays praise by 30 seconds and hand-raising decreases. This illustrates the importance of:
- Contiguity (Correct answer)
- Contingency
- Magnitude
- Generalization
Correct answer: Contiguity
Contiguity refers to the temporal closeness between a behavior and its consequence; delays weaken the reinforcing effect of consequences.
ABA Concepts & Principles of Behavior Analysis 2
Which schedule of reinforcement produces the highest and most consistent rate of responding?