Question

Four-year-old Cameron notices that every time his baby brother cries, his mother picks the baby up and holds him. Cameron quickly learns that if he also cries he will get his mother to pay attention to him. Cameron's behavior resembles the choices made in the Bobo doll experiments, in that his brother's behavior is _____, and therefore Cameron is more likely to _____ it.
A. reinforced; imitate

B. Imitative; reinforce

C. Babyish; reject

D. punished; imitate

Answer 1

Answer:

The answer is A. reinforced; imitate.

Explanation:

The branch of behavioral studies known as operant conditioning states that a conduct is more likely to be repeated if it is reinforced, positively or negatively. In this case, the reinforcement is positive (a reward: consolation).

Negative reinforcement is also possible: it occurs when an unpleasant stimulus is removed after a behaviour is presented. For example, a parent will stop nagging if his/her child cleans up the room.