AP Psychology : Fundamental Psychological Theories
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Example Question #51 : Fundamental Psychological Theories
Ariana is studying the effect of an intervention that seeks to increase a child's positive behaviors and decrease negative behaviors by providing reinforcement and punishment. What school of psychology does Ariana most likely subscribe to?
Gestalt
Cognitive
Behavioral
Psychoanalytic
Humanistic
Behavioral
Ariana is looking at how an intervention affects children's behaviors by providing reinforcement and punishment. She is therefore using operant conditioning, which is a behavioral approach. Humanism views human nature positively, emphasizes free will, and seeks to increase awareness of one's self-concept. Cognitive psychology looks at thought processes, not necessarily behaviors. Psychoanalysis is a form of treatment that uses free association, catharsis, and dream interpretation to reveal the unconscious. Gestalt psychology stems from philosophy and looks at the human mind as a whole.
Example Question #52 : Fundamental Psychological Theories
A school teacher gives her students tokens that can be exchanged for prizes after a student receives five passing scores on an exam. This is an example of what type of schedule of reinforcement?
Variable ratio
Variable interval
Fixed interval
Negative reinforcement
Fixed ratio
Fixed ratio
The school teacher rewards her students after a set number of behaviors. This is called a fixed ratio schedule of reinforcement. In a variable ratio schedule of reinforcement, a teacher would reward her students after a random number of passing grades. A fixed interval schedule of reinforcement would be based on time elapsed. The teacher might reward her students every fifteen days if they received a passing grade in that time period. In a variable interval schedule, the amount of time elapsed would vary.
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