Read the scenario below and answer the question that follows.

Question

Glen is attempting to use operant conditioning to train his dog, Thor, to fetch a ball upon command. Once, when Thor goes to fetch the ball, he instead brings Glen a pinecone.

Which operant conditioning process is Thor displaying?

stimulus discrimination
stimulus specificity
stimulus generalization
stimulus operance

Answer 1

Thor is displaying stimulus generalization. This occurs when an animal (or person) responds to a stimulus in a similar way to a different, related stimulus. In this case, Thor has learned to fetch, but he generalized this behavior to include fetching a pinecone when he was expected to fetch a ball.