Question

How to get kids to do chores: The role of conditioning in parenting.

1. Explain how each of the following learning concepts are demonstrated in the "Maya Method". Give concrete examples from the textbook, podcast and article to support your statements.
   1. Shaping
   2. Positive reinforcement
   3. Unconditioned stimuli
   4. Unconditioned response
   5. Conditioned stimuli
   6. Conditioned response
2. Discuss the potential consequences of using physical punishment to shape children’s behavior.

Citing Sources:   You must use APA style to reference your source(s) at the end of your submission.  

Acceptable Length: 300-500 word initial post; 2-3 sentence responses to at least three classmates

Answer 1

1. Shaping: Shaping is the process of reinforcing successively closer and closer approximations to a desired terminal behavior. For example, a child learns to pull itself up, to stand, to walk and to finally move about through reinforcement of slightly exceptional instances of behaviors.
2. Positive reinforcement : Positive reinforcement means giving something to the subject when they perform the desired action so they associate the action with the reward and do it more often. FOR EXAMPLE: A mother gives her son praise (reinforcing stimulus) for doing homework (behavior).
3. Unconditioned stimuli : In the classical conditioning, the unconditioned stimulus (UCS) is one that unconditionally, naturally, and automatically triggers a response. For example:when you smell one of your favorite foods, you may immediately feel very hungry. In this example, the smell of the food is the unconditioned stimulus.
4. Unconditioned response :In classical conditioning, an unconditioned response is an unlearned response that occurs naturally in reaction to the unconditioned stimulus. For example: in above example, your feeling of being hungry is an unconditioned response.
5. Conditioned stimuli : In classical conditioning, the conditioned stimulus is a previously neutral stimulus that, after becoming associated with the unconditioned stimulus, eventually comes to trigger a conditioned response. For example: In classical conditioning, the conditioned response is the learned response to the previously neutral stimulus. For example, the smell of food is an unconditioned stimulus, a feeling of hunger in response to the smell is an unconditioned response, and the sound of a whistle when you smell the food is the conditioned stimulus.
6. Conditioned response: In classical conditioning, the conditioned response is the learned response to the previously neutral stimulus. In above example, the conditioned response would be feeling hungry when you heard the sound of the whistle.