Behavior trivia

Related Trivia

Classical conditioning (Pavlov), social psychology, and personality types.

Behavior Mini Quiz

Test your knowledge with these top questions!

Question 1

Often viewed as a sign of honesty, what behavior involves looking directly at another person during a conversation?

While many see eye contact as a sign of honesty, research shows that liars may increase it to gauge the listener's reaction and appear more sincere.

Question 2

Used to teach a pet a new behavior, what process involves rewarding small steps toward a final goal?

Shaping relies on successive approximations, a technique B. F. Skinner famously used to teach pigeons to play ping-pong by rewarding each small step toward the goal.

Question 3

Studied by Ivan Pavlov, what type of learning occurs when a neutral stimulus like a bell triggers a reflex?

Classical conditioning was discovered accidentally while Pavlov was studying the digestive system of dogs. He won the 1904 Nobel Prize for his work on digestion.

Question 4

Associated with the Skinner box, what type of learning uses rewards to change a voluntary behavior?

Slot machines use a variable ratio reinforcement schedule, an operant conditioning principle that rewards an unpredictable number of responses to encourage repetitive play.

Question 5

To encourage a behavior, what term describes the removal of something unpleasant after an action is performed?

The term negative in this context refers to the removal of a stimulus. Unlike punishment, negative reinforcement always increases a behavior by taking away something unpleasant.

Question 6

Also the name for the death of a species, what term describes the loss of a response when it is no longer reinforced?

While biological extinction marks the end of a species, extinction in psychology is not always permanent, as a response can reappear through spontaneous recovery.

Question 7

Marked by muscle movement around the eyes, what name is given to a genuine and heartfelt smile?

Named after neurologist Guillaume Duchenne, this smile involves the orbicularis oculi muscles, which create crow's feet and are difficult to contract without genuine joy.

Question 8

Coined by Edward T. Hall, what term refers to the study of how humans use physical space to communicate?

Edward Hall identified four spatial zones: intimate, personal, social, and public. He noted that comfortable distances for each vary significantly across different cultures.

Question 9

Lasting under 1 second, what term describes the quick facial expressions that reveal how a person really feels?

Microexpressions typically last between 1/25 and 1/5 of a second. They occur when the limbic system, the brain's emotional center, overrides conscious facial control.

Question 10

To build rapport, what is the subconscious behavior of copying another person's posture or gestures?

Mirroring is driven by mirror neurons, which fire both when a person performs an action and when they observe the same action in others.