Scenario
Cindy and the Magician
A young girl named Cindy walked into a room where a magician stood in front of a box containing a variety of objects. One by one, the magician removed each object from the box as Cindy stood by and observed. Inside the box was a rattle, a mask, a teddy bear, a live guinea pig, a rubber snake, and a magazine. As the magician removed each object, he placed it on the table. Cindy simply watched without any reaction. The magician picked up the guinea pig and held it out for Cindy to hold. As Cindy reached for the guinea pig, a very loud crack of thunder shook the room. Cindy began to scream and ran from the room.
The next day, Cindy met the magician again, and upon petting the guinea pig, another loud bang shook the room, scaring Cindy into a panic as she ran. This time, Cindy's mom ran after her to comfort her, giving Cindy hugs and telling her that everything would be ok.
A few days later, Cindy went to the mall with her mom. Cindy's mom thought that she would like to visit the pet shop, so they walked in to see the adorable puppies! Right by the door was a small cage that held a guinea pig. As soon as Cindy saw the guinea pig, she began to cry, and she ran out of the store! Again, Cindy's mom ran after her and consoled her, saying, "It's all right; you don't have to go near any guinea pigs!" They left the area of the mall where the pet store was located. When Cindy and her mom got home from the mall, her little brother, Stanley, came running to greet her. He held out the new little tan and brown stuffed Beany Boo that he had won at the carnival! Once again, Cindy cried in fear and ran out of the room.
Identify the respondent conditioning relationships in the scenario (i.e., stimulus-response pairs) using behavior-analytic vocabulary.
Discuss the elements of time and environment that influence Cindy's respondent behavior.
Explain how the reflexive stimulus-response relationship could be reversed, providing examples of extinction or counterconditioning. Need Assignment Help?
Form a diagram that visually represents the respondent conditioning relationships in the scenario.
Identify the operant conditioning relationships in the scenario (i.e., stimulus - response - stimulus relations) using behavior analytic vocabulary.
Discuss the process of operant learning that occurred that maintained Cindy's behaviors.
Establish a simple plan, providing examples of how different schedules of reinforcement (including the matching law) and a variety of differential reinforcement methods could be used to change Cindy's behaviors. Also, discuss which methods would not be suggested and why.
If punishment were an option, describe, with a rationale, how you might implement a punishment procedure, identifying the anticipated outcome.
Use the sources below in your explanations
Cooper, J., Heron, T., & Heward, W. (2020). Applied behavior analysis (3rd ed.). Pearson.
Fisher, W., Piazza, C. & Roane, H. (2021). Handbook of applied behavior analysis. The
Guilford Press.