PART A
One day as your professor is driving to work, another driver runs through a red light and hits his car. The professor is shaken up but survives the incident. However, the next time he starts to enter the intersection, he becomes nervous and fearful. Soon, he starts going to work via another route to avoid the intersection even though this route adds twenty minutes to his commute in each direction.
According to the principles of classical conditioning, why does the professor become scared of the previously harmless intersection? What can he do about this, as going via the other route is very time consuming? Be specific. Break down the situation into its parts, and show how the principles of learning apply.
PART B
After graduating from college, you are hired to work in a factory overseas as an industrial psychologist. The workers put together IPODs. The boss wants to know the best pay schedule to get the maximum number of pieces made by his workers. The boss wants you to describe various schedules of payment to him and tell which might be best for the plant. Using the principles of operant conditioning, describe the various pay schedules and what would be the best one for the goal of getting the most production.
