The eventual view of auto shaping behaviors that emerged from various experiments is that they are species-specific defense reactions
(a) operant responses
(b) classically conditioned responses
(c) responses where an animal has shaped its own behavior by making successive approximations to the desired response
The correct answer and explanation is:
The correct answer is (b) classically conditioned responses.
Autoshaping refers to a form of learning where an animal begins to perform a behavior in response to a stimulus, even though the behavior is not directly related to obtaining a reward. This is typically studied in classical conditioning paradigms, where a neutral stimulus (such as a light) is paired with an unconditioned stimulus (like food) to create a conditioned response (such as pecking or approaching the light). In this case, the animal learns to associate the neutral stimulus with the reward and eventually exhibits behavior toward the neutral stimulus as if it were naturally part of the reward process.
Autoshaping is considered a species-specific defense reaction because the behavior that is learned is often tied to innate, species-specific responses that have evolutionary significance. For example, pigeons may begin to peck at a light after it is consistently paired with the presentation of food, even though pecking is not required to receive the food. Similarly, in certain species of animals, the learned behaviors might resemble natural, instinctual behaviors that were previously used to acquire food, avoid predators, or interact with their environment.
This type of learning differs from operant conditioning (option a), where behaviors are reinforced through consequences such as rewards or punishments, and from the idea of self-shaping behavior (option c), where the animal shapes its own behavior through successive approximations. Autoshaping, therefore, highlights how classical conditioning can lead animals to exhibit seemingly instinctual behaviors in response to stimuli, even when the behavior itself is not reinforced directly.