Correct Answer:
B. Extinction
Explanation:
The correct answer is Extinction because this operant conditioning method involves completely removing the reinforcing stimulus that maintains an undesirable behavior, leading to its eventual elimination.
- Extinction: This is the correct choice. In behavioral psychology, behaviors continue because they receive reinforcement (such as a teacher's attention during a disruption). By applying planned ignoring or removing the reward, the connection is broken, causing the behavior to decline over time.
- Incorrect Options:
- Shaping: This is incorrect. It involves reinforcing successive approximations of a target behavior to teach a completely new skill.
- Fading: This is incorrect. It refers to the gradual removal of physical or verbal prompts as a student masters an independent task.
- Chaining: This is incorrect. It is the process of linking individual simple behaviors together into a complex sequence.