Which of the following is an example of stimulus generalization? a) being conditioned not to laugh at hatsb) being conditioned to laugh at all kinds of hatsc) being conditioned to laugh when you see a top hat and cry when you see other kinds of hatsd) being conditioned to laugh when you see a top hat, then also laughing when you see other kinds of hats

The correct answer is:

) being conditioned to laugh when you see a top hat, then also laughing when you see other kinds of hats

Explanation:

In psychology, stimulus generalization occurs when a determined kind of stimulus causes the same reaction for similar cases. Classical conditioning plays an important role for this stimulus generalization, once it influences the way of learning in a determined circumstance. It means, stimulus and responses are normally associated in couples, but sometimes the same responses can be presented for similar stimulus. For example: when a dog is taught to sit down once the owner raises his hand, but when someone else raises hand to say "goodbye or hello" the dog will also sit down.

as university of miami psychologists debra lieberman and adam smith pointed out in a recent article in the journal current directions in psychological science, humans have social and psychological mechanisms to deter incest. with very few exceptions, marriages between brothers and sisters and between parents and their children are verboten in every human culture. the primary psychological anti-incest mechanism is the yuck response. even the idea of sex with their mom or dad, bro or sis is upsetting to most people. the psychologist jonathan haidt has found that nearly everyone is repelled by the prospect of brother-sister sex, even in hypothetical situations in which there is no chance of pregnancy).

the biological cost of incest

this raises an interesting question: just what’s so bad about incest? sure, having sex with your dad or your sister seems gross — but why? some anthropologists have argued that incest taboos are learned social conventions. this explanation, however, doesn’t make sense to me as it does not explain the widespread existence of anti-incest mechanisms in creatures ranging from cockroaches to chimpanzees. second, the incest taboo is about as close to a universal law as human moral rules get.

why should mechanisms to avoid incest be so widespread both in nature and across human societies? the answer is simple. the problem with having sex close with relatives is that there is an astonishingly high chance that your offspring will be born with a serious birth defect.

well it depends i think people around the world are coming around to gay marriage. but if you are talking abortion then wow, so much to talk about. such as men thinking they have the right to choose if women can, the fact there are health concerns if the women can't get one, and many more arguments to discuss. so i would definitely say abortion would be a much more interesting topic.