Which term describes an avoidance pattern that occurs only in the presence of a signaling cue and is more likely under some conditions?

• A. Discriminated operant
• B. Discriminated avoidance
• C. Discriminative stimulus
• D. Duration

Answer: (B)

Discriminated avoidance describes learning to perform an avoidance response only when a warning cue is present. The cue serves as a signal that an aversive event is likely, so the organism acts to prevent it, and the behavior is most likely to occur in the presence of that cue. The phrase “more likely under some conditions” reflects how changing factors like the cue's reliability, the probability or intensity of the aversive event, or the reinforcement schedule can increase or decrease the likelihood or speed of the avoidance response. This differs from a general discriminated operant, which is any behavior controlled by a discriminative stimulus, and from the discriminative stimulus itself, which is the cue signaling reinforcement rather than describing the avoidance pattern. Duration is not part of this concept.