Operant stimulus control is evidenced by a response occurring more frequently in the presence of a specific stimulus and rarer in its absence.

• A. The response occurs more frequently in the presence and rarely in the absence
• B. The response occurs more frequently in the absence and rarely in the presence
• C. The response frequency is unaffected by the stimulus
• D. The response never occurs in presence

Answer: (A)

Operant stimulus control is shown when a behavior is more likely to occur in the presence of a specific cue that signals reinforcement and is rarer when that cue is not present. The cue acts as an indicator (an SD) that reinforcement is available for the response; when the cue is absent or replaced by another condition, the reinforcement contingency no longer supports the behavior, so the response declines. This pattern demonstrates that the behavior is under the influence of the stimulus—the organism has learned to respond more in the presence of the cue and less in its absence.

That’s why the statement describing the response as occurring more often when the cue is present and rarely when it is absent best captures operant stimulus control. For comparison, if the response occurred more in the absence, or was unaffected by the cue, or never occurred in the presence, those would not reflect the discriminative control that the cue exerts over the behavior.