Stimulus generalization and stimulus discrimination are opposite operations.

• A. True
• B. False
• C. They can occur together
• D. They are unrelated

Answer: (A)

Stimulus generalization and stimulus discrimination are opposite ways that learning controls how a behavior is evoked by cues. When a response is conditioned to a particular cue, generalization occurs if similar cues also trigger the same response—the more similar the new cue, the stronger the response, producing a broader range of stimuli that elicit the behavior. Discrimination, by contrast, happens when learning is shaped so that only the exact cue predicts reinforcement and similar cues do not—the response is narrowed to the specific stimulus, reducing or eliminating responding to others. This opposing effect on how wide or narrow the set of triggering stimuli is makes them opposite operations. In practice, they can both be at play across different stimulus dimensions or contexts—some cues may generalize while others are discriminated against—but the fundamental relationship is that generalization broadens control while discrimination narrows it.