In Seligman's study on dogs, the dogs that were not conditioned to fear the tone

• A. jumped over the fence when the tone sounded.
• B. jumped over the fence when the shock started.
• C. refused to move even after the shock started.
• D. showed distress when the tone sounded.

Answer: (B)

Verified step by step guidance

1. Understand the context of Seligman's study, which is about learned helplessness. This concept explains how subjects may learn to feel powerless in a situation due to repeated exposure to an uncontrollable event.
2. Identify the key elements of the study: the tone, the shock, and the dogs' responses. The tone is a signal, the shock is an aversive stimulus, and the dogs' responses are the behaviors being observed.
3. Consider the experimental setup: Dogs were placed in a situation where they could escape a shock by jumping over a barrier. Some dogs were conditioned to associate a tone with an impending shock, while others were not.
4. Analyze the behavior of the dogs that were not conditioned to fear the tone. These dogs did not associate the tone with the shock and therefore did not exhibit fear when the tone sounded.
5. Conclude that the dogs not conditioned to fear the tone would likely jump over the fence when the shock started, as they had not learned to feel helpless in the situation and would take action to avoid the shock.