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It is Saturday morning. You have been given a rather expensive electronic game, but no instructions. You turn knobs, switches, and push buttons, but nothing happens. You change the batteries, check the connections, and try again. Nothing happens. Eventually you give up. This is an example of a(n):

a) Approach-approach conflict
b) Avoidance-avoidance conflict
c) Approach-avoidance conflict
d) Learned helplessness

User Ajay Ahuja
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Final answer:

The scenario of struggling with an electronic game and eventually giving up is an example of Learned helplessness, where an individual feels powerless to change their situation despite multiple efforts.

Step-by-step explanation:

The situation described is an example of d) Learned helplessness. Learned helplessness occurs when an individual feels unable to control or change a situation despite attempts to do so. Importantly, this state is not about the immediate ease of problem-solving, but rather the repeated experiences of failure that lead to a cessation of trying. The electronic game scenario mirrors the experiments conducted by psychologist Martin Seligman with dogs. In these experiments, dogs subjected to uncontrollable shock eventually stopped trying to escape, even when a way out was available, as they had acquired a belief that they were powerless.

Similarly, the frustrated individual with the game gives up after multiple failed efforts despite changing batteries and checking connections, reflecting the notion that no action they take will have an effect. This psychological state can also be seen in humans and has been linked to feelings of passivity and depression, where people stop trying to alter negative conditions believing they have no control over them.

User Ficuscr
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