Chapter 8 – Learning: Operant

ConditioningObjective: Differentiate between reinforcement and punishment through notes, discussion and

practice.

OPERANT CONDITIONING Operant Conditioning – a type of learning

in which behavior is strengthened if followed by a reinforcer or diminished if followed by a punisher.

Reinforcement – Behavior Encouraged Punishment – Behavior Discouraged

People to Know… Edward Thorndike – one of the first

psychologists to research operant conditioning Law of Effect – if the consequences of behavior

are pleasant, the stimulus response will be strengthened. If the consequences are unpleasant, the stimulus response will be weakened.

thorndike-puzzle box - YouTube

People to Know… B.F. Skinner – best known

psychologist to study operant conditioning (he coined this term) Skinner box (operant chamber) -

contraption that delivers food to an animal and contains a lever to press in order to get the food. It also contains an electric grid.

The Skinner Box

Skinner Box Video Are we Conditioned or do we have Free Wil

l? – YouTube starting at 1:00 till end?

Shaping Shaping – an operant conditioning procedure in which

reinforcers guide behavior closer and closer toward the desired goal.

Ex. Rat basketball at Discovery Place Ex. Sea World, Bird shows, the circus Ex. Your Dogs or Cats. BF Skinner Foundation - Pigeon Ping Pong Clip – YouTub

e pigeons - YouTube Ex. Hot/Cold Game

Psychology - Learning-Classical & Operant Conditioning-2.avi – YouTube

(1:00)

Reinforcement Reinforcement –

anything that makes a behavior more likely to occur

Think…. POSITIVE = ADDING NEGATIVE = TAKING

AWAY

Positive Reinforcement Positive Reinforcement – addition of

something pleasant Ex. Rat is given food when it presses a lever Ex. Money encourages you to come to work Ex. Attention from a parent encourages the child to

continue crying Ex. Receiving a good grade encourages you to study Positive Reinforcement - The Big Bang Theory – You

Tube. Q Sanding off the edges, tweak?

Negative Reinforcement Negative Reinforcement – removal of something

unpleasant Ex. While in a cage, a rat receives a mild shock on his

feet, the rat presses a lever and the shock stops. The rat moves and receives the shock again, pressing the lever once again; the rat removes the undesirable shock. – Taking away the shock encourages the rat to press the lever….

Ex. To avoid heavy traffic, you leave an hour earlier for work (leaving work earlier is encouraged by removing heavy traffic)

Negative Reinforcement (cont…) Ex. You do the dishes and your parent stops yelling Ex. Aspirin takes away a headache – you are

encouraged to take medication by removing the headache.

Ex. You are encouraged to do well at work by getting a day off

Ex. You passed all of your exams during the year so you do not have to take the final.

Positive and Negative Reinforcement - YouTube

Types of reinforcers Primary reinforcers – those innately

satisfying, satisfies a biological need Ex. food, relief from shock

Conditioned / Secondary reinforcers – those learned Become reinforcers through association as

the secondary and primary reinforcers are paired together.

The conditioned reinforcer is initially neutral Ex. Money, praise, attention We learn at a young age to associate money

with fulfilling our needs.

Punishment Punishment – anything

that makes behavior less likely

Think…. POSITIVE = ADDING NEGATIVE = TAKING

AWAY

Positive Punishment Positive Punishment (oftentimes just called

punishment) – the addition of something unpleasant Ex. Rat receives shock when it presses a bar. The rat

becomes less likely to press the bar having received the shock.

Ex. Spanking a child keeps them from repeating a behavior

Ex. Boss complains about your poor work performance Ex. Run 4 additional laps b/c you were late to practice.

Negative Punishment Negative Punishment – the removal of

something pleasant Ex. Remove the rat’s food when it presses a lever. The rat

is less likely to press the lever. Ex. Teen is grounded for a week for making bad grades.

Fun has been removed and bad grades become less likely.

Ex. Boss reduces expense account after poor performance

Ex. You’re excluded from gym class because you were late.

Reinforcement and Punishment Review Complete Reinforcement vs. Punishment

exercise

Reinforcement Timing Timing of Reinforcement

If the reinforcement occurs directly after the wanted behavior, conditioning is more likely to occur. (especially with animals)

Humans CAN learn with delayed presentation of reinforcement.

Paycheck, good grades, trophies –

all are delayed gratification

Parts of operant conditioning Operant Conditioning contains the parts of:

Acquisition Extinction Spontaneous recovery Generalization Discrimination

Reinforcement Schedules Continuous (all the time)

Partial (sometimes) Fixed (constant)

Variable (changing) Ratio (responses)

Interval (time)

Reinforcement Schedules Reinforcement schedules

Continuous reinforcement – reinforcing desired behavior every time it occurs

With this schedule, extinction occurs quickly. Partial Reinforcement – reinforcing response

only part of the time Acquisition is slower Greater resistance to extinction than continuous

reinforcement

Fixed Ratio Reinforcement Fixed – Ratio Schedules – reinforcing

respondent only after a specified number of responses Produces a high rate of response Ex. Rat receives a food pellet every 7 times he

presses the bar

Variable Ratio Reinforcement Variable- Ratio Schedule – reinforcing

respondent after an unpredictable number of responses High rate of response, very resistant to extinction Ex. Slot machines pay money in unpredictable

intervals

Fixed Interval Reinforcement Fixed-Interval Schedule – reinforcing a

response after a specified amount of time has elapsed Responses tend to increase at time for next

reinforcer and then drop after reinforcement Ex. Monthly paycheck – performance improves

close to paycheck time…

Variable Interval Reinforcement Variable-Interval Schedule – reinforcing a

response after an unpredictable amount of time has elapsed. Relatively low response rate, but realistic since

we cannot always predict when reward will come.

Ex. Pop quizzes (reinforcing studying on a varied schedule)…

Ex. “You’ve Got Mail” encourages you to check your email.

Reinforcement schedules Review B.F. Skinner - Operant Conditioning and

Free Will – YouTube (begin at 1:00)

Token Economy Used just like at carnivals. This experiment

took place at a middle school. Students were given tokens for good behaviors and have tokens taken away for bad behaviors. Tokens are cashed in for prizes or extra recess time etc.

Q What were the results?

Token Economy (continued) Q. Do we use operant conditioning in schools? Schools- Criticism in schools. This may

undermine intrinsic motivation- led to “open” and Montesourri schools where students receive little or no grades/have few rules NWSchool of Arts.

Pay for Performance..Teachers and extrinsic motivation

Overjustification effect – the effect of promising a reward for

doing what one already likes to do. Person or Animal begins to have extrinsic

motivation rather than intrinsic motivation. Ex. Do you go to work to contribute to society

or to get a paycheck?

Overjustification Effect Ex. Do you study to learn or to get good

grades? Ex. College Athletes vs. Professional Athletes

Ex. Study with Kindergartners and good

player badges.

RSA Animate - Drive: The surprising truth about what motivates us - YouTube

CMS (now NC) / Pay for Performance

Lose of intrinsic value With increased testing teachers will teach

to the test, task will involve much less creativity, mastery. Incentives will have difficulty measuring creativity, are not designed to measure higher level thinking skills.

Instinctive Drift There is a limit to what we can teach with

operant conditioning… Animals will not perform behaviors that go

against their natural inclinations. Ex. Rats will not walk backwards