Operant Conditioning

Module 16

• Demo Activity• HO 16.1 Pkt. p. 7• See outline in pkt. p. 6 ½• DVD: Discovering Psychology: Disc 2: “Learning”

Edward Thorndike (1874-1949)• Introduced the “Law of Effect”• Behaviors with favorable consequences

will occur more frequently.• Behaviors with unfavorable

consequences will occur less frequently.• Developed into Operant Conditioning

• Created puzzle boxes for research on cats

Thorndike’s Puzzle Box

Operant Conditioning

• A type of learning in which the frequency of a behavior depends on the consequence that follows that behavior

• The frequency will if the consequence is reinforcing to the subject.

• The frequency will if the consequence is not reinforcing to the subject.

B.F. Skinner (1904-1990)• Developed the fundamental principles

and techniques of operant conditioning.

• Devised ways to apply these principles in the real world.

• Designed the Skinner

Box.

Reinforcement v Punishment• Reinforcement - Any consequence that increases the likelihood of the behavior to be repeated. • Punishment - Any consequence

that decreases the likelihood

of the behavior to be repeated.

I. ReinforcementA. Types of Reinforcement

1. Positive Reinforcement• Anything that increases the likelihood

of a behavior by following it with a desirable event or state

• The subject receives something they want

• Will strengthen the behavior

Positive Reinforcement

Operant Conditioning Activity:Positive Reinforcement

Get in groups of three. Choose who will be the recorder, the experimenter, and the subject.

Subjects please leave the room for a moment.

Directions……

2. Negative Reinforcement• Anything that increases the likelihood of a

behavior by following it with the removal of an undesirable event or state

• Something the subject doesn’t like is removed

• Will strengthen the behavior (Definition of Reinforcement)

ORX X

Negative Reinforcement

Positive/Negative Reinforcement

Pkt.p. 10: HO 16-4 Negative Reinforcement “Quiz” Review

Homework: Worksheet #2 from Mrs. Schneider:

“Negative Reinforcement Examples”

Operant Conditioning Computer Lab & Activities

• PsychSim Operant Conditioning Maze Lab

• Clicker Training Pkt. p. 11

• Pkt. P. 12: HO- 16-6: “You & The Impact of Future Consequences” Survey

II. Ways of Reinforcement:

A. Primary v Secondary

A. 1. Primary Reinforcement• Something that is naturally reinforcing

• Examples: food, warmth, water, etc.

• The item is reinforcing in and of itself

A. 2. Secondary Reinforcement

• Something that a person has learned to value or finds rewarding because it is paired with a primary reinforcer

• Money is a good example

• Cooking utensil

Shaping Preview

II. Ways of Reinforcement

B. Shaping • Step by step reinforcement of behaviors that are more and more similar to the one you want to occur.

(Progress Reports, etc)

•Technique used to

establish a new

behavior

II. Ways of Reinforcement: C. Immediate v Delayed

C. Immediate/Delayed Reinforcement

• Immediate reinforcement is more effective than delayed reinforcement

• Ability to delay gratification predicts higher achievement

II. Ways of Reinforcement

D. Schedules of Reinforcement:

1. Continuous Reinforcement

D. 1. Continuous reinforcement

• A schedule of reinforcement in which a reward follows every correct response

• Most useful way to establish a behavior

• The behavior will extinguish quickly once the reinforcement stops.

D. Schedules of ….2. Reinforcement: Partial Reinforcement

See Pkt. p. 13

D. 2. Partial Reinforcement

• A schedule of reinforcement in which a reward follows only some correct responses

• Includes the following types:

– Fixed-interval and variable interval

– Fixed-ratio and variable-ratio

(a) Fixed- Interval Schedule

• A partial reinforcement schedule that rewards only the first correct response after some defined period of time

• i.e. weekly quiz in a class

(a) Variable-Interval Schedule

• A partial reinforcement that rewards the first correct response after an unpredictable amount of time

• i.e. “pop” quiz in a class

(b) Fixed-Ratio Schedule• A partial reinforcement schedule that

rewards a response only after some defined number of correct responses

• The faster the subject responds, the more reinforcements they will receive.

(b) Variable-Ratio Schedule

• A partial reinforcement schedule that rewards an unpredictable number of correct responses

• This schedule is very resistant

to extinction.

• Sometimes called the “gambler’s schedule”; similar to a slot machine

Schedules of Reinforcement

Pkt. p. 14 for practice…thenHomework: Worksheet #3 from Mrs. Schneider:

“Schedules of Reinforcement”

III. Punishment:The Process of

PunishmentDecreaseDecrease a behavior

from happening again by following it with a negative consequence

II. A. Types of Punishment(1) An undesirable

event following a behavior

(2) A desirable state or event ends following a behavior

III. Punishment: B. Problems With

Punishment

Module 16: Operant Conditioning

II. B. Negative Effects of Punishment

• Doesn’t prevent the undesirable behavior when away from the punisher

• Can lead to fear, anxiety, and lower self-esteem

• Children who are punished physically may learn to use aggression as a means to solve problems.

II. C. Positive Effects of Punishment

• Punishment can effectively control certain behaviors.

• Especially useful if teaching a child not to do a dangerous behavior

• Most still suggest reinforcing an incompatible behavior rather than using punishment

Homework: Worksheet #4 from Mrs. Schneider: “Reinforcement v Punishment”

IV. The Role of Cognition: New Understandings of Operant Conditioning

Module 16: Operant Conditioning

III. A. Latent Learning

• Learning that takes place in absence of an apparent reward

III. B. Cognitive Map

• A mental representation of a place

• Experiments showed rats could learn a maze without any reinforcements

III. C. Overjustification Effect

• The effect of promising a reward for doing what someone already likes to do

• The reward may lessen and replace the person’s original, natural motivation, so that the behavior stops if the reward is eliminated

The End