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Operant Conditioning
Mr. KochAP Psychology
Forest Lake High School
Operant Conditioning
• Type of learning in which behavior is strengthened if followed by reinforcement or diminished if followed by punishment
– (aka - Instrumental Conditioning)
• Antecedent → Behavior → Consequence (stimulus) (response)
– Law of Effect (Thorndike)• Principle that behaviors followed by:
– Favorable consequences → more likely– Unfavorable consequences → less likely
B.F. Skinner
(1904-1990)
Skinner Box(aka Operant Chamber)
• Controlled environment with a bar or key for animal to manipulate to obtain food/water reinforcer
• Contains devices to record responses
Operant Conditioning• Reinforcement– Any event that strengthens the behavior it follows
• Positive Reinforcement– Increases frequency of behavior by adding a pleasant stimulus
• Ex: Money, praise, prizes, attention
• Negative Reinforcement– Increases frequency of behavior by removing an unpleasant
(aversive) stimulus• Ex: Aspirin, giving in to tantrum, faking sick, drugs to avoid withdrawal
Operant Conditioning
• Primary Reinforcer– Innately reinforcing stimulus (satisfies a biological
need)• Ex: food, water, relief from pain, etc.
• Secondary Reinforcer (aka - Conditioned Reinforcer)
– Gains its reinforcing power through its association with a primary reinforcer• Ex: money, grades, etc.
Operant Conditioning• Shaping– Reinforcing a series of behaviors which
progressively become more specific and similar to desired response • (guide toward closer approximations of desired goal)
• Note:– What is reinforcing to one may not be to another• Depends upon perspective of learner
– Ex: suspension; forced to stay after school
Schedules of Reinforcement
• Continuous Reinforcement– Reinforcing desired response every time it occurs• + acquire quickly• - extinct quickly
• Partial (intermittent) Reinforcement– Reinforcing part of the time• - acquire slower• + extinct slower
Schedules of Reinforcement(Partial Reinforcement)
• Fixed-Ratio schedule– Reinforced after certain number of responses
– Ex: piecework, bonus paid for selling certain # items
• Variable-Ratio schedule– Reinforcement after an unpredictable number of responses• Very hard to extinguish
– Ex: gambling, fishing, hitchhiking
Schedules of Reinforcement(Partial Reinforcement)
• Fixed-Interval schedule– Reinforce a response after a set period of time has elapsed• Ex: payday, mail delivery, school schedule
• Variable-Interval schedule– Reinforce a response at unpredictable time intervals• Ex: pop quiz, random drug tests, waiting for taxi
Punishment• An event that decreases the strength of a
behavior it follows• Aversive Conditioning – using punishment to teach
• Positive Punishment (“Type I” Punishment)
– Adding an unpleasant (aversive) stimulus to decrease behavior• Ex: spanking, electric shock
• Negative Punishment (“Type II” Punishment)
– Removing a pleasant/desirable stimulus to decrease behavior• Ex: time out, grounding
Punishment
• Problems with punishment:– Tells us what not to do, not what to do– May teach avoidance, fear, or aggression– If punishment is unpredictable, unavoidable – get
sense it is beyond our control• May lead to depression, helplessness
– Better to emphasize reinforcement
Operant Conditioning
• Avoidance Conditioning– Undesirable behavior not yet
present• subject taught to avoid stimulus
• Counter-conditioning– Undesirable behaviors already
learned• Seek a new response – unlearn old
behavior