Download Chapter 6, Operant Conditioning

Chapter 6
Introduction to
Operant Conditioning
Operant Conditioning
What is it?
 How does it differ from Classical
Conditioning?
 Major concepts

– Operant Behaviors – behaviors that are
influenced by their consequences
– Operant Conditioning – the effects of
those consequences on behavior
Historical Background

Edwin L. Thorndike, 1898
– Interest in animal intelligence
– Believed in systematic investigation
– Formulated the Law of Effect:
 Behaviors
that lead to a satisfactory state of
affairs are strengthened or “stamped in”
 Behaviors that lead to an unsatisfactory or
annoying state of affairs are weakened or
“stamped out”
Skinner

Learning by consequences
– Skinner box allowed new ways to learn



“free operant” vs. maze
Rat freely controls its response rate unlike in the maze
where experimenter has to “start” the rat
The nature of behavior – Skinner’s view
changed
– Reflexes no longer enough – 2 classes of behavior
 Respondent behavior – involuntary, reflexive
 Operant behavior – voluntary, consequence based
– Operant Conditioning is A type of conditioning in which the future
probability of a behavior is affected by its consequences
Operant Behavior

A class of emitted responses that
result in certain consequences; these
consequences, in turn, affect the future
probability of strength of those
responses.
– “emit” implies voluntary rather than
reflexive
– Operant behavior is defined as a “class of
responses” – why is this useful?
What is a reinforcer?

To be a reinforcer, a stimulus has to do
two things:
– Follow a behavior
– Increase the future probability of that
behavior
What is a punisher?

To be a punisher, a behavior must do
two things:
– Follow a behavior
– Decrease the future probability of that
behavior
These terms are
defined
FUNCTIONALLY!!
This is one of the most
important aspects of Operant
Conditioning to understand!
Operant Antecedents

Discriminitive Stimulus
– A stimulus in the presence of which
responses are reinforced (or punished)
and in the absence of which they are not
reinforced (or punished)
– In other words, a discriminitive stimulus is
a signal that indicates that a response will
be followed by a reinforcer (or punisher)
– Think of some examples!
Four types of
Contingencies

Reinforcement
– Positive

+ (presentation/add)
– Something liked

- (removal/subtract)
– Something
disliked

Punishment
– Positive

Increases R
+ (presentation/add)
– Something
disliked
Increases R
– Negative



Decreases R
– Negative

- (removal/subtract)
– Something liked

Decreases R
Let’s think of some
examples of both!
Positive Reinforcement
Further Distinctions

Immediate vs. Delayed Reinforcement
– The more immediate the reinforcer, the stronger
its effect on behavior

Primary and Secondary Reinforcers
– Primary reinforcers are innately reinforcing
– Secondary reinforcers are learned by being
associated with some other reinforcer

Intrinsic and Extrinsic Reinforcement
– Intrinsic – performing the behavior is reinforcing
– Extrinsic – reinforcement comes from a
consequence external to the behavior
How do we learn
complex behaviors?

Here’s a problem:
– If you can’t reinforce a behavior until it
occurs, how can you teach a complex
behavior using operant conditioning???
Answer:
You must use shaping!

Shaping is a gradual creation of a new
operant behavior through reinforcment
of successive approximations to that
behavior (which means behaviors that
get closer and closer to the goal
behavior)
Let’s think of some
examples!