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Operant Conditioning Review
Operant Conditioning began with Thorndike’s Law of Effect: a response followed by a pleasant consequence will probably be repeated
and a response followed by an unpleasant consequence will probably be diminished
BF Skinner furthered this idea by applying it strictly to behavior, by way of his Operant Chamber, or Skinner Box
Operant Conditioning: learning based on the association of consequences with one’s behavior
Key Parts of Operant Conditioning
Reinforcement and Punishment
Positive +
(adding stimulus)
Negative –
(removing stimulus)
Reinforcement
(increase in behavior)
Positive Reinforcement
(Adding pleasant consequence)
Negative Reinforcement
(Removing Aversive Stimuli)
Punishment
(decrease in behavior)
Positive Punishment
(Adding aversive stimuli)
Negative Punishment or
Omission Training
(Removing pleasant stimuli)
Primary Reinforcers: rewards, like food, water and rest; natural properties are reinforcing
Secondary Reinforcers: things we have learned to value (praise, money); can lead us to a primary reinforce; TOKEN ECONOMY
Continuous Reinforcement: rewarding the behavior each time it is correctly performed, best when learning new behaviors
Shaping: reinforcing the steps used to reach the desired behavior
Partial Reinforcement: once the behavior is learned, reinforcing the correct behavior every once in a while
Extinction: occurs when the reward no longer is produced because of the action
Schedules of Reinforcement
Ratio
(based upon behavior or the number of responses)
Interval
(based upon time)
Fixed
(set)
Fixed Ratio
(reinforcement after a set number of
responses)
Variable Ratio
(reinforcement based on a varied number of
responses)
Fixed Interval
(certain amount of time must elapse before
reinforcement)
Variable Interval
(varies the amount of time required before
reinforcement is given)
Variable
(unpredictable)
Application of Operant Conditioning
Are the following scenarios examples of positive or negative reinforcement or punishment?
________________ 1. The annoying beep in your car ceases when you put on your seatbelt. You find yourself wearing your seatbelt more
because of it.
________________ 2. A police officer gives you a ticket for speeding, resulting in a big fine. You don’t speed as much.
________________ 3. When riding with you in the car your mother compliments you on your use of the blinker any time you want to
turn or change lanes.
Are the following scenarios examples of continuous or partial reinforcement?
________________ 1. Whenever 3-year- old Alice starts to misbehave in the grocery store, her mother buys her a candy bar.
________________ 2. As a grocery checker, Janice notices that about every third customer says thank you when she says “Have a nice
day.”