Operant Conditioning

operant conditioning

aka instrumental conditioning

Law of effect (Thorndike)

the tendency of an organism to produce a behavior depends on the effect the behavior has on the environment

behaviors followed by satisfying or rewarding consequences are more likely to be repeated, while behaviors followed by unpleasant consequences are less likely to be repeated

- puzzle box

Puzzle Box Experiment

The box: Hungry cats were placed in a puzzle box that required a specific action to open, such as pulling a string or pushing a lever.

The goal: The cats were motivated to escape the box to get food waiting outside.

The process: The cats initially struggled and engaged in various behaviors, but eventually, through trial and error, they accidentally performed the correct action to open the door.

The result: With each subsequent trial, the cats took less time to escape, demonstrating that they were learning which behaviors led to a successful escape and which were ineffective

radical behaviorism

behavior is controlled by its consequences

BF Skinner

Skinner box (operant chamber)

Hungry animal placed in box

Presses bar

receives food pellet (reinforcer)

increases bar pressing

Reinforcement

consequence of behavior that increases the probability that the behavior will occur

Punishment

consequence of behavior that decreases the probability that the behavior will occur

Shaping

reinforcing closer and closer approximations of the desired response

- Uses successive approximations

successive approximations

responses that are increasingly similar to the desired response

problem with shaping

must wait until the behavior is exhibited before reinforcing

Positive reinforcement

presentation of a pleasant stimulus after a behavior - increases probability of behavior

Negative reinforcement

removal of an unpleasant stimulus after a behavior

- increases probability of behavior

Positive punishment

unpleasant stimulus follows behavior decreases probability of behavior

Negative punishment

removal of pleasant stimulus after a behavior

- decreases probability of behavior

Generalization

after a behavior is reinforced in one situation, it is performed in a different situation

Discrimination

a behavior that is reinforced in one situation isnot performed in a different situation

Extinction

after the reinforcer is withdrawn, the behavior decreases

Spontaneous recovery

after extinction, the behavior reappears

Continuous reinforcement

consequences are the same each time the behavior occurs

Intermittent (partial) reinforcement

consequences are given only some of the times the behavior occurs

Ratio schedules of reinforcement

reinforcement is given after the behavior is exhibited a certain number of times

Interval schedules of reinforcement

reinforcement is given after a certain amount of time

Fixed-ratio

reinforcement for a fixed proportion of responses emitted

Variable-ratio

reward for some percentage of responses, but unpredictable number of responses required before reinforcement

Fixed-interval

reinforcement for responses after a fixed amount of time

Variable-interval

reinforcement for responses after an amount of time that is not constant

Is Punishment Effective?

May be difficult to identify which behavior is being punished

Individual may come to fear person giving harsh punishment

Punishment may not eliminate existing rewards for the behavior

Harsh punishment can model aggression

Extrinsic motivation

pursuit of goal for external rewards

Intrinsic motivation

pursuit of activity for its own sake

Overjustification effect

too much reward

undermines intrinsic motivation