Operant Conditioning (Chapter 6)

What is operant conditioning?

Learning in which consequences increase or decrease the likelihood of a behavior happening again.

Who was B.F. Skinner?

A psychologist known for studying operant conditioning and how consequences shape behavior.

What is reinforcement?

A consequence that increases the likelihood of a behavior occurring again.

What is punishment?

A consequence that decreases the likelihood of a behavior occurring again.

What is positive reinforcement?

Adding something desirable after a behavior to increase that behavior.

A teacher praises a student every time they finish homework. What is this?

Positive reinforcement: praise is added to increase homework completion.

What is negative reinforcement?

Removing something unpleasant after a behavior to increase that behavior.

You buckle your seatbelt to stop an annoying beeping sound. What is this?

Negative reinforcement: buckling the seatbelt removes an unpleasant sound, increasing seatbelt use.

What is the difference between positive and negative reinforcement?

Positive reinforcement adds something; negative reinforcement removes something. Both increase behavior.

What is the difference between reinforcement and punishment?

Reinforcement increases behavior; punishment decreases behavior.

What is punishment by applying an aversive stimulus?

Adding an unpleasant consequence to decrease behavior, such as a reprimand after breaking a rule.

A child breaks a rule and receives a reprimand. If the behavior decreases, what type of consequence is this?

Positive punishment: an unpleasant consequence is added to decrease the behavior.

What is punishment through reinforcement removal?

Removing something valued or desirable to decrease a behavior. Example: taking away gaming privileges after breaking a rule.

A teenager breaks curfew and loses phone privileges. What is this?

Negative punishment: a valued privilege is removed to decrease rule-breaking.

What is prompting?

Providing verbal or physical cues to help someone perform a target behavior.

A teacher tells a student each step needed to print a document. What is this?

Prompting: the teacher provides verbal instructions to guide the behavior.

What is fading?

Gradually reducing prompts as a person learns to perform a behavior independently.

A teacher gradually stops giving printing instructions as a student learns the process. What is this?

Fading: the prompts are reduced until the student can print independently.

What is shaping?

Reinforcing successive small steps toward a more complex target behavior.

A child is rewarded for turning on a computer, then opening an app, then printing a document. What is this?

Shaping: each step toward the complete behavior is reinforced.

What is a continuous reinforcement schedule?

Reinforcing every occurrence of a target behavior.

A dog gets a treat every time it sits on command. Which schedule is this?

Continuous reinforcement: every correct response receives a treat.

What is intermittent reinforcement?

Reinforcing a behavior only some of the time rather than every time.

Why can intermittent reinforcement make a behavior persist?

The person continues responding even when rewards are not given every time, so the behavior may be more resistant to extinction.

What does FI mean in reinforcement schedules?

Fixed interval: reinforcement is available after a set amount of time, provided the required behavior occurs.

A student studies more as a scheduled Friday test approaches. Which schedule may explain this?

Fixed interval: a predictable time-based event can lead to increased responding as the time approaches.

What does FR mean in reinforcement schedules?

Fixed ratio: reinforcement follows a set number of responses.

A coffee shop gives a free drink after five purchases. Which schedule is this?

Fixed ratio: the reward follows a specific number of purchases.

What does VI mean in reinforcement schedules?

Variable interval: reinforcement becomes available after changing, unpredictable amounts of time.

A teacher gives surprise quizzes at unpredictable times, so students keep preparing. Which schedule is this?

Variable interval: the timing of the opportunity for reinforcement varies.

What does VR mean in reinforcement schedules?

Variable ratio: reinforcement follows an unpredictable number of responses.

A salesperson keeps making calls because they do not know which call will lead to a sale. Which schedule is this?

Variable ratio: the number of calls needed for a sale varies.

Someone plays a slot machine without knowing how many plays it will take to win. Which schedule is this?

Variable ratio: a reward follows an unpredictable number of attempts.

How do interval and ratio schedules differ?

Interval schedules depend on time; ratio schedules depend on the number of responses.

How do fixed and variable schedules differ?

Fixed schedules use a predictable time or number; variable schedules use an unpredictable time or number.

What is the Premack principle?

A more preferred activity can reinforce a less preferred activity.

A parent says, "Finish your homework, then you can play outside." What is this?

The Premack principle: a preferred activity (playing outside) rewards a less preferred activity (homework).

A child eats vegetables to earn dessert afterward. What principle is being used?

The Premack principle: the preferred activity or reward is contingent on completing the less preferred activity.

What is a token economy?

A system in which people earn tokens or points for desired behavior and exchange them for rewards.

Students earn gold stars for following classroom rules and trade ten stars for a prize. What is this?

A token economy: stars act as tokens that can be exchanged for a reward.

What is extinction in operant conditioning?

Withholding the reinforcement that previously maintained a behavior, causing it to decrease over time.

A student interrupts to get attention. The teacher safely stops rewarding the interruptions with attention, and they decrease. What is this?

Extinction: the reinforcement (attention) maintaining the behavior is withheld.

What is time-out?

Temporarily removing access to reinforcing activities or environments after unwanted behavior.

A child disrupts an activity and temporarily loses access to the fun activity. What is this?

Time-out: access to a reinforcing environment is temporarily removed.

What is response-cost?

Removing an earned token, reward, or privilege following unwanted behavior.

A student loses a previously earned token for breaking a classroom rule. What is this?

Response-cost: an earned token is removed as a consequence.

What is overcorrection?

Requiring someone to correct the effects of inappropriate behavior or repeatedly practice appropriate behavior.

A child scatters classroom supplies and must put them away and restore the area. What is this?

Overcorrection: the child must correct the effects of the inappropriate behavior.

A child receives a sticker for cleaning their room. Is this reinforcement or punishment?

Reinforcement, specifically positive reinforcement, because a desirable consequence is added to increase cleaning.

A student loses recess after disrupting class. Is this reinforcement or punishment?

Negative punishment, if losing recess decreases the disruptive behavior, because a valued activity is removed.

A person completes a task to make an irritating alarm stop. Is this negative reinforcement or punishment?

Negative reinforcement, because removing the unpleasant alarm increases the task-completion behavior.

What should you remember when identifying any operant-conditioning consequence?

First ask whether the behavior increases or decreases. Then ask whether something was added or removed.

Essay Question: How could a parent use positive reinforcement to increase a child's homework completion?

Give a desirable consequence, such as praise or a reward, after the child completes homework. If this increases homework completion, it is positive reinforcement.

Essay Question: How could a parent use negative reinforcement to increase a child's homework completion?

Arrange for an unpleasant condition, such as repeated reminders, to stop when the child completes homework. If homework completion increases, it is negative reinforcement.

Essay Question: How could a parent use two types of punishment to reduce rule-breaking?

Positive punishment: add an appropriate unpleasant consequence, such as a reprimand. Negative punishment: remove a valued privilege, such as gaming time. The goal is to reduce the unwanted behavior.

Essay Question: Which reinforcement schedule is likely to maintain persistent responding when the reward comes after an unpredictable number of responses, and why?

Variable ratio. Because the number of responses required for a reward is unpredictable, responding can persist even when rewards are infrequent.