Operant Conditioning and Reinforcement

Flashcards covering key terms and concepts related to operant conditioning, reinforcement, and learning processes.

Operant Conditioning

A learning process that involves associations between stimuli and voluntary responses.

Three-Term Contingency

The discriminative stimulus (Sd), the response (R), and the consequence (S*).

Discriminative Stimulus (Sd)

The context or situation that signals the availability of reinforcement.

Response (R)

A voluntary action that is not automatic, unlike unconditioned responses.

Consequence (S*)

The result of a response that can be a reinforcer or a punisher.

Law of Effect

The principle stating that responses with satisfying consequences increase in frequency, while those with unsatisfying consequences decrease.

Reinforcer

A consequence that increases the likelihood of a response.

Punisher

A consequence that decreases the likelihood of a response.

Positive Reinforcer

Adding something good to increase a response.

Negative Punisher

Taking away something good to decrease a response.

Positive Punisher

Adding something bad to decrease a response.

Negative Reinforcer

Taking away something bad to increase a response.

Primary Reinforcers

Biological needs such as food and shelter.

Secondary Reinforcers

Learned reinforcers that provide access to primary reinforcers.

Shaping

Reinforcing closer and closer approximations to a desired behavior.

Schedules of Reinforcement

Patterns of delivering reinforcement to maintain learned responses.

Ratio Schedules

Reinforcement based on the number of responses.

Interval Schedules

Reinforcement based on the amount of time elapsed.

Extinction

The process where a predictive relationship no longer holds, leading to a decrease in response.

Spontaneous Recovery

The re-emergence of a previously extinguished behavior after a period of time.