Operant Conditioning - Complete Review Notes

Comprehensive vocabulary flashcards reviewing core principles, types, and key terminology of Operant Conditioning from Unit 2: Learning.

Operant Conditioning

Learning in which behavior is strengthened or weakened by its consequences ("What happens AFTER the behavior affects whether I do it again").

B. F. Skinner

The psychologist most closely associated with operant conditioning who studied how consequences can change future behavior, including through the use of the Skinner Box.

Classical Conditioning

Learning through association, characterized by the shortcut idea: "These two things go together."

Reinforcement

A consequence that makes a behavior MORE likely to happen (behavior increases or goes UP).

Punishment

A consequence that makes a behavior LESS likely to happen (behavior decreases or goes DOWN).

Positive (Operant Conditioning)

A condition indicating that something is ADDED or comes IN; it does not mean "good."

Negative (Operant Conditioning)

A condition indicating that something is REMOVED or goes OUT; it does not mean "bad."

Positive Reinforcement

An operant conditioning pattern where behavior goes UP and something comes IN (e.g., Do homework -> Get $10 -> Homework increases).

Negative Reinforcement

An operant conditioning pattern where behavior goes UP and something goes OUT (e.g., Buckle seatbelt -> Beeping stops -> Buckling increases).

Positive Punishment

An operant conditioning pattern where behavior goes DOWN and something comes IN (e.g., Speed -> Get ticket -> Speeding decreases).

Negative Punishment

An operant conditioning pattern where behavior goes DOWN and something goes OUT (e.g., Break curfew -> Lose phone -> Curfew-breaking decreases).

The Two-Question Strategy

A method to identify operant conditioning types: Step 1 asks if behavior goes UP (Reinforcement) or DOWN (Punishment); Step 2 asks if a consequence comes IN (Positive) or goes OUT (Negative); Step 3 combines the two words.

Skinner Box

An apparatus used by B. F. Skinner where an animal could perform a behavior, such as pressing a lever, and experience a consequence, such as receiving food.