Operant Conditioning, Cognitive, and Social Learning Theories
Operant Conditioning, Cognitive, and Social Learning Theories
Reinforcers and Behavior Teaching Techniques
Reinforcer: Anything that causes a behavior to continue or strengthen.
Primary Reinforcers: Satisfy biological needs, such as food or water. These are generally impractical in societal teaching and can be harmful if withheld (e.g., denying water as a punishment is considered child abuse).
Secondary Reinforcers: Learned reinforcers that acquire their reinforcing value through association with primary reinforcers or societal value (e.g., grades, social status, money, praise). These are more commonly used due to their practicality.
Techniques for Teaching Behaviors:
Shaping: A technique that involves reinforcing small, incremental steps toward the ultimate desired behavior. The learner is rewarded for successive approximations of the target behavior.
Example: Teaching a dog to roll over.
The dog is given a treat (reinforcer) when it sits down.
Then, it receives a treat when it lies down.
Finally, it gets a treat when it rolls over.
This process builds up to the desired ultimate behavior by reinforcing smaller, achievable steps.
Chaining: A technique that involves linking different individual behaviors together in a specific sequence to achieve a complex goal. Reinforcement is typically given only after the entire sequence of behaviors is completed.
Example: Teaching a child to tie their shoes.
The child first learns to make