Operant Conditioning�Basic Concepts�Module 3.8a

Learning Targets:

• Explain Operant Conditioning.
• Identify Skinner, & explain how operant behavior is reinforced and shaped.
• Explain the difference between positive reinforcement and negative reinforcement.
• Explain the basic types of reinforcers.
• Explain how different reinforcement schedules affect behavior.
• Explain the difference between negative reinforcement and punishment.
• Explain why Skinner’s ideas provoked controversy.

What is Operant Conditioning?

Operant Conditioning

• Learning where the frequency of a behavior depends on the consequence that follows that behavior
• The frequency will increase if the consequence is reinforcing to the subject.

• The frequency will decrease if the consequence is not reinforcing or punishing to the subject.

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B.F. Skinner

Thorndike’s The Law of Effect

• Law of Effect:
• Behaviors with favorable consequences will occur more frequently.
• Behaviors with unfavorable consequences will occur less frequently.
• Created puzzle boxes for research on cats

Thorndike’s Puzzle Box�“Thorndike’s Puzzle Box” �Video #8 from Worth’s Digital Media Archive (2 min)�

Thorndike’s Puzzle Box

B. F. Skinner (1904–1990)

• Believed that internal factors like thoughts, emotions, and beliefs could not be used to explain behavior.
• Instead said that new behaviors were actively chosen by the organism
• Looked at “Operants” or active behaviors that are used on the environment to generate consequences
• Developed the fundamental principles and techniques of operant conditioning and devised ways to apply them in the real world

The Skinner Box/Operant Chamber�

Skinner’s Air Crib:�A room fit for a…Baby!

To read more on this invention: Click Here!

Some Reinforcement Procedures:�Shaping

Shaping Principles

• Shaping nonverbal animals can show what they perceive. Train an animal to discriminate between classes of events or objects.
• After being trained to discriminate between flowers, people, cars, and chairs, a pigeon can usually identify in which of these categories a new pictured object belongs

• Skinner attached some horizontal stripes to the wall which he then used to gauge the dog's responses of lifting its head higher and higher.
• Then, he simply set about shaping a jumping response by flashing the strobe (and simultaneously taking a picture), followed by giving a meat treat, each time the dog satisfied the criterion for reinforcement.
• The result of this process is shown below, as it was in LOOK magazine, in terms of the pictures taken at different points in the shaping process.
• Within 20 minutes, Skinner had Agnes "running up the wall"

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For the second shaping demonstration, Skinner trained Agnes to press the pedal and pop the top on the wastebasket.

Again, the photographer's flash served as the conditioned reinforcer, and each step in the process was photographed. The results are shown below.

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Discriminative Stimuli

• An environmental stimulus that triggers you to do a certain behavior that will have a consequence.
• In the presence of a specific environmental stimulus (discriminative stimuli) we emit a particular behavior (the operant) which is followed by a consequence (reinforcement or punishment)
• Example: A ringing phone is a discriminative stimulus that sets a particular response of picking it up and speaking in it
• Example: We can find out if an animal can discriminate between different colors by only rewarding it when it pecks at the correct color that matches the picture.

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Reinforcement vs Punishment

• Reinforcement - Any consequence that increases the likelihood of the behavior it follows
• Reinforcement is ALWAYS GOOD!!!
• Punishment - Any consequence that decreases the likelihood of the behavior it follows
• The subject determines if a consequence is reinforcing or punishing

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Reinforcement:�- Always GOOD�so it increases a behavior!

Positive (Additive)�Reinforcement

• Strengthens a response by presenting a stimulus that you like after a response
• Anything that increases the likelihood of a behavior by following it with a desirable event or state
• The subject receives something they want (added)
• Will strengthen the behavior

Positive Reinforcement

Negative (Subtractive)�Reinforcement

• Strengthens a response by reducing or removing an aversive (disliked) stimulus
• Anything that increases the likelihood of a behavior by following it with the removal of an undesirable event or state
• Something the subject doesn’t like is removed (subtracted)
• Will strengthen the behavior
• Neg. Rein. Allows you to either:
• Escape something you don’t like that is already present (Neg. Rein. By Escape)
• Avoid something before it occurs (Neg. Rein. By Avoidance)

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Negative Reinforcement

Positive/Negative Reinforcement

Positive adds something good!

Negative subtracts something bad!

BOTH ARE GOOD THINGS!!!

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How is Neg. Reinforcement different from Punishment?

• Negative Reinforcement will always increase a behavior
• Punishment will always decrease a behavior
• Negative Reinforcement is something YOU DO to take away something bad. It provides relief. It is a GOOD thing!
• Punishment is something DONE TO YOU that is BAD and makes you stop doing a behavior.

Primary Versus Secondary Reinforcement

Primary Reinforcement

• Something that is naturally/innately satisfying
• Examples: food, warmth, water, etc.
• The item is biologically reinforcing in and of itself
• If on a deserted island, these are what you’d want!

Conditioned/Secondary Reinforcement

• Something that a person has Learned to value or finds rewarding because it is paired or associated with a primary reinforcer
• Money is a good example.
• So are grades and signs of respect & approval.

Immediate vs Delayed Reinforcement

Immediate Reinforcers

• Immediate reinforcers – behaviors that immediately precedes the reinforcer becomes more likely to occur
• (This true when training animals. Can’t wait for a long time before reinforcing or the animal won’t know what behavior you are reinforcing)

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Delayed Reinforcers

• Also called Delayed Gratification – forgoing a small immediate reinforcement for a greater reinforcement later.
• Humans do this with paychecks, grades.
• When do we NOT do this?
• Stay up late to watch TV when next day we’re tired
• Smoke for satisfaction now when later it will kill us

Immediate/Delayed Reinforcement

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• Immediate reinforcement is more effective than delayed reinforcement for initial learning
• Delayed Reinforcement is more resistant to extinction.
• Ability to delay gratification predicts higher achievement

Extinction

• In operant conditioning, the loss of a conditioned behavior when consequences no longer follow it.
• After reinforcement is removed, the behavior goes up for short time before becoming extinct.

I won’t be checking it though

Schedules of Reinforcement

Continuous reinforcement

• A schedule of reinforcement in which a reward follows every correct response
• Advantage: Learning occurs rapidly
• Disadvantage: Behavior will extinguish quickly once the reinforcement stops.
• Once that reliable pop machine eats your money twice in a row, you stop putting money into it.

Partial Reinforcement

• A schedule of reinforcement in which a reward follows only some correct responses
• Disadvantage: Learning of behavior will take longer
• Advantage: Will be more resistant to extinction
• Includes the following types:
• Fixed-interval and variable interval
• Fixed-ratio and variable-ratio

Fixed-Ratio Schedule

• A partial reinforcement schedule that rewards a response only after some set number of correct responses
• The faster the subject responds, the more reinforcements they will receive.
• Example: Piece Work: You get $5 for every basket of apples you pick.

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Variable-Ratio Schedule

• A partial reinforcement schedule that rewards an unpredictable average number of correct responses
• High rates of responding with little pause in order to increase chances of getting reinforcement
• This schedule is very resistant to extinction.
• Vegas Rules! Sometimes called the “gambler’s schedule”; similar to a slot machine or fishing

Fixed-Interval Schedule

• A partial reinforcement schedule that rewards only the first correct response after some set period of time
• Produces gradual responses at first and increases as you get closer to the time of reinforcement
• “Procrastinator Schedule”
• Example: a known weekly quiz in a class, checking cookies after the 10 minute baking period.

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Variable-Interval Schedule

• A partial reinforcement that rewards the first correct response after an unpredictable amount of time
• Produces slow and steady responses
• Example: “pop” quiz in a class
• “Are we there yet?” – ask all you want, doesn’t mean it speeds up when the reinforcement of arriving will happen

Ask Yourself…

• Can the animal speed up its reinforcement by doing the behavior?
• If YES – Ratio If NO - Interval
• Does the animal do the behavior a certain number of times in order to get reinforcement? Fixed Ratio
• Does the animal NOT know the number of times it needs to do the behavior in order to get reinforcement? Variable Ratio

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• Is the example dealing with the amount of time that elapses from when it does the behavior till it gets reinforcement? If YES - Interval
• Doing the behavior more will NOT speed up how often the animal receives reinforcement.
• Does the amount of time between the behavior and reinforcement always stay the same? Fixed Interval
• Does the amount time between doing the behavior and reinforcement change? Variable Interval

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Comparing Schedules of Reinforcement

Schedules of Reinforcement create different rates of responding

Punishment:�Always BAD

Punishment

• An undesirable event following a behavior
• Behavior ends a desirable event or state
• Its effect is opposite that of reinforcement – it decreases the frequency of behavior

Positive Punishment�(Punishment by Application)

• Something is added to the environment you do NOT like.
• A verbal reprimand or something painful like a spanking

Negative Punishment�(Punishment by Removal)

• Something is taken away that you DO LIKE.
• Lose a privilege.

Positive Punishment

Negative Punishment

The Good Effects of Punishment

• Punishment can effectively control certain behaviors if…
• It comes immediately after the undesired behavior
• It is consistent and not occasional
• Especially useful if teaching a child not to do a dangerous behavior
• Most still suggest using a time out model and then reinforcing an incompatible behavior
• People learn more from feedback that tells them where they’ve succeeded rather than where they’ve failed.

Bad Effects of Physical Punishment

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• 5 Drawbacks to Physical Punishment:
1. Punished behavior is suppressed, not forgotten.
• If child stops bad behavior, parent is negatively reinforced to use physical punishment again
2. Does not teach or promote alternative, acceptable behavior.
• Only tells what NOT to do while reinforcement tells what to do.
3. Doesn’t prevent the undesirable behavior when away from the punisher in a “safe setting” (discrimination)
4. Can lead to fear of the punisher, anxiety, and lower self-esteem
5. Children who are punished physically may learn to use aggression as a means to solve problems.

Reinforcement vs. Punishment

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Punishment tells you what NOT to do while Reinforcement tells you what TO do.

Types of Reinforcement & Punishment

Thoughts from Skinner:

• Skinner believed from the moment of birth, the environment shapes and determines your behavior through reinforcing or punishing consequences. – You don’t really have Free Will.
• “B.F. Skinner Interview” (4 min) – Discusses Schedules of Reinforcement & Free Will
• Video #9 from Worth’s Digital Media Archive for Psychology.

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A person does not act upon the world, the world acts upon him.