Operant Conditioning

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Operant Conditioning

• Module 27

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Edward Thorndike

• Puzzle box
• See how animals learned
• Theory of Instrumental Learning
• Explain how individuals learn voluntary
  goal-directed behaviors
• Law of Effect
• Voluntary behavior followed by a outcome would
  be repeated and voluntary behavior followed by a
  outcome would not be repeated

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B.F. Skinner

• Behaviorist
• Operant Conditioning
• A particular behavior is increased or decreased
  in frequency based on the consequence that
  follows.
• Skinner Box (Operant Chamber)
• Studies operant behavior of animals by providing
  a controlled environment

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Skinner Air Crib
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Skinner Box
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Skinner Box
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Skinner and Pigeons
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Operant conditioning

• Reinforcements
• Consequences that encourage a behavior to happen
  again
• Can be or

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Reinforcers

• Primary
• Fulfill a biological need
• Food, water, air, shelter, sleep, pain removal
• Secondary
• Stimuli that are associated with primary
  reinforcers
• It varies among people

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Behavior Modification

• Involves techniques designed to change unwanted
  behaviors and increase the frequency of positive
  behaviors
• Tokens
• Objects or points given
• Schools, prisons, mental hospitals

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Positive Reinforcement

• Add a desirable stimulus after the behavior to
  increase the likelihood of the behavior occurring
  in the future
• video

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Negative Reinforcement

• Procedure of removing an undesirable stimulus
  after the behaviorto increase the likelihood of
  the behavior happening again in the future

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Negative Reinforcement

• Negative does not mean bad or undesirable
• NR is NOT punishmentremoval of something
  unpleasant or an escape from an unwanted
  condition

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Examples

• Loud buzz in some cars when ignition key is
  turned on driver must put on safety belt in
  order to eliminate irritating dinging
• Grace picks up the clothes on her bedroom floor
  and her mother stops nagging. The removal of
  nagging(undesirable behavior) leads Grace to want
  to pick up the clothes on her bedroom floor more
  often.
• Taking an aspirin for headache. If a persons
  headache (stimulus) goes away after taking
  aspirin (behavior), then it is likely that the
  person will take the aspirin for headaches in the
  future.

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Punishment

• The addition or removal of stimuli to decrease a
  voluntary behavior

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Positive Punishment

• Adding an undesirable stimulus (punisher) to
  decrease the likelihood of the behavior occurring
  again

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Positive Punishment

• Jeff stays out late and has to do more chores.
  The addition of the chores leads to Jeff not
  wanting to stay out late again.
• I run into a pole when texting.
• Someone frowns when you tell a joke.
• Receiving a ticket for speeding.

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Negative Punishment

• Involves removing a desirable stimulus after the
  behavior to decrease the likelihood of the
  behavior occurring in the future.

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Negative Punishment

• Amy uses her cell phone in class, and the teacher
  takes the cell phone away.
• Removing the bedroom hinges after child slams it
  in anger.
• You come in late for curfew. You lose the keys
  to your car for a week.

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Shaping and Chaining

• Methods of operant conditioning
• Shaping
• A desired response is created by gradually
  reinforcing successively closer approximations of
  a behavior until correct behavior is displayed
• Chaining
• Method for teaching a series of behaviors where
  each response cues the next response

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Scheduling of Reinforcement

• Continuous Reinforcement
• Happens all the time
• Intermittent Reinforcement
• It doesnt occur every time

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Intermittent Reinforcement Schedules

• Four Types
• Determine if the reinforcement is given after a
  fixed (set) or variable (changing) schedule.
• Determine if the reinforcement is given after a
  ratio (number of correct behaviors) or interval
  (time period that has passed) schedule.

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Ratio Schedules of Reinforcement

• Ratio - of responses
• Fixed or Variable
• Fixed ratio schedules
• Reinforcement occurs after a predetermined set of
  responses
• An employer pays workers for every 3 baskets of
  fruit they pick
• After 9 lunch buffets you buy at Fields of Pizza,
  you get a free lunch buffet.

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Ratio Schedules of Reinforcement

• Variable ratio schedules
• Reinforcement is given after a changing number of
  correct behaviors occur.
• Slot machines
• Making sales on commision

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Interval Schedules of Reinforcement

• Interval time
• Fixed Interval Schedules
• Reinforcement occurs after a predetermined time
  has elapsed
• Pay check every two weeks

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Interval Schedules of Reinforcement

• Variable Interval Schedules
• Reinforcement occurs unpredictably since the time
  interval varies
• Pop quizzes
• fishing

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Superstitious Behavior

• B.F. Skinner
• Partial reinforcement behavior
• While there is a correlation between behavior and
  eventthere is no causal relationship
• Lucky numbers
• Serena Williams
• Bounces ball 5 times before first serve and two
  times before her second serve

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Superstitious Behavior

• Michael Jordan
• Believed his baby blue mesh shorts brought him
  such good luck in college when he won the
  championship. He continued to wear those shorts
  under his Chicago Bulls uniform. In order to
  cover up his lucky shorts, Jordan wearing longer
  shorts, which inspired a change in the uniform
  style of the NBA.

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Superstitions

• 25 Most Common Superstitions

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Classical vs Operant

• Compare
• Classical and Operant conditioning are both
  studied by behaviorists and share common
  terminology, such as acquisition, generalization,
  discrimination, and extinction.

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Classical vs. Operant

• Contrast
• Classical conditioning involves involuntary
  responses that occur from the paring of stimuli.
  Operant conditioning involves voluntary
  spontaneous behaviors that are guided by
  consequences.

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Classical vs. Operant
Video