operant conditioning

• What does operant conditioning involve?

  Learning through consequence
• What happens when people behave in a particular way and are rewarded?

  It reinforces that behavior
• What effect does reinforcement have on behavior?

  It increases behavior
• What effect does punishment have on behavior?

  It decreases behavior
• What is positive reinforcement?


  Recipient receives something desirable
• What is negative reinforcement?


  Removal of something undesirable
• What is positive punishment?


  Recipient receives something undesirable
• What is negative punishment?


  Removal of something desirable
• What are the key components of operant conditioning?

  • Learning through consequence
  • Reinforcement increases behavior
  • Punishment decreases behavior
  • Positive and negative reinforcement
  • Positive and negative punishment
• What is a primary reinforcer?

  Basic biological needs like food and water
• What is a secondary reinforcer?

  Can be exchanged for primary reinforcers
• What is a token economy?

  A system where tokens are given for desirable behavior
• In what settings can reinforcements be exchanged for rewards?

  Schools, prisons, and collecting stamps
• What is continuous reinforcement?

  Rewarding desirable behavior every time it occurs
• What is a fixed ratio reinforcement schedule?


  Rewarding behavior every nth time it occurs
• What is behavioral modification shaping?

  • Behaviors increasingly approximate the desired behavior
  • Similar behaviors are rewarded until the desired behavior is achieved
  • Involves reinforcement schedules for gradual improvement
• How does behavioral modification shaping work?

  Rewards are given for behaviors similar to the desired behavior
• What does it mean to increasingly approximate the desired behavior?

  To gradually improve behaviors towards the goal
• What is the purpose of a reinforcement schedule?

  To determine how often behavior is rewarded
• How can a token economy be beneficial in schools?

  Encourages desirable behavior through rewards
• What is the difference between primary and secondary reinforcers?

  Primary reinforcers fulfill biological needs, secondary do not
• What are the applications of operant conditioning in society?

  • Training of animals (guide dogs, police dogs, horses)
  • Retail (vouchers and reward points)
  • Token economies (prisons, hospitals, schools)
  • Society operates on principles of tokens and money
• what are the strength and weknesses of the evidence of operent conditioning,

  strength

  • thorndale and skinner operant conditiong can be applied to animals like cats, dogs, pigeons
  • using controlled labatory experiments they were able to identify various schedules of reinforcment they have been replicated and have good reliability

  weakness

  • focuses on only learning in animals difficult to generalise
• strengths and shortcomings of operant conditioning as an explanation of behviour

  weaknesses

  • findings cannot be applied to humans
  • ethical issues in using animals
  • research may lack ecological validity because behaviours can be repeated without any need for reward.

  strengths-

  • good scientific framwork, replicable and objective meaning very testable and high levels of empirical evidence