classical.140

• Operant conditioning


  A type of learning in which the future probability of a behavior is affected by its consequences
• Law of effect (before 1930)

  • Developed by Edward Lee Thorndike
  • If a response is followed by a satisfying state of affairs, the strength of the connection is increased
  • If a response is followed by an annoying state of affairs, the strength of the connection is decreased
• Confirming reaction


  Triggered in the nervous system if a response results in a satisfying state of affairs, strengthens neural bonds
• Revised law of effect

  Deemphasized role of punishment, found this to have no effect on the strength of the connection, learner may engage in certain other behaviors that interfere with performance of the punished response
• Thorndike: Major theoretical concept

  • Connectionism - sense impressions and impulses to action become associated through a neural bond
  • Most basic form of learning was trial-and-error learning
  • Learning is incremental, not insightful
  • Learning is not mediated by ideas
  • All mammals learn in the same manner
• Burrhus Frederic Skinner


  A response that is followed by a reinforcer is strengthened and therefore more likely to occur again, emphasized the effect of the consequence on the future probability of the behavior
• Operant conditioning (three-term contingency)

  • Antecedent - a discriminative stimulus that precedes the response and signals that a certain consequence is now available
  • Behavior - a response that produces a certain consequence
  • Consequence - what follows the response that serves to increase or decrease the probability of the response that preceded it
• Four types of contingencies (response-consequence relationships)

  • Positive reinforcement
  • Negative reinforcement
  • Positive punishment
  • Negative punishment
• Positive reinforcement


  • Primary reinforcer & secondary reinforcer/conditioned reinforcer
  • Intrinsic reinforcement vs extrinsic reinforcement
  • Material reinforcers & social reinforcers
  • Activity reinforcers
• Positive reinforcement example


  • The reward is expected
  • The reward is tangible
  • The reward is given for simply performing the activity
• Premack principle


  Any response that occurs with a fairly high frequency can be used to reinforce a response that occurs with a relatively lower frequency, what can act as a reinforcer becomes a very personal and continuously changing thing
• Negative reinforcement


  Do not confuse with punishment, escape behavior - results in termination of an aversive stimulus, avoidance behavior - occurs before the aversive stimulus is presented and therefore prevents its delivery
• Negative reinforcement examples


  • Open umbrella → Escape rain
  • Claim illness → Avoid taking an exam
  • Take biogesic → Eliminate headache
  • Turn on aircon → Escape the heat
• Positive punishment


  Presentation of a stimulus (one that is usually considered unpleasant or aversive) following a response, which then leads to a decrease in the future strength of that response
• Positive punishment examples


  • Talk back to teacher → Get reprimanded
  • Meow constantly → Get sprayed with water
  • Swat at the wasp → Get stung
• Negative punishment


  Removal of a stimulus (one that is usually considered pleasant or rewarding) following a response, which then leads to a decrease in the future strength of that response
• Negative punishment examples


  • Getting grounded after violating curfew
  • Time-out after misbehaving
  • Getting a deduction for late submission
• Stimulus control


  Presence of a discriminative stimulus reliably affects the probability of the behavior
• Stimulus control examples


  • Chronically disruptive students are more likely to behave appropriately during the independent seat work if student desks are arranged in traditional rows that minimize face-to-face contact with classmates
  • Teachers brings out toy box and children know that they can get out of their seats and talk to each other because it is playtime
  • At red lights, we stop; at green lights, we proceed
• Shaping


  Gradual creation of new operant behaviors through reinforcement of successive approximations to that behavior
• Shaping examples


  • Improvement of the performance of a university pole-vaulter by extending arms completely at take-off
  • Therapists used toys and other desired items as reinforcers to get an 8-year-old boy with intellectual disabilities to use a mask that delivered medication he needed to treat a serious respiratory condition
  • Patients who were cocaine users received vouchers that could be exchanged for items such as movie tickets if their urine samples showed at least a 25% reduction in cocaine metabolites compared to their previous test. Eventually, they could earn vouchers only if there was no sign of cocaine in their urine samples.
• Chaining


  A sequence of behaviors that must occur in a specific order with the primary reinforcer being delivered only after the final response of the sequence, backward chaining - start with the last response of the chain and work backward
• Biological constraints on operant conditioning

  Instinctive drift - performance drifted away from the reinforced behaviors and toward instinctive behaviors that occur when it is seeking the reinforcement (e.g., food) in a natural environment
• Schedules of reinforcement


  • Continuous reinforcement schedule (CRF)
  • Fixed ratio
  • Variable ratio
  • Fixed interval
  • Variable interval
• Fixed ratio


  Reinforcement is contingent upon a fixed, predictable number of responses, generally produce a high rate of response along with a short pause (PRP) following the attainment of each reinforcer
• Variable ratio


  Reinforcement is contingent upon a varying, unpredictable number of responses, generally produce a high rate of response, often with little or no PRP
• Fixed interval


  Reinforcement is contingent upon the first response after a fixed, predictable period of time, often produce a "scalloped" pattern of responding, consisting of a PRP followed by a gradually increasing rate of response as the interval draws to a close
• Variable interval


  Reinforcement is contingent upon the first response after a varying, unpredictable period of time, usually produces a moderate, steady rate of response, often with little or no PRP
• Spontaneous recovery


  Reappearance of an extinguished response following a rest period after extinction
• Extinction


  Return to the operant level when we remove the reinforcer from the operant conditioning situation, determining the effective reinforcer that is maintaining a behavior is a critical first step, can be greatly facilitated by both extinguishing the target behavior and reinforcing the occurrence of a replacement behavior (differential reinforcement of the other behavior)
• Resistance to extinction


  The schedule of reinforcement is the most important factor, behavior that has been maintained on an intermittent (partial) schedule of reinforcement will extinguish more slowly than behavior that has been maintained on a continuous schedule, the more reinforcers received for a behavior, the greater the resistance, large-magnitude reinforcers result in greater resistance than small-magnitude reinforcers, the greater the level of deprivation, the greater the resistance to extinction
• Stimulus generalization


  Tendency for an operant response to be emitted in the presence of a stimulus that is similar to a discriminative stimulus, the more similar the stimulus, the stronger the response
• Stimulus discrimination


  Tendency for an operant response to be emitted more in the presence of one stimulus than another
• Differences between classical and operant conditioning

  • Behavior is involuntary and inflexible in classical conditioning, behavior is voluntary and flexible in operant conditioning
  • Behavior is "elicited by stimulus" in classical conditioning, behavior is "emitted by the organism" in operant conditioning
  • Behavior is a function of what comes before it in classical conditioning, behavior is a function of what comes after it in operant conditioning
  • Conditioning involves a stimulus-stimulus-response (S-S-R) sequence in classical conditioning, conditioning involves a stimulus-response-stimulus (S-R-S) sequence in operant conditioning
• The processes of operant and classical conditioning overlap such that a particular stimulus can simultaneously act as both a discriminative stimulus and a conditioned stimulus
• How to identify the reinforcement contingency

  Identify if the contingency is positive or negative, identify if a behavior is being reinforced or punished, put it all together to indicate if it is PR, PP, NR, or NP
• Example of identifying reinforcement contingency


  • You study hard for your calculus exam and earn an A. Your parents send you P1000. In the future, you study harder hoping to receive another gift for an exemplary grade - this is PR
• Accidental/adventitious responding


  Pigeons appeared to be responding as if their behavior controlled the delivery of the reinforcer when, in fact, the food was provided irrespective of what the pigeons were doing, Skinner called this superstitious behavior, non-contingent reinforcement
• Factors affecting effectiveness of punishment

  • Manner of introduction
  • Immediacy of punishment
  • Schedule of punishment
  • Motivation to respond
• Disadvantages of using punishment

  • Punishment can elicit several emotional effects, such as fear and anger, which are generally disruptive of learning and performance
  • Punishment can sometimes lead to a general suppression of all behaviors, not only the behavior being punished
  • In real-world situations the use of punishment demands the continual monitoring of the individual's behavior
  • A practical problem with the use of punishment is that individuals may try to circumvent the rules or escape from the situation entirely