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Operant Conditioning and Social Learning Theory 

The Effect of Reinforcement In Chapter 8 we discussed Skinner's emphasis of the role of reinforcementin learning. After demonstrating that organisms tend to repeat actions that are reinforced and thatbehavior can be shaped by reinforcement, Skinner developed the technique of programmed instruction tomake it possible for students to be reinforced for every correct response. According to Skinner, supplying

the correct answer--and being informed by the program that it is the correct answer--motivates thestudent to go on to the next frame; and as the student works through the program, the desired terminalbehavior is progressively shaped.

Following Skinner's lead, many behavioral learning theorists devised techniques of behavior modificationon the assumption that students are motivated to complete a task by being promised a reward of somekind. Many times the reward takes the form of praise or a grade. Sometimes it is a token that can betraded in for some desired object; and at other times the reward may be the privilege of engaging in aself-selected activity.

Operant conditioning interpretations of learning may help reveal why some students react favorably toparticular subjects and dislike others. For instance, some students may enter a required math class with afeeling of delight, while others may feel that they have been sentenced to prison. Skinner suggests that

such differences can be traced to past experiences. He would argue that the student who loves math hasbeen shaped to respond that way by a series of positive experiences with math. The math hater, incontrast, may have suffered a series of negative experiences.

The Power of Persuasive Models Social learning theorists, such as Albert Bandura, call attention to theimportance of observation, imitation, and vicarious reinforcement (expecting to receive the samereinforcer that we see someone else get for exhibiting a particular behavior). A student who identifies withand admires a teacher of a particular subject may work hard partly to please the admired individual andpartly to try becoming like that individual. A student who observes an older brother or sister reapingbenefits from earning high grades may strive to do the same with the expectation of experiencing thesame or similar benefits. A student who notices that a classmate receives praise from the teacher after acting in a certain way may decide to imitate such behavior to win similar rewards. As we pointed out inChapter 8, both vicarious reinforcement and direct reinforcement can raise an individual's sense of self-

efficacy for a particular task, which, in turn, leads to higher levels of motivation.

Operant conditioning and Social learning  by admin on February 27, 2007

Operant conditioning argues that behavior is a function if its consequences. People learn to behave to get some thing they want or to avoid something they don’t want. Operant behavior 

means voluntary or learned behavior in contrast to reflexive or unlearned behavior. The tendency

to repeat such behavior is influenced by the reinforcement or lack of reinforcement brought

about by the consequences of the behavior. Therefore, reinforcement, strengthen a behavior andincreases the likelihood that it will be repeated.

The Harvard psychologists B.F Skinner did research on operant conditioning. Skinner arguedthat creating pleasing consequences to follow specific forms of behavior would increase the

frequency of that behavior.

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People will most likely engage in desired behaviors if they are positively reinforced for doing so;

that rewards are most effective if they immediately follow the desired response; and that

 behavior is not rewarded, or is punished, is less likely to be repeated.

Illustration of operant conditioning can be seen everywhere. For, any situation in which it is

either explicitly stated or implicitly suggested that reinforcement are contingent on some actionon an individual involves the use of operant learning. If an instructor says that if a higher grade

in the course is required then the student must supply correct answers on the test. A

commissioned salesperson wanting to earn a sizable income finds that doing so is contingent ongenerating high sales in his/her territory. Of course, the linkage can also work to teach the

individual to engage in behaviors that work against the best interests of the organization.

Assume that of a boss tells his subordinate to work overtime during the next three-week busy

seasons, he’ll be compensated for it at the next performance appraisal. However when

 performance appraisal time comes, the subordinate finds that he is given no positive

reinforcement for overtime work. The next time the boss asks him to work overtime, what will

he do? He’ll probably decline! His behavior can be explained by operant conditioning: If a behavior fails to be positively reinforced, the probability that the behavior will be repeated

declines.

Individuals can also learn by observing what happens to other people and just by being told

about something, as well as by direct experiences. So, for example, much of what we havelearned comes from watching models — parents, teachers, peers, motion picture and television

 performers, bosses, and so forth. This view that we can learn through both observation and direct

experience is called social-learning.

Although social-learning theory is an extension of operant conditioning — that is, it assumes that

 behavior is a function of consequences – it also acknowledges the existence of observationallearning and the importance of perception in learning. People respond to how they perceive anddefine consequences, not to the objective consequences themselves.