Operant Conditioning Psychology 1

Learning from the consequences of one’s actions

Involves reinforcement (rewards) and punishment

Ideal behaviors are followed by a consequence of reinforcement, which increases the frequency of the behavior

Definition

Positive reinforcement- adding something pleasant to increase the frequency of a behavior◦ Ex- After studying, you get an A on your test; so

you study more often

Negative reinforcement- removing something unpleasant to increase the frequency of a behavior ◦ Ex- After being pestered by your mom to take out

the trash, you start taking out the trash every day

Reinforcement

Receive and something unpleasant to decrease the frequency of a behavior◦ Ex- After littering, you are given a hefty fine; so

you stop littering Not as effective as reinforcement

Punishment

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Mt4N9GSBoMI

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=imkbuKomPXI (stop at ~1:30)

Clips

Continuous reinforcement- reinforcing a behavior every time it occurs

Partial reinforcement- reinforcing a behavior intermittently

Shaping- teaching complex behaviors by reinforcing small steps in the right direction at a time

Latent learning- learning that remains hidden until it is needed ◦ Ex- CPR

Schedules of Reinforcement

Primary reinforcers- food, water, sex, shelter, warmth, etc. ◦ Deal with biological

functions

Secondary reinforcers- money attention, social approval, good grades◦ Deal with some kind of

value, have to be learned

Reinforcers

Psychologist, most known for Project Pigeon and his discoveries with Operant Conditioning

During WWII, Skinner proposed training pigeons to guide missiles to targets

Pigeons would be given food for pecking at targets on a screen

When they learned to peck at the targets, they would be placed in missiles

B.F. Skinner

•They would peck at similar targets on a screen in the missile, guiding the flight path

Project Pigeon was ended due to bulky equipment

Good example of operant conditioning◦ The birds learned to do a

behavior based on the consequences of their actions

◦ Pecking at the targets earned them food

B.F. Skinner

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=I_ctJqjlrHA (skinner’s box)

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tWtvrPTbQ_c (gaming- stop at ~3 mins)

Clips