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Module 10 Operant & Cognitive Approaches. Thorndike’s Law of Effect. Behaviors followed by positive consequences are strengthened while behaviors followed by negative consequences are weakened. Skinner’s Operant Conditioning.
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Thorndike’s Law of Effect • Behaviors followed by positive consequences are strengthened while behaviors followed by negative consequences are weakened
Skinner’s Operant Conditioning • An operant response is a response that can be modified by its consequences and is a meaningful unit of ongoing behavior that can be easily measured • Operant conditioning focuses on how consequences affect behavior Source: Based on Behavior of Organisms, by B. F. Skinner, 1938. Appleton-Century-Crofts.
Reinforcement & Punishment • Reinforcement (Strengthens Behavior) • A consequence that occurs after a behavior and increases the likelihood that the behavior will occur again • Punishment (Weakens Behavior) • A consequence that occurs after a behavior and decreases the chance that the behavior will occur again
Reinforcement & Punishment • Reinforcement (Strengthens Behavior) • A consequence that occurs after a behavior and increases the likelihood that the behavior will occur again • Positive reinforcement • presentation of a stimulus that increases the probability that the behavior will occur again • Negative reinforcement • an aversive stimulus whose removal increases the likelihood that the preceding response will occur again
Reinforcement & Punishment • Punishment (Weakens Behavior) • A consequence that occurs after a behavior and decreases the chance that the behavior will occur again • Positive punishment • Presenting an aversive stimulus after a response • It decreases the chances that a response will recur • Negative punishment • Removing a reinforcing stimulus after a response • It decreases the chances that a response will recur
Clarification of Terms • Reinforcement vs. Punishment • Reinforcement- Strengthens preceding behavior • Punishment- Weakens preceding behavior • Positive vs. Negative • Positive- adding/ introducing a stimulus • Negative- subtracting/ taking away a stimulus
Examples of Operant Conditioning: Toilet Training • Target behavior • Goal is for Sheryl to urinate in the toilet • Preparation • Give Sheryl a large glass of apple juice • Reinforcers • Each time Sheryl performs the desired behavior, she receives an immediate reinforcer • Shaping • Each time Sheryl performs a step that leads up to using the toilet, she receives reinforcement
Primary vs. Secondary Reinforcers • Primary reinforcer • Stimulus that is innately satisfying and requires no learning to become pleasurable • Food, water, and sex • Secondary reinforcer • Stimulus that has acquired its reinforcing power through experience • Coupons, money, and grades
Negative Reinforcement Examples • Taking an aspirin to relieve a headache. • Hurrying home in the winter to get out of the cold. • Giving in to an argument or to a dog’s begging. • Fanning oneself to escape the heat. • Leaving a movie theater if the movie is bad. • Smoking in order to relieve anxiety. • Following prison rules in order to be released from confinement. • Feigning a stomachache in order to avoid school. • Putting on a car safety belt to stop an irritating buzz. • Turning down the volume of a very loud radio. • Putting up an umbrella to escape the rain. • Saying “uncle” to stop being beaten.
BE CAREFUL, OPERANT CONDITIONING VARIES WITH THE INDIVIDUAL…
Classifying Consequences What type of operant conditioning is it?
Which consequence? • Positive reinforcement • Negative reinforcement • Positive punishment • Negative punishment
Positive Reinforcement • A rat presses a bar and receives a food pellet. • ADDING a pleasant consequence that INCREASES the likelihood of the behavior
Positive Punishment • A child swears and is spanked. • ADDING an unpleasant consequence that DECREASES the likelihood of the behavior
Negative Punishment • A child has her bike taken away for crashing it. • SUBTRACTING a pleasant consequence that DECREASES the likelihood of the behavior
Negative Punishment • A teenager is put on restriction for keeping the car out too late. • SUBTRACTING a pleasant consequence that DECREASES the likelihood of the behavior
Negative Reinforcement • A child swims three more laps just so he can stop swimming which he hates. • SUBTRACTING an unpleasant consequence that INCREASES the likelihood of the behavior
Positive Reinforcement • You study and earn an A. • ADDING a pleasant consequences that INCREASES the likelihood of the behavior
Positive Punishment • You party all night and get an F. • ADDING an unpleasant consequence that DECREASES the likelihood of the behavior
Positive Punishment • You are caught speeding and are given a ticket by the highway patrol. • ADDING an unpleasant consequence that DECREASES the likelihood of the behavior
Negative Punishment • A child is acting up in class and is sent to the corner of the room for 10 minutes. • SUBTRACTING a pleasant consequence that DECREASES the likelihood of the behavior
Negative Reinforcement • You clean up your room to avoid your mom’s nagging. • SUBTRACTING an unpleasant consequence that INCREASES the likelihood of the behavior
Negative Reinforcement • Since you find that aspirin relieves your headaches, you find yourself taking it every time you feel a headache coming on. • SUBTRACTING an unpleasant consequence that INCREASES the likelihood of the behavior
Negative Reinforcement • Whenever shock is applied to a rat’s feet, it presses a lever to stop it. • SUBTRACTING an unpleasant consequence that INCREASES the likelihood of the behavior
Negative Reinforcement • A rat has learned to press a lever whenever a light comes on in order to prevent shock from ever being applied. • SUBTRACTING an unpleasant consequence that INCREASES the likelihood of the behavior
Positive Reinforcement • Every time a child says the words “mommy” or “daddy,” both parents get very excited and pay extra attention to him. Soon the child is saying these words more and more. • ADDING a pleasant consequences that INCREASES the likelihood of the behavior