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Operant conditioning

Operant conditioning. Zimbardo, P.G. & Johnson, R.L. & McCann, V. (2009). Learning and human nurture . In S. Frail (Ed.) Psychology: Core Concepts (pp. 91-114). (6 th ed.) Boston, MA: Pearson Education, Inc. Operant conditioning. Voluntary (not just reflexes = CC) Reward and punishments

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Operant conditioning

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  1. Operant conditioning Zimbardo, P.G. & Johnson, R.L. & McCann, V. (2009). Learning and human nurture. In S. Frail (Ed.) Psychology: Core Concepts (pp. 91-114). (6th ed.) Boston, MA: Pearson Education, Inc.

  2. Operant conditioning • Voluntary (not just reflexes = CC) • Reward and punishments • Consequences of behavior encourage or discourage behavior • Consequences = reward or punishment • More important than classical conditioning

  3. Behaviorism • Skinner - consequences • Thorndike – law of effect • dog in a box • Skinner uses law of effect but gets rid of ‘the mind’ = Radical behaviorism

  4. Reinforcement • Try to reinforce the behavior; you want the behavior to happen again, to be repeated: • Positive reinforcement • Negative reinforcement

  5. Positive Reinforcement • Positive reinforcer follows and strengthens a response • food, money, sex • smile, praise • Positive reinforcement behavior will happen again

  6. Negative Reinforcement • Negative reinforcer is taken away and strengthens the response • rain • noise • Negative reinforcement  behavior will happen again • The Skinner box • Big Bang

  7. The Skinner Box or Operant Chamber

  8. Time and frequency of reinforcements • Crucial • Continuous reinforcement • Shaping – The Pony • Disadvantages: • Not always a reward for good behavior • Subject could get full • Experiment

  9. Intermittent reinforcement • Not rewarding all correct responses • Already learned behavior • Social reinforcement – ‘Good dog’ • Resistance to extinction (2 slotmachines) • Schedules of reinforcement • Ratio – reinforcement after a certain number of responses • Interval – reinforcement after a certain time interval

  10. Time and frequency of intermittent reinforcements • Fixed ratio • Variable ratio • Fixed interval • Variable interval

  11. Ratio schedules • Fixed ratio (FR) • work faster • production • disadvantages? • Variable ratio (VR) • less predictable, very effective • telemarketing • slot machines

  12. Interval schedules • Fixed interval (FI) • weekly quizzes • rats in a lab • paycheck (extension of a weekly contract) • Variable interval (VI) • random visits boss • pop quizzes • fishing

  13. B.F. Skinner • Schedule of reinforcement • Ping Pong

  14. Applied to a work situation • Which of these schedules of reinforcement is useful for what type of job? • Paycheck or supervision?

  15. Primary and secondary reinforcers • Primary reinforcers • Secondary or conditioned reinforcers • How secondary reinforcers can become primary ones.

  16. Biological base in operant conditioning • Biological base of operant conditioning • certain reinforcers (junk food) • instinctive drift  Nature vs. Nurture • Humans and operant conditioning • Token economies

  17. The Premack Principle • Desirable activities as a reinforcer • exercise • run around • Experiments • thirsty rats • exercise deprived rats

  18. Reinforcement across cultures • What is a good reinforcer? • eating chocolate cake • taking away the noise of heavy metal music • going to the gym

  19. Punishment • Discourage behavior • Opposite of reinforcement • positive punishment • Hotplate • Fingers between doors • Cut in your fingers • Using salt instead of sugar • negative punishment • Teenagers phone • No dessert

  20. Punishment • Punishment has to change the behavior • Spanking • Speeding ticket • Behavior point deduction • Continuous (unlike reinforcement) • Employee comes in late (rewarding) • Different from negative reinforcement - Rat presses lever to turn off the loud sound - Rat presses lever and a loud sound starts

  21. Operant Conditioning

  22. Punishment • Does punishment work? • What are the reasons of punishment? • Punishment or reinforcer?

  23. Why do people punish? • It immediately changes behavior • Punisher may feel good But does it work in the long run?

  24. Effective punishment = difficult • Threat goes away • Supervision • Police • Reward is bigger than the punishment • Dieting • Drugs

  25. Effective punishment = difficult 3. Aggression and escape • Prison • Rats in a shock box • Aggression can be used to influence 4. Stops the learning process • Learned self-helplessness (depression) • Focus on what not to do

  26. Effective punishment = difficult 5. Applied unequally • boys • children • minority groups Does punishment ever work? • Self-destructive behavior • Logical consequence

  27. Effective punishment • Immediate • Consistent – every time • Limited time and intensity • Logical consequence of behavior – late for dinner  eat dinner cold • Limited to the situation • No mixed messages ‘no hitting in this house’ • Negative punishment

  28. Examples of Operant Conditioning • Lab rat • Big Bang

  29. How to change behavior? • Positive reinforcement (Premack Principle) • Punishment • Negative reinforcement (nagging, allowed to come out of ‘time out’) • Extinction – ignoring the behavior • Combination!

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