Operant Conditioning

1. Operant Conditioning

2. Classical v. Operant Conditioning • Operant • Voluntary Behavior • Extinction • Spontaneous Recovery • Generalization • Discrimination • Classical • Reflexive Behavior • Extinction • Spontaneous Recovery • Generalization • Discrimination

3. History of Behaviorism • Classical Conditioning: • Pavlov, Watson, Rescorla

4. Edward L. Thorndike (1874-1949) • Animal Intelligence – Cats • Trial and Error Learning • Instrumental Conditioning • Law of Effect

5. B. F. Skinner (1904-1990) • Susquehanna, Pennsylvania • B.A. in English • MA and PhD from Harvard in 1930-1931 • 1936 @ U of Minnesota • 1945 @ U of Indiana • 1948 @ Harvard • Died in 1990

6. “Operant” A B C • Operant Behaviour: a type of behaviour that operates on the environment to have a particular effect. • Operant Conditioning: a form of learning whereby voluntary behaviour comes to be controlled by consequences.

7. Operant Conditioning A B C Antecedent Consequence Behavior

8. Operant Conditioning Antecedent A B C

9. Operant Conditioning A B C Behavior Voluntary “Operant”

10. Operant Conditioning A B C Consequence Punishment Reinforcement

11. Operant Conditioning

12. Operant Conditioning Positive Reinforcement

13. Operant Conditioning A B C Tell Joke Consequence Antecedent Behavior In Class Laugh

14. Operant Conditioning A B C Students Take Notes Consequence Antecedent Behavior Professor Talks Better Grades

15. Operant Conditioning Negative Reinforcement

16. Operant Conditioning A B C Take Aspirin Antecedent Consequence Behavior Relief Headache

17. Operant Conditioning A B C Put seat belt on Antecedent Consequence Behavior Relief Car buzzing

18. Operant Conditioning

19. Operant Conditioning A B C Eat Too Fast Antecedent Consequence Behavior Food at Table Pain

20. Operant Conditioning A B C Say something Inappropriate Antecedent Consequence Behavior Social Situation Embarrassment

21. Operant Conditioning

22. Operant Conditioning A B C Drive to Fast Antecedent Consequence Behavior On Highway Money Taken Away

23. Operant Conditioning A B C Tantrum Antecedent Consequence Behavior At Home… Timeout

24. Shaping • successive approximations toward a goal • a process whereby reinforcements are given for behavior directed toward a goal • reinforcement is given for approximations toward a desired goal

25. Making Shaping Effective • 1) Define the goal • 2) Determine a starting point • 3) Pick a reinforcer • 4) Determine the steps

26. Schedules of reinforcement • 1. Continuous (CRF) • good to start with when shaping behavior • 2. Non continuous (intermittent, partial) • is one in which only some responses are reinforced • four basic types

27. Intermittent Reinforcement • Fixed Ratio (FR):reinforcement delivered after fixed number of correct responses. • low resistance to extinction

28. Fixed Ratio

29. Intermittent Reinforcement • 2. Fixed Interval: Reinforcement for next correct response after a fixed amount of time since last reinforcement. • low resistance to extinction

30. Fixed Interval

31. Intermittent Reinforcement • 3. Variable Ratio: reinforcement after varying number of correct responses • high resistance to extinction

32. Variable Ratio

33. Intermittent Reinforcement • 4. Variable Interval: reinforcement after varying time since the last reinforcement. • high resistance to extinction

34. Variable Interval

35. Extinction • 1) B C • 2) B  nothing Result: decrease in B

36. Extinction • B (tantrum)  C (being picked up/ attention) • Problem: • Positive reinforcement for the child: to continue having tantrums. • Negative reinforcement for the parent: pick up child: avoid tantrum • Reinforcement Trap

37. Behavioral Theories anxiety is a CR to environmental events

38. Two-Factor model • 1st Phase (acquisition) • Classical Conditioning • 2nd Phase (maintenance) • Operant Conditioning A-->B-->C

39. Phobias – other explanations • observational learning • Phase 1 – watch a model • acquisition • Phase 2 – operant conditioning • maintenance