Behaviorism Operant Conditioning

B.F. Skinner Perhaps the most well known Behaviorist is B. F. Skinner (1904-1990). Skinner followed much of Watson’s research and findings, but believed that internal states could influence behavior just as external stimuli. He is the founder of operant conditioning.

Operant Conditioning The term “operant" refers to how an organism operates on the environment, and hence, operant conditioning comes from how we respond to what is presented to us in our environment.

Operant Conditioning In other words, we are learning an association between a behavior and its consequences. The behaviors we are discussing are our voluntary behaviors, unlike classical conditioning that deals with involuntary behaviors, such as reflexes.

Let's explain that a little further. The classic study of Operant Conditioning involved a cat who was placed in a box with only one way out; A specific area of the box had to be pressed in order for the door to open. The cat initially tries to get out of the box because of desired freedom. In its attempt to escape, the area of the box is triggered and the door opens. The cat is now free. Once placed in the box again, the cat will naturally try to remember what it did to escape the previous time and will once again find the area to press. The more the cat is placed back in the box, the quicker it will press that area for its freedom. It has learned, through natural consequences, how to gain the desired outcome of freedom.

Operant Conditioning We learn this way every day in our lives. Imagine the last time you made a mistake; you most likely remember that mistake and do things differently when the situation comes up again. In that sense, you’ve learned to act differently based on the natural consequences of your previous actions. The same holds true for positive actions. If something you did results in a positive outcome, you are likely to do that same activity again.

Operant Conditioning has two main components: Reinforcement, and; Punishment

Reinforcement The term reinforce means to increase a specific response (or desired behavior).

Punishment on the other hand Decreases the specific response (or undesirable behavior).

Now, let’s subdivide reinforcement into two main categories: Positive Reinforcement, and Negative Reinforcement

It is critical to note that in Operant Conditioning: Positive DOES NOT mean good; And, negative DOES NOT mean bad. We need to, instead, think mathematically, where positive means TO ADD OR GIVE; And, negative means TO TAKE AWAY OR SUBTRACT!! It will be challenging at times to remember this because we have to retrain our minds to think differently then how we use these words in everyday speech.

Let’s review the definition of Positive Reinforcement: Giving something a person likes to increase the desired behavior.

Examples of Positive Reinforcement Include: If you want your dog to sit on command, you may give him a treat every time he sits for you. The dog will eventually come to understand that sitting when told to will result in a treat. This treat is reinforcing because he likes it and will result in him sitting when instructed to do so. The operant here is the dog’s “sitting” behavior.

Examples of positive reinforcement You give your child praise after your child cleans her or his room. Your boss gives you a raise after doing a great job on a project. You cook your partner’s favorite meal after he or she cleans the house. You give your child money for every “A” she or he receives on the report card.

Other examples include: Praise and rewards, and most of us have experienced this as both the giver and receiver. Treats, such as candy and stickers are given to kids when they behave well or complete a task successfully. All of these positive reinforcers increase the likelihood that we will continue the desired operant or behavior.

Can you think of other positive reinforcers? What are ways that you use or have used positive reinforcement with others or yourself? Have other people (or your pets) used this with you?

Now, moving on to Negative Reinforcement Remember, whenever you hear “negative reinforcement” DO NOT think that it is a BAD THING!! IT IS A GREAT THING, SOMETHING THAT YOU WOULD WANT. Here’s why…

The definition of negative reinforcement is: Taking away something that you do not like to increase the specific (or desired) behavior.

One example is: Imagine a teenager who is nagged by his mother to take out the garbage week after week.  After complaining to his friends about the nagging, he finally one day performs the task and to his amazement, the nagging stops.  The elimination of this negative stimulus is reinforcing and will likely increase the chances that he will take out the garbage next week.

Other examples include: You stop criticizing your partner “You always come late to pick me up!” when your partner arrives on time. In other words, you are taking away the criticism. When you return rental videos on time, you avoid late charges. When you put your seat belt on, the annoying “ding, ding, ding” sound stops (in newer cars).

In all the examples of negative reinforcement, do you see that: After you performed the desired behavior, something you don’t like (nagging, criticism, late fees, and annoying seat belt sounds were) taken away, which increases the likelihood that you will perform the desired behavior in the future.

Did you notice that: The desired operant must be performed first before you reinforce it. This is because if you give something the person wants or take away something the person does not want before the desired behavior, you might not get what you want!! In other words, you might be reinforcing the wrong behavior!

For example, Your boss just blew up in the office for no good reason. If you tell your boss how wonderful she is right after the blow up, you might be encouraging more blow ups!!

This is equivalent to: “Negative attention seeking” that children sometimes do when their parents don’t give them attention unless they are doing something bad. So, what have the children learned to do? Misbehave and at least that way, they get attention, even if it is not the best form of attention, it is still attention and more than they received from their parents before!!

Can you think of other negative reinforcers? What are ways that you use or have used negative reinforcement with others or yourself? We all apply reinforcers everyday, most of the time without even realizing we are doing it. Whether negative or positive reinforcement is used, they both increase the probability that the desired response will be repeated.

Now, let’s explore Punishment The definition of punishment is to decrease undesirable behavior.

There are two ways to do this: Positive punishment, and Negative punishment

Positive Punishment is: Giving something a person does not like to decrease an undesirable behavior.

The most common example of this is: Disciplining (e.g. spanking) a child for misbehaving. The reason people do this is because the child begins to associate being punished with the negative behavior. The punishment is not liked and therefore to avoid it, she or he will stop behaving in that manner.

Other examples include: Yelling Criticism Tickets (fine) In all these cases, you are giving them something they don’t like in order to decrease the undesirable behavior.

Can you think of other positive punishers? What are ways that you use or have used positive punishment with others or yourself?

The second form of punishment is Negative Punishment The definition of negative punishment is: Taking away something a person likes in order to decrease the undesirable behavior.

Examples Include: Taking away privileges; Social Isolation (taking away freedom); Time outs (also taking away freedom or playtime); For each of these cases, something of value is being taken away in an effort to decrease the undesirable behavior or performed operant.

Here is an example that falls under positive and negative punishment: Tickets – On one hand, a ticket’s purpose is to give you a fine (positive punishment), and on the other hand, it is taking away your money (negative punishment). In either case, both positive and negative punishment attempt to weaken or decrease the stated operant.

One last thing to note is: The timing of punishment is important. Punishment is most effective if it is immediately delivered after the operant!! For example, if your child talked back to you and you waited five days to tell your child he cannot have a play date with his friend, then he will not have learned most clearly not to talk back to you vs. telling him right after talking back to you.

Can you think of other negative punishers? What are ways that you use or have used negative punishment with others or yourself? Have other people punished you? And, if so, did this successfully diminish the undesirable behavior in the long run, or just when the person was not around? Does punishment encourage you to change or discourage you? Why?

Self-Reflection Which of the four types of operant conditioning do you use the most? Have you gotten the results you are looking for? If not, which of these would you like to experiment with more?

A Plug for Positive Reinforcement Research has found positive reinforcement is the most powerful of any of these. Adding a positive to increase a response not only works better, but allows both parties to focus on the positive aspects of the situation. Punishment, when applied immediately following the undesirable behavior can be effective, but results in extinction when it is not applied consistently. Punishment can also invoke other negative responses such as anger and resentment.

Another saying for this is: You attract more bees with honey then with vinegar. Also, be aware that expressing gratitude and appreciation, such as “Thank you” is a form of positive reinforcement.

The Lesson Operant Conditioning Offers Us All: Consciously and actively look for opportunities to reinforce healthy and desired behavior. Then, you are more likely to get what you want and while you make others feel good, you also feel good about yourself, too!! It affects your perception on life, overall psychology, emotions, nervous system, relationships and quality of life!!