Objective 12/11/15: Provided notes and an activity SWBAT describe the process of operant conditioning including the procedure of shaping as demonstrated by Skinner’s experiments. Agenda: 1. Do Now 2. Notes- Operant Conditioning 3. Activity

LEARNING Operant Conditioning

Comparison of negative reinforcement & punishment Although punishment can occur when a response leads to the removal of a rewarding stimulus, it more typically involves the presentation of an aversive stimulus. Students often confuse punishment with negative reinforcement because they associate both with aversive stimuli. However, as this diagram shows, punishment & negative reinforcement represent opposite procedures that have opposite effects on behavior.

To a Behaviorist - Everything you know... Everything you are... is the result of human behavior. “Psychology is the study of behavior, not of the mind!” - say the behaviorists. Picked up steam in the late 1960s & during the 1970s. A reaction to the non-scientific work of Freud. Freud was all the rage. Yet where was the ‘science’ & how can you prove anything about the unconscious mind? Behaviorism

Classical vs. Operant Conditioning Both use acquisition, discrimination, S-R, generalization & extinction. Classical Conditioning: Automatic or Respondent Behavior Ex.) Your dog gets sick & requires several painful trips to the vet. Now he hides every time he hears you rattle your keys. Automatic. Or - Your cat is excited to eat, as soon as you get home, he gets fed. Operant Conditioning: Behavior where one can influence their environment with behaviors which have consequences (operant behavior). Ex.) Teacher comments on test. Child working on homework, if completed can play their Xbox. If not completed, may lose play time. Or - Your dog sits nicely because he knows he’ll get a treat for ‘being a good boy.” :)

Operant Conditioning A type of learning in which behavior is strengthened if followed by reinforcement or diminished if followed by punishment Trial & Error >Trial & Reward >Operant Conditioning Operant Response - Reinforcement - Learned Behavior in rats: ★ trial and error learning ★ allows acquisition of motor programs that are not instinctive ★ behavior shaped by rewards ★ develops as a result of the association of reinforcement with a particular response ★ on a proportion of occasions

YouTube: Big Bang Theory - Operant Conditioning

Edward Thorndike Law of Effect: rewarded behavior is likely to be repeated. Studied at cats inside a ‘puzzle box’ - found that a well-practiced cat will find the way out. If an action brings an reward, Thorndike believed that that action becomes stamped into the mind. Behavior changes because of the consequences of that behavior. Previous theories had emphasized practice or repetition. Thorndike gave equal consideration to the effects of reward or punishment, success or failure, & satisfaction or annoyance on the learner.

YouTube: Thorndike’s Puzzle Box for Cats

B.F. Skinner Instead of antecedents of behavior (what comes before) a new focus on consequences of behavior. BF Skinner argued that, CC did not explain complex behavior. 2 categories of consequences: Reinforcement & Punishment Reinforcement is designed to increase the probability that a behavior will occur again. Punishment is designed to decrease the probability that a behavior will occur again.

Operant Conditioning Chamber

YouTube: Difference Between Classical & Operant Conditioning, TedEd Vid

Shaping A procedure in Operant Conditioning - reinforces & guides behavior closer and closer towards a goal. Reinforcers guide behavior, step-by-step. Closer and closer to the target behavior through successive approximations. “Baby Steps” Reinforcers Any event that STRENGTHENS the behavior it follows. There are + and – reinforcers. + Positive Reinforcers: Strengthens a response by presenting a stimulus after a response. - Negative Reinforcers: Strengthens a response by reducing or removing an aversive stimulus.

YouTube: “What About Bob” - Baby Steps

Positive Reinforcement Strengthens a response by presenting a stimulus after a response. $$$ Getting Paid! We may continue to go to work each day because we receive a paycheck on a weekly or monthly basis. ***AWARDS*** If we receive awards for writing short stories, we may be more likely to increase the frequency of writing short stories. "PRAISE!" Receiving praise for our karaoke performances can increase how often we sing.

Negative Reinforcement Strengthens a response by reducing or removing an aversive stimulus. Example: Driving in heavy traffic is a negative condition for most of us. You leave home earlier than usual one morning, & don't run into heavy traffic. You leave home earlier again the next morning & again you avoid heavy traffic. Your behavior of leaving home earlier is strengthened by the consequence of the avoidance of heavy traffic. The concept of Negative Reinforcement is difficult to learn because of the word negative. Negative Reinforcement is often confused with Punishment. They are very different, however. Negative Reinforcement strengthens a behavior because a negative condition is stopped or avoided as a consequence of the behavior.

Punishment Weakens a behavior because a negative condition is introduced or experienced as a consequence of the behavior. Punishment is often mistakenly confused with negative reinforcement. Remember, reinforcement always increases the chances that a behavior will occur & Punishment always decreases the chances that a behavior will occur.

Positive Punishment aka... "punishment by application" Positive punishment involves presenting an aversive stimulus after a behavior as occurred. For example, when a student talks out of turn in the middle of class, the teacher might scold the child for interrupting her.

Negative Punishment aka... "punishment by removal" Negative punishment involves taking away a desirable stimulus after a behavior as occurred. Example: Student talks out of turn again, the teacher promptly tells the child that he will have to miss recess because of his behavior.

Punishment also has some notable drawbacks. First, any behavior changes that result from punishment are often temporary. "Punished behavior is likely to reappear after the punitive consequences are withdrawn," Skinner explained in his book About Behaviorism. Perhaps the greatest drawback is the fact that punishment does not actually offer any information about more appropriate or desired behaviors. While subjects might be learning to not perform certain actions, they are not really learning anything about what they should be doing. Another thing to consider about punishment is that it can have unintended and undesirable consequences. Example, while approximately 75% of parents in the United States report spanking their children on occasion, researchers have found that this type of physical punishment can lead to antisocial behavior, aggressiveness & delinquency among children. For this reason, Skinner and other psychologists suggest that any potential short-term gains from using punishment as a behavior modification tool need to be weighed again the potential long-term consequences.

Positive reinforcement - when something is given (apply an aversive stimulus). Negative reinforcement - when something is removed (remove an aversive stimulus). Skinner: punishment should be judicious, immediate, consistent, & severe enough actually to be a punishment.

YouTube: Schallhorn Operant Conditioning - Reinforcement & Punishment

Many students are confused about negative reinforcement. What's the difference between that and punishment? Remember, "reinforcement" - behavior increases, & because it's "negative," the reinforcer is removed after the response.

Positive or Negative Reinforcement? Cleaning the house to get rid of the disgusting mess and/or to stop your mother from nagging

Positive or Negative Reinforcement? Cleaning the house to get rid of the disgusting mess and/or to stop your mother from nagging NEGATIVE REINFORCEMENT Strengthens a response by reducing or removing an aversive stimulus. Nagging/Mess as negative reinforcer to cleaning.

Positive or Negative Reinforcement? Taking aspirin to relieve a headache

Positive or Negative Reinforcement? Taking aspirin to relieve a headache NEGATIVE REINFORCEMENT Strengthens a response by reducing or removing an aversive stimulus. (The headache is the aversive stimulus) headache as negative reinforcer to taking medication

Positive or Negative Reinforcement? Listening to your favorite music after studying for an hour

Positive or Negative Reinforcement? Listening to your favorite music after studying for an hour POSITIVE REINFORCEMENT: Strengthens a response by presenting a stimulus after a response.

Positive or Negative Reinforcement? Leaving the movie theater if the movie is bad

Positive or Negative Reinforcement? -- Leaving the movie theater if the movie is bad Negative Reinforcement: strengthens a behavior because a negative condition is stopped or avoided as a consequence of the behavior.

YouTube: Schallhorn - Schedules of Reinforcement

Fixed-ratio Schedules A schedule that reinforces a response only after a specified number of responses. Examples in natural environments: Jobs that pay based on units delivered. Employees often find this schedule undesirable because it produces a rate of response that leaves them nervous & exhausted at the end of the day. (Selling cars) They may feel pressured not to slow down or take rest breaks, since they feel that such will costs them money. This is an example of how a schedule can produce a high rate of response even though the response rate is aversive to the subject. Collecting tokens. Many games require the player to collect a fixed number of tokens to advance to the next level, obtain a new life point, or receive some other reinforcers. Attaining a new level in an RPG - Role Playing Game. Some RPG's clearly indicate how much experience is required to achieve the next level. A high degree of certainty as to the level of work that will be required to achieve the next level puts the player on a fixed ratio schedule.

Reinforces a response after an unpredictable number of responses. Variable-ratio Schedule Slot machines: Gambler has no way of predicting how many times he must put a coin in the slot & pull the lever to hit a payoff but the more times a coin is inserted the greater the chance of a payout. People who play slot machines are often reluctant to leave them, especially when they have had a large number of un-reinforced responses. Playing golf: Golfer is uncertain how good each shot will be, but the more often they play, the more likely they are to get a good shot. Door to door salesmen: Uncertain how many houses they will have to visit to make a sale, but the more houses they try, the more likely that they will succeed.

Fixed-interval Schedule A schedule of reinforcement that reinforces a response only after a specified time has elapsed. Getting a raise every year and not in between. A major issue with this schedule is that people tend to improve their performance right before the time period expires so as to "look good" when the review comes around. Example: A weekly paycheck is a good example of a fixed-interval schedule. The employee receives reinforcement every seven days, which may result in a higher response rate as payday approaches. Fish Feeding. You feed your fish every day at 4:00. After a few days of this, you might start noticing your fish starts swimming toward the top of his tank every day around 4:00. Dear Mister Rogers, Please say when you are feeding your fish, because I worry about them. I can't see if you are feeding them, so please say you are feeding them out loud. A letter from a blind child to the childrens television icon. He always said verbally explained that he was feeding the fish to comfort this one child.

Variable-interval Schedule A schedule of reinforcement that reinforces a response at unpredictable time intervals. This may not be as true for punishment since consistency in the application is so important, but for all other types of reinforcement they tend to result in stronger responses. If you have a boss who checks your work periodically, you understand the power of this schedule. Because you don’t know when the next ‘check-up’ might come, you have to be working hard at all times in order to be ready. In this sense, the variable schedules are more powerful and result in more consistent behaviors. Example: Teacher observations by administrators.

Punishment An event that DECREASES the behavior that it follows. Does punishment work?