1. Developing and Maintaining Behavior with Conditioned Reinforcement
Chapter 4
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Types of Reinforcers
Unconditioned Reinforcers
Unlearned
Conditioned Reinforcers
Learned through being paired with other reinforcers
Tokens
Conditioned reinforcers that can be collected and exchanged for backup reinforcers
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3. Conditioned Reinforcers
Main advantages:
Can often be delivered more immediately than the backup reinforcer
Help bridge delays between behavior and more powerful reinforcers
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Table 4-1 – Examples of Conditioned Reinforcers. “Examples of simple and generalized conditioned reinforcers are given in Table 4-1.” (page 57)
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5. Influencing Effectiveness of Conditioned Reinforcers
Strength of Backup Reinforcers
Variety of Backup Reinforcers
Simple Conditioned Reinforcer – paired with a single backup reinforcer
Generalized Conditioned Reinforcer – paired with many different kinds of backup reinforcers
Strength depends in part on number of different backup reinforcers available for it
Schedule of Pairing with Backup Reinforcer
More effective if does not follow each occurrence
Extinction of the Conditioned Reinforcer
Must continue to pair conditioned reinforcer with backup reinforcer, at least occasionally
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Pitfalls
Scolding
No backup punishment or desirable behavior is not reinforced
Attention may be reinforcing, thus scolding may not be punishing
Extinction of conditioned reinforcer
Failure to use backup reinforcers might make conditioned reinforcers ineffective
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7. Guidelines for Effective Use of Conditioned Reinforcers
Conditioned reinforcer should be a stimulus that can be managed and administered easily
Use the same conditioned reinforcers found in individual’s natural environment
Early on, present backup reinforcer as soon as possible after conditioned reinforcer
Delay can be increased gradually later
Use generalized conditioned reinforcers whenever possible
When more than one participant is involved, avoid destructive competition for conditioned and backup reinforcers
Apply the same rules used for primary positive reinforcers
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