Chapter 6 - Operant Conditioning Flashcards
Operant behavior
voluntary and goal-orientated behaviors that are emitted by the organism
Thorndike’s law of effect
favorable behaviors are “stamped in” or strengthened while other unfavorable behaviors are “stamped out” or weakened
Skinner selection of consequences
Skinner created the Skinner box which he came up with the idea of operant behavior
Operant consequences
Refers to specific consequence that follows a behavior
Reinforcer
Consequence that increases of behavior
Punisher
A consequence that weakens the possibility of the behavior
Extinction
With drawl of reinforcement which weakens of behavior
Three term contingency
Antecedent and behavior and consequences
Antecedent
A discriminative stimulus (environment)
Behavior
Elicited action from an organism
Consequence
Punisher or reinforcer which processes the possibility of a behavior
Discriminative stimulus
Stimulus which sets the occasion for behavior
Discriminative stimulus for reinforcement (joke example)
Presentation of the stimulus for example a laugh every time a joke is told therefore a joke is more likely to be told
Discriminative stimulus for punishment (cat example)
Presentation of a stimulus that decreases the behavior for example a cat sees a water bottle and quickly learns that it will get sprayed every time it meows
Discriminative stimulus for extinction
Stimulus that signals absence of a reinforcement
Four types of contingencies
1 positive reinforcement 2 negative reinforcement 3 positive punishment 4 negative punishment
Positive reinforcement
Presentation of the stimulus should we consider pleasant to increase the future response
Positive reinforcement girlfriend example
Complimenting girlfriend results in a kiss every single time. The positive reinforcement is a kiss it’s a presentation of a consequence
Negative reinforcement
Removal of the stimulus which is considered unpleasant or aversive to increase the future response
Negative reinforcement heater example
Every time its cold you turn on the heater. Turning on the heater removes the cold which increases your behavior for turning on the heater
Positive punishment
The presentation of the stimulus usuallyunpleasant or aversive to decrease likelihood of behavior
Positive punishment spanking example
Every time a child misbehaves they receive a spanking. Presentation of the spanking decreases the likelihood for the child to misbehave
Negative punishment
The removal of the stimulus which is usually pleasant and rewarding to decrease a behavior likelihood
Negative punishment curfew example
If you stay out past your curfew your car privileges are taken away. Therefore the removal of the car privileges decreases your likelihood to stay past curfew