Module 6.2 - Operant Conditioning: Learning Through Consequences

Question 1

operant conditioning

Answer 1

a type of learning in which behaviour is influenced by consequences

Question 2

what is required for learning to take place in operant conditioning?

Answer 2

a response (behaviour) and a consequence (e.g., a reward) are required for learning to take place

Question 3

what does the consequence depend on?

Answer 3

the action

Question 4

law of effect

Answer 4

of several responses made to the same situation, those which are accompanied or closely followed by satisfaction to the animal will, other things being equal, be more firmly connected to the situation, so that, when it (the situation) recurs, they will be more likely to recur.

Question 5

reinforcement

Answer 5

the process in which an event or reward that follows a response increases the likelihood of that response occurring again

Question 6

reinforcer

Answer 6

a stimulus that is contingent upon a response, and that increase the probability of that response occurring again

Question 7

punishment

Answer 7

the process that decreases the future probability of a response of behaviour

Question 8

punisher

Answer 8

a stimulus that is contingent upon a response, and that results in a decrease in behaviour

Question 9

operant chamber

Answer 9

a laboratory apparatus containing levers or keys tat the animal can manipulate

Question 10

true or false: the experimenter can control whether behaviours are rewarded or punished in operant chamber

Answer 10

true

Question 11

positive reinforcement

Answer 11

the strengthening of behaviour after potential reinforcers such as praise, money, or nourishment follow that behaviour

Question 12

negative reinforcement

Answer 12

the strengthening of a behaviour because it removes or diminishes an adverse stimulus

Question 13

avoidance learing

Answer 13

a specific type of negative reinforcement that removes the possibility that a stimulus will occur

Question 14

what is avoidance learning associated with?

Answer 14

increased activity in the orbitofrontal cortex

Question 15

escape learning

Answer 15

a type of negative reinforcement in which a response removes a stimulus that is already present

Question 16

positive punishment

Answer 16

a process in which a behaviour decreases in frequency because it was followed by a particular, usually unpleasant, stimulus

Question 17

negative punishment

Answer 17

when a behaviour decreases because it removes or diminishes a particular stimulus that the individual would like to have

Question 18

primary reinforcers

Answer 18

reinforcing stimuli that satisfy basic motivational needs - needs that affect an individuals ability to survive (and if possible reproduce)

Question 19

secondary reinforcers

Answer 19

stimuli that acquire their reinforcing effects only after we learn that they have value

Question 20

reinforcers trigger ______ release in reward centres of the brain

Answer 20

dopamine

Question 21

true or false: reinforcers trigger smaller amounts of dopamine in people prone to high-risk behaviour

Answer 21

FALSE: reinforcers trigger larger amounts of dopamine in people prone to high-risk behaviour

Question 22

true or false: there is a larger dopamine response during learning of stimulus - reward association

Answer 22

true

Question 23

discriminative stimulus

Answer 23

a cue or event that indicates that a response, if made, will be reinforced

Question 24

is there a point in responding when the cue isn’t present in discriminative stimulus?

Answer 24

no point in responding… no reinforcement will occur

Question 25

discrimination

Answer 25

when an operant response is made to one stimulus but not to another, even if they are similar

Question 26

generalization

Answer 26

when an operant response takes place to a new stimulus that is similar to the stimulus present during original learning

Question 27

true or false: conditioning is stronger when the reinforcement immediately follows the behaviour

Answer 27

true

Question 28

extinction

Answer 28

the weakening of an operant response when reinforcement is no longer available

Question 29

extinction causes a decrease in what response?

Answer 29

dopamine response

Question 30

shaping

Answer 30

a procedure in which a specific operant response is created by reinforcing successive approximations of that response

Question 31

chaining

Answer 31

shaping several behaviours into a sequence

Question 32

continuous reinforcement

Answer 32

when every response made results in reinforcement

Question 33

continuous reinforcement leads to what?

Answer 33

rapid learning

Question 34

partial reinforcement

Answer 34

when only a certain number of responses are rewarded, or a certain amount of time must pass before reinforcement is available

Question 35

what is another name for partial reinforcement?

Answer 35

intermittent reinforcement

Question 36

what are the 4 types of partial reinforcement schedules?

Answer 36

1) fixed-ratio schedule 2) variable-ratio schedule 3) fixed-interval schedule 4) variable-interval schedule

Question 37

fixed-ratio schedule

Answer 37

when reinforcement is delivered after a specific umber of responses have been completed. FA7 - reinforcement occurs after every 7 responses

Question 38

variable-ratio schedule

Answer 38

when the number of responses required to receive reinforcement varies according to an average. VA7 - reinforcement occurs randomly, with the average being after every 7 responses

Question 39

fixed-interval schedule

Answer 39

when reinforcement occurs following first response occurring after a set amount of time passes. FI5min = 1 jelly bean for the first response after 5 minutes

Question 40

variable-interval schedule

Answer 40

when the first response is reinforced following variable amount of time. V1 5 min - reinforcement occurs randomly, with the average being after 5 minutes

Question 41

partial reinforcement effect

Answer 41

a phenomenon in which organisms that have been conditioned under partial reinforcement resist extinction longer than those conditioned under continuous reinforcement

Question 42

what has more of an effect: photo radar or tickets from officers? why?

Answer 42

tickets from officers because they come immediately, photo radar tickets come a week after the behaviour