4A: Punishment, Generalisation, Discrimination & Stimulus Control

Question 1

Positive punishment

Answer 1

Giving a punisher to reduce a behaviour

Question 2

Negative punishment

Answer 2

Removing a pleasant stimuli to reduce a behaviour

Question 3

Time out

Answer 3

The loss of access to positive reinforcers for a brief period of time following a problem behaviour

Question 4

Response cost

Answer 4

The removal of a specific reinforcer following a problem behaviour

Question 5

Intrinsic punishment

Answer 5

Punishment is an inherent aspect of the behaviour

Question 6

Extrinsic punishment

Answer 6

Not an inherent part of the behaviour, but just follows the behaviour

Question 7

Problems with punishment

Answer 7

1. Escape or avoidance of the punishment
2. Aggression towards the punisher
3. Apathy or suppression of all behaviour
4. Abuse
5. Imitation of the punisher
   The persona delivering the punishment could become a SD for punishment such that the unwanted behaviour is only suppressed when that person is present.

Question 8

Benefits of punishment

Answer 8

1. Punishment can sometimes lead to an increase in social behaviour
2. Punishment sometimes results in an improvement in mood
3. Punishment can increase attention to the environment

Question 9

To maximise effectiveness, punishment should be…

Answer 9

1. Immediate
2. Consistent
3. Intense enough to supress the target behaviour – but
   balanced so that it is not abusive
4. Negative punishment is preferable to positive punishment
5. Combined with an explanation (where possible)
6. Combined with positive reinforcement for appropriate behaviour

Question 10

Contingency

Answer 10

The degree to which a punishing event is dependent on the behaviour.
The stronger the correlation, the more effective the punishment and the faster a behaviour will change.

Question 11

Contiguity

Answer 11

The gap between a behaviour and its consequence

In general, the longer the delay, the less effective the punisher will be.

Question 12

Punisher intensity

Answer 12

The stronger the punisher is the more effective it is in reducing an unwanted behaviour.

Question 13

Introductory level of punisher: Is it better to start with the strongest intensity of a punisher or begin with a small or weaker punisher and build up the intensity if the behaviour continues?

Answer 13

Both can be problematic:
• If we build up the intensity, it can increase the threshold that the subject can withstand.
• If we start with a strong punisher we have no way of knowing the exact appropriate level.

Question 14

Motivating operations

Answer 14

Anything that changes the effectiveness of a consequence, either in terms of increasing or decreasing its effectiveness. e.g. food deprivation

Question 15

Two-process theory

Answer 15

Punishment involves both operant and classical conditioning - paid lever with shock, conditioned to fear lever (shock) then reinforced when avoid lever.

Question 16

One-process theory

Answer 16

Punishment only involves operant conditioning - punishment weakens behaviour

Question 17

Conditioned Suppression Theory

Answer 17

Punishment does not weaken a behaviour but instead produces an emotional response that interferes with the occurrence of the behaviour

Question 18

The premack approach to punishment

Answer 18

A low-probability behaviour can be used to punish a high probability behaviour

Question 19

Generalisation

Answer 19

The tendency for the effects of a learning experience to be transferred to other situations or environments.

Question 20

4 types of generalisation

Answer 20

Generalisation across people (also called vicarious generalisation)
Generalisation across time (response maintenance)
Generalisation across behaviours (response generalisation)
Generalisation across situations (stimulus generalisation)

Question 21

Generalisation Gradient

Answer 21

Graphic representation of generalised data.

Shows the tendency for a behaviour to occur in situations that differ systematically from the training situation.

Question 22

Response generalisation

Answer 22

The tendency for changes in

one behavior to spread to other behaviors.

Question 23

Stimulus generalisation

Answer 23

The tendency for changes in behavior in one situation to spread to other situations.

Question 24

Increase generalisation

Answer 24

Providing the training across a variety of settings
Vary the consequences
Reinforce generalisation

Question 25

Stimulus discrimination

Answer 25

The tendency for behaviour to occur in certain situations but not others.

Question 26

Discrimination training

Answer 26

Any procedure for establishing a discrimination. Discriminations can be established through both Pavlovian and operant procedures.
e.g. pair one stimulus (CS+) with a US, another stimulus (CS-) appears alone; one stimulus (S+) is reinforced, while another (S-) is never reinforced.

Question 27

Simultaneous discrimination training

Answer 27

An operant discrimination training procedure in which the S+ and S- are presented at the same time.

Question 28

Successive discrimination training

Answer 28

The S+ and S- alternate, usually randomly. When the S+ appears, the behavior is reinforced; when the S- appears, the behavior is not reinforced.

Question 29

Matching to sample

Answer 29

The task is to select from two or more alternatives (called comparison stimuli) the stimulus that matches a standard (the sample). The comparison stimuli include the S+ —the stimulus that matches the sample—and one or more S-.

Question 30

Oddity matching / mismatching

Answer 30

The subject is shown a sample and must select the opposite disk in order to receive reinforcement

Question 31

Stimulus control

Answer 31

Describes the relationship through which a discriminant stimulus reliably affects the probability of the behaviour.
The tendency for a behavior to occur in the presence of an S+ but not in the presence of an S-.

Question 32

Complex schedules

Answer 32

Often examine stimulus control through complex schedules
Multiple schedules: consist of two or more independent schedules presented in sequence – order can change but reinforcement occurs in each (differs from chained schedules)
Stimulus control evidenced through different response patterns for each schedule

Question 33

Behavioural contrast

Answer 33

Change in rate of reinforcement on one part of multiple schedule results in opposite change in rate of response in another part

Question 34

Positive contrast effect

Answer 34

Decrease in rate of reinforcement (or use of punishment) on one leads to increase in rate of response on other component

Question 35

Negative contrast effect

Answer 35

Increase in rate of reinforcement on one leads to decrease in rate of response on other component

Question 36

Anticipatory contrast

Answer 36

Change in rate of responding in anticipation that there will be a change in the rate of reinforcement

Question 37

Application of stimulus control

Answer 37

Animal trainers

Human applications include use of cues for behaviour, e.g. medication compliance

Question 38

Pavlov’s theory

Answer 38

Discrimination training produces physiological changes in the brain.
The CS+ is associated with an area of excitation in the brain and the CS- is associated with an area on inhibition.
• If a novel stimulus is similar to the CS+ it will excite an area of the brain near the CS+ area and elicit the CR.
• If a novel stimulus is similar to the CS- it will excite an area of the brain near the CS- area and inhibit the CR.

Question 39

Spence’s theory

Answer 39

The tendency to respond to any given stimulus is a result of the interaction between the increased and decreased tendencies to respond as reflected by a gradient curve
• Excitatory Strength is increased when a response to a specific stimulus is reinforced
• Inhibitory Strength is increased when a response to a specific stimulus is not reinforced
• The tendency to respond to any stimulus is based upon its Net Excitatory Strength

Question 40

Lashley-Wade theory

Answer 40

Prior experience with stimuli similar to those used in training impacts the generalisation gradients.
Discrimination training increases the steepness of the gradient because it teaches the subject to tell the difference between the target stimulus and other stimuli.
Generalisation occurs because a subject has not had much experience with the stimuli involved and as such is not able to discriminate between them.

Question 41

Learned helplessness

Answer 41

Is a reduction in learning ability that results from repeated exposure to uncontrollable aversive events.