Ch. 6 - Intro to Operant Conditioning Flashcards
1
Q
what is the difference between classical and operant conditioning?
A
classical conditioning focuses on involuntary behaviours while operant conditioning focuses on voluntary behaviours
2
Q
operant conditioning
A
- a type of learning in which the future frequency (or probability) of a behaviour is affected by its consequences
- response operates on the environment to produce a consequence
- the effects of the consequences of a behaviour
- learning associations between behaviours and the consequences of them
3
Q
operant behaviours
A
- behaviours that are influenced by their consequences
- consequences affect future frequency
- emitted by the organism rather than elicited by stimuli
4
Q
adaptive behaviours
A
- those made in responses to changes in the environment
5
Q
Thorndike’s law of effect
A
- behaviours leading to satisfying state of affairs are strengthened or “stamped in” while behaviours leading to an unsatisfying or annoying state of affairs are weakened, or “stamped out”
6
Q
why is Skinner’s box a “free operant” way of investigating behaviour
A
- allows animal to respond freely at any time
- doesn’t require researcher to keep putting them back into a maze (ex.)
7
Q
how can operant conditioning be adaptive
A
- adaptive behaviours lead to favourable outcomes and become more frequent
- maladaptive behaviours that don’t lead to favourable outcomes become less frequent
8
Q
what behavioural patterns happen after many trials in the puzzle box?
A
- it may seem accidental at first but after a while associations between stimuli become stronger and the behaviours become purposeful
9
Q
SR
an event is a reinforcer if:
A
- it follows a behaviour
- the future freuquency (strength) of that behaviour increases
10
Q
what are the 3 components to operant conditioning?
A
- a response that produces a certain consequence
- the consequence that serves to either increase or decrease the frequency of the response that preceded it
- a discriminative stimulus that precedes the response and signals that a certain consequence is now available
11
Q
SP
an event is a punisher if:
A
- it follows a behaviour
- the future frequency (strength) of that behaviour decreases
12
Q
extinction
A
- the weakening of a behaviour through the nonreinforcement of a previously reinforced behaviour
13
Q
SD
discriminative stimulus
A
- a stimulus in the presence of which responses are reinforced and in the absence of which they are not reinforced
- i.e. context, situation/environment
- doesn’t automatically elicit a behavioural response like a CS or US, just increases the probability of the behaviour occurring
14
Q
Three-term contingency
A
- a rule that specifies when reinforcement will occur
- discriminative stimulus, response, reinforcement
15
Q
SDP
Discriminative stimulus for punishment
A
- a stimulus that signals that a response will be punished
- ex. cadbury behaving well when she sees the haulty
16
Q
Discriminative stimulus for extinction (Sdelta)
A
- stimulus that signals the absence of reinforcement
- ex. tone > lever press > food
buzzer > lever press > no food - in this case the buzzer is the discriminative stimulus for extinction because it signals that pressing the lever will not result in food
17
Q
What are the 4 contingencies
A
- positive punishment
- positive reinforcement
- negative punishment
- negative reinforcement
18
Q
Positive reinforcement
A
- presentation of a stimulus following a response
- usually considered pleasant or rewarding
- leads to an increase in the future strength (frequency) of that response
19
Q
Negative reinforcement
A
- removal of a stimulus following a response
- usually considered unpleasant or aversive
- leads to an increase in the future strength (frequency) of that response
- take away something they don’t like so they’ll want to do it more in the future (help them out)
20
Q
negative
A
- removal of a stimulus
21
Q
positive
A
- presentation/addition of a stimulus
22
Q
Positive punishment
A
- presentation of a stimulus following a response
- typically considered unpleasant or aversive
- decreases future strength (frequency) of that response
- what we typically consider “normal punishment”
23
Q
punishment
A
- stimulus that is added or taken away is typically considered undesirable or aversive
24
Q
reinforcement
A
- stimulus that is added or taken away is typically considered desirable and pleasant
25
Negative punishment
- removal of a stimulus following a response
- usually considered pleasant or rewarding
- decreases the strength (frequency) of that response in the future
26
does immediate or delayed reinforcement have a stronger effect on behaviour?
immediate reinforcement
27
Primary reinforcer
- unconditioned reinforcer
- an event that is innately reinforcing
- unlearned
- ex. something we are born to like rather than something we learn to like
- will increase behaviours that it thinks will receive these things
28
how does deprivation play a role in the strength of primary reinforcers?
- when we are deprived of basic needs (typically used as primary reinforcers) they tend to work faster to shape behaviour because they are necessary for survival
29
Secondary reinforcer
- conditioned reinforcer
- event that is reinforcing because it has been associated with some other reinforcer
- something we have learned to like because they have become associated with other things that we like
- ex. praise comes from good grades > good grades become the reinforcer
30
# secondary reinforcers
generalized reinforcer
- type of secondary reinforcer that has been associated with several other reinforcers
- ex. money (can get us a whole bunch of things we like)
- likely to be rewarding no matter what state the organism is in (ex. doesn't depend on deprivation)
31
intrinsic reinforcement
- reinforcement provided by the mere act of performing the behaviour
- ex. we like hanging out with friends because we enjoy their company (doing things because it is enjoyable)
32
extrinsic reinforcement
- reinforcement provided by some consequence that is external to, or additional to, the behaviour
- ex. reading articles because you have to for your upcoming exam (passing the exam is the extrinsic reinforcement)
33
natural reinforcers
- reinforcers that are typically provided for a certain behaviour
- they are an expected consequence of the behaviour within that setting
- ex. money is a natural consequence of selling merchanidise, getting gold medals is a natural consequence of hard training and great performance
34
contrived reinforcers
- reinforcers that have been deliberately arranged to modify a behaviour
- they are not a typical consequence of the behaviour within that setting
- when used, the goal is to let the "natural contingencies" take over if possible
- ex. nice tokens (eventually we hope they'll be nice to each other on their own)
35
shaping
- the gradual creation of new behaviour through reinforcement of successively closer approximations to the behaviour
- ex. Sniffy lever-pressing
- allows for a complex behaviour or skill to be broken down into a series of manageable parts
- systematically and gradually reinforced until the individual can perform the behaviour
36
# avoidance and escape
shuttle-box
- floor delivers shock on one side so the rat jumps to the other side
- speaker on either side that delivers a tone which the rat learns will be followed by a shock (eventually the rat will jump before the shock when the tone is heard)
- starts as escape, becomes avoidance once association is formed
37
avoidance paradox
38
# explaining avoidance
2 factor theory
2 types of learning experiences are involved in
