Chapter 7 - Schedules and Theories of Reinforcement Flashcards
What does FR stand for?
Fixed ratio
Which reinforcement schedule is FR 1 equivalent to?
CRF - Continuous reinforcement
What does an FR 7 reinforcement schedule mean?
A reinforcement (praise, food pellet, etc) is supplied after 7 repetitions of the target behaviour.
What is a post reinforcement pause?
A pause in the performance of the target behaviour due to the reception of a reward/reinforce.
What is the typical FR pattern referred to as and why?
A ‘break-and-run pattern’ - because of the (postreinforcement) pause in behaviour that occurs after reinforcement. Also due to the high rate of response that occurs when the behaviour resumes.
What are the four types of response patterns?
- fixed ratio
- variable ratio
- fixed interval
- variable interval
What is the link between ratio requirements and post reinforcement pauses?
The higher the ratio requirement, the longer the post reinforcement pause.
Schedules with lower reinforcement ratios are said to be what?
Dense or rich
Schedules with higher reinforcement ratios are said to be what?
Lean
What does ‘stretching the ratio’ mean?
Increasing a fixed ratio response from low to high.
How should stretching the ratio be done?
Gradually. E.g. CRF -> FR 2 -> FR 4 etc.
What does VR stand for?
Variable ratio (schedule)
VR schedules generally produce what?
High and steady rates of response, often with little or no post reinforcement pause.
What does FI stand for?
Fixed interval schedule
FI schedules often produce what pattern of responding and why?
Scalloped - because little or no responding occurs at the start of each interval (partly due to post reinforcement pause), but increases as time elapses. The highest rate of responding occurs towards the end of the interval.
Do FI schedules lead to postreinforcement pauses?
Yes.
On a pure FI schedule, any response occurring following the interval is what?
Significant and rewarded.
On a pure FI schedule, any response occurring during the interval is what?
Irrelevant
What does VI stand for?
Variable interval
What is the intensity of responses in VI schedules?
Moderate
Why do FR and VR schedules lead to higher response rates?
Reinforcements are response-contingent, so subjects can engage in the target behaviour more to increase the amount of reward. (Whereas increased responses in interval schedules are irrelevant, if before the end of the interval)
Why do variable schedules tend not to lead to post reinforcement pauses?
Because the reinforcements are not set - it might be that the very next response leads to reinforcement, whereas in fixed schedules, (e.g. FR 5) the subjects will not be entitled to another reward until they respond another several times, no there is no rush.
What does DRH stand for?
Differential reinforcement of high rates
What does ‘differential’ mean in DRH?
That one behaviour is being reinforced, and others are not.