Lecture 12: Operant Conditioning - Complex Choice Flashcards
The child refuses to get dressed, so the parent shuts off the TV. The child does not refuse the next day. What is this an example of?
- Negative punishment
What is the schedule of reinforcement that provides a measure of breaking point?
- Progressive ratio
Variable Interval schedules usually evoke ____ rates of responding than Variable Ratio.
- Slower
- (VR = steady/fast)
What is the molecular explanation for the increase in rate of Variable Ratio schedules vs. Variable Interval?
- Reinforcement of short inter-response times
According to the Matching Law…
- Relative rates of responding usually ‘match’ relative rates of reinforcement
What do concurrent schedules involve?
- Involve choice behaviour without any long-term commitment
- Behaviour can be switched at will
What do concurrent-chain schedules involve?
- Commitment to the choice
What are the 2 stages of the concurrent-chain schedule?
- Choice/initial link
- Terminal link
Describe the choice/initial link in the concurrent-chain schedule.
- Participant chooses b/n two schedule alternatives by making one of two responses
- First component
- Activates terminal link
Describe the terminal link in the concurrent-chain schedule.
- Participant has the opportunity for reinforcement via schedule chosen in the choice link of the chain schedule
- Can only respond off of choice link
- Makes choice, then reinforcement schedule is activated (must make terminal link)
- Chain resets after
What is the type of reinforcer on the terminal link in concurrent-chain schedules?
- Primary reinforcer (e.g. food)
What is the behaviour pattern during the terminal link in a concurrent-chain schedule related to?
- Behaviour pattern during terminal link of chain is appropriate to the schedule of reinforcement in place
What type of reinforcer can be found on the choice/initial link of the concurrent-chain schedule?
- Conditioned reinforcer
- Provides motivation to engage in initial link
What are the two stages of chain schedules?
- Complete response requirement on initial link to access terminal link
- Complete response requirement on terminal link to access primary reinforcement
What is an example of a chain schedule?
- Seeking-taking chain
- Involves completing one behaviour sequence to gain access to a second behaviour sequence
Describe the seeking-taking chain
- Rat pushes on seeking lever to access taking lever
- Rat pushes taking lever to access primary reinforcer (e.g. drug)
What is punishment contingency in the seeking-taking chain?
- Reinforcement and punishment occur, or they alternate
- Will it stop seeking/taking drug with punishment?
What is the description of substance use disorder that is relevant to punishment contingency?
- Recurrent substance use in situations in which it is physically hazardous
- Substance use is continued despite knowledge of having a persistent or recurrent physical or psychological problem that is likely to have been caused or exacerbated by the substance
Do rats continue to seek primary reinforcer in the face of punishment?
- About 15% do
- Have phenotypes that are either sensitive or resistant to punishment
What is the relative value seen as when the choice varies on a single dimension?
- Objective
When does subjectivity in choice increase?
- When the options vary on more than one dimension
What is delay discounting?
- The value of a reward declines as a function of the delay you have to wait to obtain it
- Animals ‘discount’ delayed rewards
- Highly contingent on context (or phenotype)
- Subject value decreased as a function of quality/quantity
What is the rate of delay discounting closely linked to?
- Impulsivity
- Risk-taking
- Self-regulation
What is the hyperbolic decay function?
- Value of a reinforcer (V) is directly related to reward magnitude (M) and inversely related to reward delay (D) where k is the discounting rate parameter (depends on person
V = M/(1+kD) - If the reinforcer is delivered with no delay (D=0), then the value of the reinforcer is solely dependent on reward magnitude (M)
What happens when university students from USA and South Korea are required to make a series of choices b/n smaller, sooner rewards and later, larger rewards?
- Cultural components/socioeconomic status have an effect on delay discounting
- American students discounted more than Korean students
- Cross-cultural psychological explanation based on collectivist vs. individualist societies
- Value of $ reduced more quickly with delay for USA
What type of rewards do patients with orbitofrontal cortex damage prefer?
- Smaller immediate rewards
- Make more impulsive choices
- Discount more, and are less tolerant to delay
- Steeper discounting curves
What is steep discounting of delays considered a measure of?
- Impulsive choice
- Not considering consequences or long term
How do those with substance use disorders compare when it comes to delay discounting?
- Those with substance use disorders more rapidly discount rewards than those without
- Addicts discount $ as well (acts as a representative of drug)
