Operant conditioning (LT)

Question 1

Strength

Answer 1

I - There is research evidence to support the idea that learning does occur through operant conditioning this research is highly controlled as behaviour can be easily isolated, particularly when using animals.
J - For example, Skinner conducted hundreds of studies on animals demonstrating the effects of reinforcement and punishment and their effects on modifying behaviour. Classic examples include the Skinner box study, where a rodent learns to push a leaver in response to earn the reward of food pellets and to avoid electrical signals Studies done on humans on the same principles have led to consistent conclusions.
E - This means there is a firm evidence base supporting the existence of operant conditioning in human and animal learning. As the scientific nature of this research and highly controlled conditions allows cause and effect to be established between learning behaviours and reward & punishment

Question 2

Weakness

Answer 2

I - A weakness of operant conditioning is that is can only explain how existing behaviours are strengthened or weakened, but not where the behaviours originate from.
J - It does not account for the learning of new behaviours that animals have never performed before. For example, it can explain why a rat will pull a lever more, but does not explain how the rat learnt to pull things initially. So, while operant conditioning can explain a wider range of behaviour than classical conditions.
E - This shows that operant conditioning is still not a full explanation for learning behaviour.