Operant conditioning: Reinforcement and bahviour modification

Question 1

What is reinforcement schedule?

Answer 1

A plan of how often and when reinforcement will be provided

Question 2

What is behaviour modification?

Answer 2

The use of operant conditioning techniques to change the frequency of desired behaviours, for example in therapeutic seetings

Question 3

What is shaping?

Answer 3

A process of modifying behaviour by reinforcing successive approximations to a desired behaviour

Question 4

What is continuous reinforcement?

Answer 4

A behaviour is said to be continuously reinforced when the reinforcer always follows a behaviour. For example, we might pay a child every time they do the washing up.

Question 5

What are the effects of continuous reinforcement?

Answer 5

Rapid change in behaviour but effects tend not to last

Question 6

What is partial reinforcement?

Answer 6

Reinforcement is irregular.

Question 7

What is a fixed ratio reinforcement schedule?

Answer 7

A reinforcer is given after a specified number of behaviours, for example we pay a child every seventh time they do the washing up

Question 8

What is variable ratio reinforcement schedule?

Answer 8

A reinforcer is given after an unpredictable number of behaviours that varies around a mean value.

Question 9

What do variatial ratio schedules lead to?

Answer 9

Lead to behaviour change that is difficult to extinguish

Question 10

What is a fixed interval reinforcement schedule?

Answer 10

The time between reinforcers is kept constant. E.g. paying a child at the end of the time interval if he has washed up one or more times during that interval

Question 11

What is variable interval reinforcement schedule?

Answer 11

The time between reinforcers is varied around a mean length of time. As with fixed interval, only one behaviour per time period is needed for reinforcement. So a child is again paid at the end of the time period if he washed up one or more times during the interval but the interval varies in length