Operant learning: Reinforcement

Question 1

E.L. Thorndike

Answer 1

Studied animal learning as a way to measure their intelligence

Question 2

Law of effects

Answer 2

Relationship between behaviour and its consequenses

Question 3

Reinforcement

Answer 3

Want a behaviour to increase

Question 4

Positive reinforcement

Answer 4

A reinforcer (something you like) is presented or increased when the desired behaviour occurs

Question 5

Negative reinforcement

Answer 5

A reinforcer (something you do not like) is removed or decreased when the desired behaviour occurs

Question 6

Primary / unconditioned reinforcers

Answer 6

When you do not need to learn to like something - Food, water, sex

Question 7

Secondary / conditioned reinforcers

Answer 7

When you have learned to like something - praise, money, applause

Question 8

Satiation

Answer 8

When a primary reinforcer does not work.

Food is only reinforcing if you are hungry.

Question 9

Natural reinforcers

Answer 9

You do something and it makes you feel good - or remove something bad.
You brush your teeth, you have a good taste in your mouth.

Question 10

Contrived reinforcers

Answer 10

You learn that if you do something well enough, you get something.
If you reach a target at work, you get a bonus

Question 11

Contingency (operant)

Answer 11

correlation between a reinforcer and behaviour.

How effective is the reinforcer

Question 12

Contiguity (operant)

Answer 12

Time from behaviour occurs to reinforcer is given

Question 13

The more you increase the amount of reinforcer

Answer 13

The less benefit you get from the increase

Question 14

Motivating operation

Answer 14

Anything that changes the effectiveness of a consequence

Question 15

Dopamine

Answer 15

Neurotransmitters in the brain causing a natural ‘high’ feeling. Positive reinforcement

Question 16

Drive-reduction theory

Answer 16

Attributes the effectiveness of a reinforcer to the reduction of a drive

Question 17

Relative value theory

Answer 17

Different behaviour has different values.

Question 18

Premack principle

Answer 18

The observation that high-probability behaviour reinforces low-probability behaviour

Question 19

Response-deprivation theory

Answer 19

Only if deprived of the reinforcer will the reinforcer elicit a response

Question 20

Two-process theory

Answer 20

two types of learning in Avoidance learning - Pavlovian and Operant

Question 21

Sidman avoidance procedure

Answer 21

An escape-avoidance training procedure in which no stimulus regularly precedes the aversive stimulus

Question 22

One-process theory

Answer 22

Only one process - operant learning