TOPIC 4 - Operant Conditioning: Reinforcement Flashcards
Learning controlled by the CONSEQUENCES of organism’s behaviour
Operant Conditioning
Instrumental Conditioning
Process in which a behaviour is increased or STRENGTHENED by the IMMEDIATE CONSEQUENCE that RELIABLY follows its occurrence
(Strengthened = more likely to occur in the future)
Reinforcement
Thorndike Law of Effect
If response in the presence of a stimulus is followed by a satisfying state of affairs the bond between stimulus and response will be strengthened.
However, if the response in the presence of a stimulus is followed by an annoying state of the affairs, the stimulus-response bond will be weakened
Satisfying state of affairs -> consequence
Reinforcement
Annoying state of affairs -> consequence
Punishment
Three-Term Contingency
In operant conditioning, the _______ will determine whether the behaviour is more or less likely to occur in the future.
Antecedent : Behaviour -> Consequence
Operant -> consequence
A behaviour that is strengthened through the process of REINFORCEMENT (only negative and positive reinforcement will create this type of behaviour)
operant behaviour
operant response/instrumental behaviour
the stimulus or event following a behaviour
Consequence
If the consequence strengthens the operant behaviour, then it is a _________.
reiinforcer
A change in a behaviour as a result/function of the consequences that allowed it.
operant learning
Producing an appetitive stimulus as an immediate consequence which will strengthen the behaviour
Positive reinforcement
Eliminate prevent aversive stimulus to make behaviour more likely to occur again
negative reinforcement
Providing (adding) consequences for a behaviour that INCREASE or encourage probability of behaviour in future
positive reinforcement
event or stimulus when removed as consequence increases or maintains future probability of behaviour
negative reinforcement
avoidance and escape behaviours are both types of __________ reinforcement
negative
Operant behaviour increases by removing an ONGOING event or stimulus (type of negative reinforcement)
Escape behaviour
Operant behaviour increases by PREVENTING onset of event of stimulus (type of negative reinforcement)
avoidance behaviour
Instrumental/operant response produced once per trial
discrete trial procedure
subjects can make as many instrumental response as they want pretty much, no experiment interference
free-operant procedure
reinforcer that acquired its properties as a function of species evolutionary history
unconditional/primary reinforcer
otherwise neutral stimuli that have acquired the ability to become reinforcing (basically through classical conditioning)
conditional/secondary reinforcer
Immediacy
reinforcer used
task characteristics
Contingency
Contiguity
variables affecting reinforcement
Nearness of events in time or space
contiguity
if there are longer delays between the operant response and reinforcer, the effectiveness of the reinforcer is diminished
- longer wait, reinforcer less valuable
hyperbolic decay function
Degree of correlation between behaviour and consequence
Contingency
motivating operations are a subtype of _______ that modify the situation in which a behaviour occurs BY MAKING AFFECTING THE POTENCY OF THE REINFORCER - how much do you really desire the reinforcer or not (type of reinforcer characteristic)
two types:
Antecedent
Establishing operations
abolishing operations
Motivating operations will either _____ or _____ as antecedents that affect the situation in which a behaviour occurs, by making a reinforcer more or less desirable
establish - set the scene
abolish - discourage
just like the learning curve, as the reinforcer magnitude increases, the amount of motivation _________
flattens out
Particular pattern and rate of behaviour over time.
Schedule effect
Behaviour reinforced each time it occurs (type of reinforcement schedule)
continuous reinforcement schedule
4 types of intermittent reinforcement schedules:
fixed ratio
variable ratio
fixed interval
Variable interval
Behaviour reinforced after FIXED number of TIMES
fixed ratio schedule
Post-Reinforcement pause is generated by
fixed ratio schedule
Number of responses needed varies each time before reinforcement given BUT it does vary around an average
Variable ratio schedule
Variable ratio schedule controlled by random number generator
random ratio
type of variable ratio schedule in which ratio requirements move from small to large - creates “break point” measure of how hard organism will work for reinforcer
progressive ratio
Behaviour reinforced when occurs after given period of time
eg: $10/hour
fixed interval schedule
- most jobs these days are based on a fixed-interval schedule
- eg: I make $25 an hour
Timing of response needed varies each time - will be reinforced shorter and way longer and anywhere in between
variable interval schedule
organisms will do a low probability behaviour to get the chance to do a high probability behaviour (behaviour they like), not the other way around
therefore, the high probability behaviour will REINFORCE the low probability behaviours
premack principle
Stimulus that changes the PROBAILITY of an operant behaviour
Controlling stimulus
Stimulus or event preceding an operant and sets the occasion for its reinforcement
Discriminative stimulus
Stimulus or event that precedes an operant and sets the occasion for its NON-REINFORCEMENT
extinction stimulus
Effect a occasion setting has on behaviour
Discrimination
Change in operant behaviour that occurs when either Sd or Sdelta is presented
stimulus control
- behaviour has fallen under control of controlling stimuli wow
measure of stimulus control exerted by Sd or Sdelta
- way of representing how much responses occur in the presence of the discriminating stimulus
discrimination index
Sd response // (Sd + Sdelta) responses
Discrimination index
Precision of stimulus control exerted
high precision
low precision
discrimination - only this stimuli will trigger responses
generalization - stimuli close to it will trigger a response
Stimulus generalization classical vs. Operant
similar stimuli may also produce a CR
similar stimuli may also produce operant (may also be reinforcing)
Generalization WITHIN classes of stimuli and discrimination BETWEEN classes of stimuli
concept formation
DIFFERENTIATING:
CONTROLLING STIMULI - Sd and Sdelta
from
MOTIVATING OPERATIONS - establish and abolish
controlling stimuli - consequence occurrence
- discriminative - your response should have the consequence of being reinforced of this stimuli
- extinction stimulus - your response will not have the consequence of being reinforced in the presence pf this stimuli
controlling sitmuli: WILL the REINFORCING CONSEQUENCE HAPPEN OR NOT? - deciding whether or not to do the behaviour based on a single stimuli present
motivating operations - how likely you are to do the behaviour in the first place
- how much you DESIRE to do the behaviour based on the situation
SPEND SOME MORE TIME DIFFERENTIATING
controlling stimuli: consequences - will i be reinforced or not based on presence of this stimuli
motivation operations: antecedents - is the reinforcer effective
Reinforced: discriminative stimulus
Not reinforced: extinction stimulus
Want to: establishing operation
Not want to: abolishing operation
Establishing operations and discriminative stimuli both make a behaviour _______ likely to occur in the moment, while abolishing operations and extinction stimuli will make a behaviour _______ likely to occur in the moment.
establishing operations and discriminative stimuli both -> more likely
abolishing operations and extinction stimuli both -> less likely
