Classical Conditioning Review

• An individual receives frequent injections of drugs, which are administered in a small examination room at a clinic. The drug itself causes increased heart rate but after several trips to the clinic, simply being in a small room causes an increased heart rate.

US: Drug UR: increased heart rate

CS: small rooms CR: increased heart rate

Operant Conditioning

The Learner is NOT passive.

Learning based on consequence!!!

Classical vs. Operant Conditioning

Classical Conditioning Operant Conditioning

Behavior is determined by what PRECEDES it.

Behavior is determined by anticipation of what

FOLLOWS it.

Involuntary Voluntary

Dog salivates after a tone.

Dog sits in anticipation of getting a treat.

They both use acquisition, discrimination, Spontaneous Recovery, generalization and extinction.

Operant Conditioning• A type of learning in which behavior is

strengthened if followed by reinforcement or diminished if followed by punishment.

Edward L. Thorndike• Animals placed in

puzzle boxes• String pulled, latch

released, animal jumps out and receives food

• Learning by random trial and error

• Law of Effect – Thorndike’s principle that responses are “stamped in” by rewards and “stamped out” by punishments.

Law of Effect: rewarded behavior is likely to reoccur

B.F. Skinner

Operant Chamber

Using Thorndike's law of effect as a starting point, Skinner developed

the Operant chamber, or the Skinner box, to study operant conditioning.

Walter D

awn/ Photo R

esearchers, Inc.

Skinner’s: Operant Conditioning Chamber

B.F. Skinner: Project Pigeon

• Pigeons would guide WWII missiles to targets

• However, pigeon equipment was bulky = plans were abandoned

Giant Rats in Mozambique

Dolphins in Vietnam to sniff out mines too!

(higher survival rate than any Sea World or academic center!)

How do we actually use Operant Conditioning?

Do we wait for the subject to deliver the desired behavior?

Sometimes, we use a process called shaping.

Shaping is reinforcing small steps on the way to the desired behavior.

To train a dog to get your slippers, you would have to reinforce him in small steps. First, to find the slippers. Then to put them in his mouth. Then to bring them to you and so on…this is shaping behavior.

Reinforcer• Any event that STRENGTHENS the

behavior it follows.

Two Types of Reinforcement:

Positive and Negative

Positive Reinforcement

• Strengthens a response by adding a stimulus after a response.

Negative Reinforcement• Removes something unpleasant that was already in the environment

following a behavior, making that behavior more likely to occur again

• (think avoiding/escaping)

Positive or Negative?

Putting your seatbelt on.Studying for a test.

Having a headache and taking an aspirin.

Faking sick to avoid psych class.

Breaking out of jail.

Getting a kiss for doing the dishes.

Punishment•An event that DECREASES the behavior that it follows.

PunishmentMeant to decrease a

behavior.Positive Punishment• Addition of something

unpleasant.Negative Punishment • Removal of

something pleasant.Punishment works best

when it is immediately done after behavior and if it is harsh!

Types of Reinforcers

Primary Reinforcer

• An innately reinforcing stimulus

Conditioned (Secondary) Reinforcer

• A stimulus that gains its reinforcing power through its association with a primary reinforcer.