PSY 2012 Lecture Notes - Lecture 14: Operant Conditioning, Operant Conditioning Chamber, Reinforcement
Document Summary
Classical conditioning: based on involuntary responses. Operant (instrumental) conditioning: explains voluntary behaviors. B. f. skinner: consequences change probability of behavior, operant = behavior, consequences contingent on behavior. Thorndike"s law of effect: positive outcome strengthen behavior, negative outcomes weaken behavior. The skinner box: controlled conditioned to study operant conditioning, operant (lever press by rat) -> consequence (food) Behavior followed by a consequence: the skinner box is a chamber with a highly controlled environment, used to study operant conditioning processes with laboratory animals. Positive and negative types: when stimulus is added, the result is positive reinforcement. Intended results: increase in behavior (reinforcement: ex. Giving a raise for good performace: results: increase in response of good performance. The term reward is often misused as a synonym for the term positive reinforcer. Behaviorists prefer positive reinforcer because it focuses on how consequences affect behavior. Similarly, chimpanzees learn to value, work for, and even hoard tokens that they can place into a vending machine obtain raisins.
