An Introduction to Operant (Instrumental) ConditioningCitation: Huitt, W., & Hummel, J. (1997). An introduction to operant (instrumental) conditioning. Educational Psychology Interactive. Valdosta, GA: Valdosta State University. Retrieved [date] from, http://www.edpsycinteractive.org/topics/behavior/operant.html Show
Return to: | An Overview of Behavioral Psychology | EdPsyc Topics | A human being fashions his consequences as surely as he fashions his goods or his dwelling. Nothing that he says, thinks or does is without consequences. The major theorists for the development of operant conditioning are Edward Thorndike, John Watson, and B. F. Skinner. This approach to behaviorism played a major role in the development of the science of psychology, especially in the United States. They proposed that learning is the result of the application of consequences; that is, learners begin to connect certain responses with certain stimuli. This connection causes the probability of the response to change (i.e., learning occurs.) Thorndike labeled this type of learning instrumental. Using consequences, he taught kittens to manipulate a latch (e.g., an instrument). Skinner renamed instrumental as operant because it is more descriptive (i.e., in this learning, one is "operating" on, and is influenced by, the environment). Where classical conditioning illustrates S-->R learning, operant conditioning is often viewed as R-->S learning since it is the consequence that follows the response that influences whether the response is likely or unlikely to occur again. It is through operant conditioning that voluntary responses are learned. The 3-term model of operant conditioning (S--> R -->S) incorporates the concept that responses cannot occur without an environmental event (e.g., an antecedent stimulus) preceding it. While the antecedent stimulus in operant conditioning does not elicit or cause the response (as it does in classical), it can influence it. When the antecedent does influence the likelihood of a response occurring, it is technically called a discriminative stimulus. It is the stimulus that follows a voluntary response (i.e., the response's consequence) that changes the probability of whether the response is likely or unlikely to occur again. There are two types of consequences: positive (sometimes called pleasant) and negative (sometimes called aversive). These can be added to or taken away from the environment in order to change the probability of a given response occurring again. General Principles
Schedules of consequences
In summary, the schedules of consequences are often called schedules of reinforcements because there is only one schedule that is appropriate for administering response cost and punishment: continuous or fixed ratio of one. In fact, certainty of the application of a consequence is the most important aspect of using response cost and punishment. Learners must know, without a doubt, that an undesired or inappropriate target behavior will be followed by removal of a positive/pleasant stimulus or the addition of a negative/aversive stimulus. Using an intermittent schedule when one is attempting to reduce a behavior may actually lead to a strengthening of the behavior, certainly an unwanted end result. Premack Principle
Analyzing Examples of Operant Conditioning
Rules in analyzing examples. The following questions can help in determining whether operant conditioning has occurred.
Examples. The following examples are provided to assist you in analyzing examples of operant conditioning.
Applications of Operant Conditioning to Education:
Tutorials:
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All materials on this website [http://www.edpsycinteractive.org] are, unless otherwise stated, the property of William G. Huitt. Copyright and other intellectual property laws protect these materials. Reproduction or retransmission of the materials, in whole or in part, in any manner, without the prior written consent of the copyright holder, is a violation of copyright law. What do you call the type of reinforcement when something is added to the stimulus?What Is Positive Reinforcement? In operant conditioning, positive reinforcement involves the addition of a reinforcing stimulus following a behavior that makes it more likely that the behavior will occur again in the future.
What is it called when you apply a stimulus to decrease behavior?negative punishment: taking away a pleasant stimulus to decrease or stop a behavior. negative reinforcement: taking away an undesirable stimulus to increase a behavior. positive punishment: adding an undesirable stimulus to stop or decrease a behavior.
What is the term for the adding or taking away of a stimulus following a response which increases the likelihood of that response being repeated?Reinforcement. Adding/taking away of a stimulus following a response, which increases the likelihood of that response being repeated.
What do you call the process by which a stimulus or event following a particular behavior increases the probability that the behavior will happen again?Reinforcement. The process by which a stimulus or an event (a reinforcer) following in a particular behavior increases the probability that the behavior will happen again.
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