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Basis of Operant Conditioning: Acquisition, Nature, and Schedule of reinforcement

Program: BS Psychology

Subject: Experimental Psychology

Semester: 7th

Submitted by: Zainab Khan

Roll No: 20117

Submitted to: Ma’am Saba

Head of Department: Miss Iffat Gulab

Session: 2020-2024

GOVERNMENT POSTGRADUATE COLLEGE FOR WOMEN, HARIPUR

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Table of Content

S. No Topics Page no

1. Operant Conditioning 3

2. Basis of Operant Conditioning 3

3. Nature 4

4. Acquisition 5

5. Schedules of Operant Conditioning 6

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Operant Conditioning

Operant conditioning also known as instrumental conditioning, is a type of associative

learning that uses rewards and punishment to modify behavior. When a behavior is a paired

with a consequence repeatedly, an association is formed to create new behavior.

Example

A dog trainer gives his dog a treat every time the dog raises its left paw. The dog learns that

raisin its left paw can earn him a food reward. It will raise its paw again and again for more

treats.

The Basis of Operant Conditioning

The basic concept behind operant conditioning is that a stimulus (antecedent) leads to

a behavior, which then leads to a consequence. This form of conditioning involves reinforces,

both positive and negative, as well as primary, secondary, and generalized.

Nature

Operant conditioning is based on

 Certain operations or actions.

 Stimuli or cause for evoking a response is not always essential.

 Subject performed acts or carried out operations were active. Example A dog or child

or an individual does something behaves in some manner which operates on the

environment which in turn responds to the activity.

 Response is made more probable or more frequent by reinforcement.

 Helps in learning of operant behavior not necessarily associated with a known stimulus.

Acquisition
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Acquisition is the initial stage of learning, when a response is first established and gradually

strengthen.

Acquisition Process in Operant Conditioning

Operant conditioning is a theory of learning which postulates that the consequences that

follow a behavior determine the likelihood of it happening again.

 Behaviors that are rewarded are strengthened and more likely to occur again.

 Behaviors that are punished are weakened and less likely to occur again.

 The term acquisition in operant conditioning refers to how long it takes for the target

behavior to be established.

Example

If a target behavior is rewarded every time it occurs, which is called continuous

reinforcement, then the organism will acquire that behavior quickly. The contingency between

the target behavior and the reward is consistent and contiguous, so it is quickly perceived by

the organism. This leads to quick acquisition. Because the organism wants the reward, it

engages in the target behavior frequently.

However, if the target behavior is only rewarded occasionally, referred to as partial

reinforcement, then it takes a while for the animal to perceive the contingency. This results in

slow acquisition.

Schedules of Reinforcement

A schedule is a component of operant conditioning that states which instances of

behavior will be reinforced. Reinforcement is not necessarily a straightforward process, and

there are a number of factors that can influence how quickly and how well new things are
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learned. Skinner found that when and how often behaviors were reinforced played a role in the

speed and strength of acquisition. In other words, the timing and frequency of reinforcement

influenced how new behaviors were learned and how old behaviors were modified.

Different patterns of reinforcement have distinctive effects on the speed of learning.

Skinner identified several different schedules of reinforcement that impact the operant

conditioning process:

Continuous Reinforcement Schedule

In continuous reinforcement, the desired behavior is reinforced every single time it

occur. This schedule is best used during the initial stages of learning to create a strong

association between the behavior and response.

Example

Imagine that you are trying to teach a dog to shake your hand. During the initial stages

of learning, you would stick to a continuous reinforcement schedule to teach and establish the

behavior. This might involve grabbing the dog’s paw, shaking it, saying “shake,” and then

offering a reward each and every time you perform these steps. Eventually, the dog will start

to perform the action on its own.

Continuous reinforcement schedules are most effective when trying to teach a new

behavior. These schedule denote a pattern in which every narrowly defined response is

followed by a narrowly defined consequence.

Partial reinforcement Schedule

Once the response is firmly established, a continuous reinforcement schedule is usually

switched to a partial reinforcement schedule. In partial (or intermittent) reinforcement, the

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response is reinforced only part of the time. Learned behaviors are acquired more slowly with

partial reinforcement, but the response is more resistant to extinction.

Example

Think of the earlier example in which you were training a dog to shake. While you

initially used continuous reinforcement, reinforcing the behavior every time, long after the dog

has learned the trick, is simply unrealistic. In time, you would switch to a partial schedule to

provide additional reinforcement once the behavior has been established or after considerable

time has passed.

These four schedules of reinforcement are sometimes referred to as FR, VR, FI, and

VI—which stands for fixed-ratio, variable-ratio, fixed-interval, and variable-interval.

Fixed-Ratio Reinforcement Schedule

Fixed-ratio schedules are a type of partial reinforcement. Fixed-ratio schedules are

those in which a response is reinforced only after a specified number of responses. This

schedule produces a high, steady rate of responding with only a brief pause after the delivery

of the reinforce.

Example

An example of a fixed-ratio schedule would be delivering a food pellet to a rat after it

presses a bar five times.

Fixed-Interval Reinforcement Schedule

Fixed-interval schedules are another form of partial reinforcement. Fixed-interval

schedules are those where the first response is rewarded only after a specified amount of time
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has elapsed. This schedule causes high amounts of responding near the end of the interval but

slower responding immediately after the delivery of the reinforce.

Example

An example of this in a lab setting would be reinforcing a rat with a lab pellet for the

first bar press after a 30-second interval has elapsed.

A child may be rewarded once a week if their room is cleaned up. The child’s room

may be a mess all week, but is cleaned up for the “inspection”

Variable-Ratio Schedule

Variable-ratio schedules are also a type of partial reinforcement. Variable-ratio

schedules occur when a response is reinforced after an unpredictable number of responses. This

schedule creates a high steady rate of responding.

Example

Gambling and lottery games are good examples of a reward based on a variable ratio

schedule. In a lab setting, this might involve delivering food pellets to a rat after one bar press,

again after four bar presses, and then again after two bar presses.

Variable-Interval Schedule

Variable-interval schedules are the final form of partial reinforcement Skinner

described. Variable-interval schedules occur when a response is rewarded after an

unpredictable amount of time has passed. This schedule produces a slow, steady rate of

response.

Example
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An example of this would be delivering a food pellet to a rat after the first bar press

following a one-minute interval; a second pellet for the first response following a five-minute

interval; and a third pellet for the first response following a three-minute interval.

References

 www.explorepsychology.com

 www.google scholar.com