Operant Conditioning: Reinforcement and Punishment Explained
Positive Reinforcement
Positive reinforcement consists of increasing the likelihood of a behavior by the presentation of a stimulus, e.g., a prize. It is also called reward conditioning.
Negative Reinforcement
Negative reinforcement involves increasing the probability of conduct by the removal of an aversive stimulus when it is done. It is also called escape conditioning. It is often combined with classical conditioning in the case of phobias, e.g., studying hard for an exam rather than submitting to the appeal.
Positive Punishment
Positive punishment occurs when the subject’s response or behavior results in the appearance of a negative stimulus. In general, punishment produces a reduction and elimination of behavior, e.g., fines. If a dog bites furniture and a bitter-tasting liquid is applied, when they bite, they will feel an unpleasant taste (punishment).
Negative Punishment
Negative punishment is defined as a situation in which conduct prevents the appearance of a positive stimulus, e.g., “Do not enter if you’re late.” It is also called omission because the conditions for the subject’s response result in the non-presentation or omission of a positive development. The result of this procedure is to decrease the probability of occurrence of the response.
Types of Reinforcers
- Primary reinforcers are those that satisfy basic needs of the organism, e.g., water, food, sex. Some social reinforcers, such as a smile, may also be primary.
- Secondary reinforcers, or acquired reinforcers, are those that acquire reinforcing power through their affiliation with a primary reinforcer. Money, for example, is repeatedly associated with the acquisition of food, accommodations, and many consumer goods. Similarly, secondary social reinforcers include praise, approval, or success.
Operant Conditioning
Operant conditioning is a simple learning procedure. It is an action that a person acts voluntarily, giving the impression of being spontaneous and only controlled by the subject. However, this is not true because, in reality, the consequences of these behaviors influence a very important part of them, e.g., after putting a finger in the socket and not doing it anymore. Operant conditioning modifies the frequency of a behavior with consequences as functions of the conduct. That is, if a certain behavior is followed over and over again by satisfactory consequences, that behavior will be implemented more frequently. On the contrary, when a behavior has unpleasant consequences, it will be repeated less frequently.
Thorndike’s Experiment: The Law of Effect
The consequences or effects that follow a behavior determine the probability of the occurrence of the same in the future.
Skinner’s Work
In his novel Walden Two, Skinner discusses positive reinforcement (food) and negative reinforcement (electric shocks). It is the change that occurs when those consequences are carried out with some frequency (operant conditioning).
Reinforcement
Reinforcement is the fact that an operant behavior has a satisfactory result for the subject who utters it. As a result, the behavior is strengthened in the sense that its occurrence increases in the future. The enhancer must be contingent on the response, achieved only when the response is issued.
Punishment
Punishment is the fact that an operant behavior has unsatisfactory consequences for the subject. In this case, the behavior is weakened in the sense that its future occurrence decreases.
Discriminative Stimulus
A discriminative stimulus (Ed) is intended to inform whether or not reinforcement is available. Gamblers say they know when the machine is hot.