Monday, 26 November 2012

ASSUMPTION 2: OPERANT CONDITIONING

Operant conditioning is learning through reinforcement.



(picture from simplypsychology.org)

This assumption can be explained in terms of Skinner's Box (above), Skinner, 1938 conducted experiments on small animals - rats, pigeons, etc - and as they moved around their specially designed box, a specific action would result in a food pellet being delivered as a reward (or reinforcer), and he noticed that the animal would repeat the behaviour in order to achieve the reward again. Reinforcers aim to increase the likelihood of a behaviour being repeated, and punishers aim to decrease unwanted behaviour.

Positive reinforcement is when something good is given as a reward for a desired behaviour.
Negative reinforcement is when something unpleasant is taken away as a reward for a desired behaviour.

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