What type of reward schedule extinguishes the fastest

This discrimination, without a pronounced external cue, usually is not perfect. As a result, as the time for reinforcement comes closer, the rate of behavior generally increases until it is very high at the time of reinforcement.

Graphically this looks like a scallop. Which of the following would represent a fixed interval schedule? Reinforcement which is presented following a response after a set time has elapsed since the last reinforcement is a definition of the schedule of reinforcement called fixed-interval. Pay by the hour is not an exact equivalent to fixed-interval reinforcement.

In FI, the reinforcer follows the first response given after the time has elapsed. Pay by the hour requires only the passage of time, without reference to time between responses. Where the recorded behavior pattern is in the form of a fairly smooth accelerating scallop like an ocean wave , we most likely are observing a schedule of a.

Reinforcement is presented following a response after a varying time has elapsed since the last reinforcement in variable-interval. Patriots may have undergone long periods of non-reinforcement but still persist in their behavior. A pigeon learning to peck on a variable-ratio receives access to a small quantity of grain as a reinforcement. In a fixed-ratio schedule the organism is reinforced only after a fixed number of responses, for example five, have been performed.

Once the organism begins to respond he works at the highest rate until reinforcement occurs following reinforcement a pause, or decrease in rate of performance , occurs.

A schedule of reinforcement which produces a fast, steady rate of responding and a pause after reinforcement is the a. Abrupt increases in the size of a fixed-ratio can lead to ratio strain, i. Gambling: A study of schedules of reinforcement can help us to explain not only the causes of many sought after behaviors, but also the causes of many undesirable behaviors. Consider for example the pathological gambler.

Given a particular behavioral history, stimuli which are usually punishing may act as positive reinforcers. As we shall see later in this set of materials, experiments have been done which demonstrate such processes without reference to inner states.

A different explanation can more plausibly account for the behavior of the pathological gambler. It seems likely that a gambler is a victim of a high variable-ratio schedule. A thorough knowledge of schedule effects should help us to successfully treat this and many other behaviors. They first worked on the ward at a hundred points per hour. One point equaled one penny.

This did not maximize the principles of reinforcement. Adolescence and Schedules of Reinforcement: Changes in the kind and amount of behavior required for reinforcement occur in adolescence. Compound schedules combine at least two simple schedules and use the same reinforcer for the same behavior.

Compound schedules are often seen in the workplace: for example, if you are paid at an hourly rate fixed-interval but also have an incentive to receive a small commission for certain sales fixed-ratio , you are being reinforced by a compound schedule.

There are many possibilities for compound schedules: for example, superimposed schedules use at least two simple schedules simultaneously. Concurrent schedules, on the other hand, provide two possible simple schedules simultaneously, but allow the participant to respond on either schedule at will. All combinations and kinds of reinforcement schedules are intended to elicit a specific target behavior. Privacy Policy. Skip to main content. Search for:.

Operant Conditioning. Key Takeaways Key Points The law of effect states that responses that produce a satisfying effect in a particular situation become more likely to occur again, while responses that produce a discomforting effect are less likely to be repeated. Edward L. Thorndike first studied the law of effect by placing hungry cats inside puzzle boxes and observing their actions.

He quickly realized that cats could learn the efficacy of certain behaviors and would repeat those behaviors that allowed them to escape faster. The law of effect is at work in every human behavior as well. From a young age, we learn which actions are beneficial and which are detrimental through a similar trial and error process. While the law of effect explains behavior from an external, observable point of view, it does not account for internal, unobservable processes that also affect the behavior patterns of human beings.

Key Takeaways Key Points B. Skinner, a behavioral psychologist and a student of E. Thorndike, contributed to our view of learning by expanding our understanding of conditioning to include operant conditioning. Skinner theorized that if a behavior is followed by reinforcement, that behavior is more likely to be repeated, but if it is followed by punishment, it is less likely to be repeated.

Skinner conducted his research on rats and pigeons by presenting them with positive reinforcement, negative reinforcement, or punishment in various schedules that were designed to produce or inhibit specific target behaviors. Skinner did not include room in his research for ideas such as free will or individual choice; instead, he posited that all behavior could be explained using learned, physical aspects of the world, including life history and evolution.

Shaping Shaping is a method of operant conditioning by which successive approximations of a target behavior are reinforced. Learning Objectives Describe how shaping is used to modify behavior. Skinner used shaping —a method of training by which successive approximations toward a target behavior are reinforced—to test his theories of behavioral psychology. Shaping is commonly used to train animals, such as dogs, to perform difficult tasks; it is also a useful learning tool for modifying human behavior.

Key Terms successive approximation : An increasingly accurate estimate of a response desired by a trainer. Reinforcement and Punishment Reinforcement and punishment are principles of operant conditioning that increase or decrease the likelihood of a behavior. Learning Objectives Differentiate among primary, secondary, conditioned, and unconditioned reinforcers. In operant conditioning, positive means you are adding something and negative means you are taking something away.

Reinforcers can be either primary linked unconditionally to a behavior or secondary requiring deliberate or conditioned linkage to a specific behavior. Primary—or unconditioned—reinforcers, such as water, food, sleep, shelter, sex, touch, and pleasure, have innate reinforcing qualities. Secondary—or conditioned—reinforcers such as money have no inherent value until they are linked or paired with a primary reinforcer. Key Terms latency : The delay between a stimulus and the response it triggers in an organism.

Schedules of Reinforcement Reinforcement schedules determine how and when a behavior will be followed by a reinforcer. Learning Objectives Compare and contrast different types of reinforcement schedules.

Key Takeaways Key Points A reinforcement schedule is a tool in operant conditioning that allows the trainer to control the timing and frequency of reinforcement in order to elicit a target behavior. Continuous schedules reward a behavior after every performance of the desired behavior; intermittent or partial schedules only reward the behavior after certain ratios or intervals of responses.

Intermittent schedules can be either fixed where reinforcement occurs after a set amount of time or responses or variable where reinforcement occurs after a varied and unpredictable amount of time or responses. Intermittent schedules are also described as either interval based on the time between reinforcements or ratio based on the number of responses. Three Major Types of Learning.

Learning is a change in behavior or in potential behavior that occurs as a result of experience. Learning occurs most rapidly on a schedule of continuous reinforcement. However it is fairly easy to extinguish… switching to variable reinforcement after the desired behavior has been reached prevents extinction.

If a neutral stimulus a stimulus that at first elicits no response is paired with a stimulus that already evokes a reflex response, then eventually the new stimulus will by itself evoke a similar response. For example, many of our likes and dislikes of new people and situations come from generalization based on similarities to past experiences.

SD is the ability to detect differences among stimuli. The organism operates on its environment in some way; the behavior in which it engages are instrumental to achieving some outcome. Among the reinforcement schedules, variable ratio is the most productive and the most resistant to extinction.

Fixed interval is the least productive and the easiest to extinguish Figure 1. Figure 1. The four reinforcement schedules yield different response patterns. The variable ratio schedule is unpredictable and yields high and steady response rates, with little if any pause after reinforcement e.

A fixed ratio schedule is predictable and produces a high response rate, with a short pause after reinforcement e. The variable interval schedule is unpredictable and produces a moderate, steady response rate e. The fixed interval schedule yields a scallop-shaped response pattern, reflecting a significant pause after reinforcement e. Figure 2.

Some research suggests that pathological gamblers use gambling to compensate for abnormally low levels of the hormone norepinephrine, which is associated with stress and is secreted in moments of arousal and thrill. Skinner uses gambling as an example of the power and effectiveness of conditioning behavior based on a variable ratio reinforcement schedule.

Beyond the power of variable ratio reinforcement, gambling seems to work on the brain in the same way as some addictive drugs. The Illinois Institute for Addiction Recovery n. Specifically, gambling may activate the reward centers of the brain, much like cocaine does. Research has shown that some pathological gamblers have lower levels of the neurotransmitter brain chemical known as norepinephrine than do normal gamblers Roy, et al. According to a study conducted by Alec Roy and colleagues, norepinephrine is secreted when a person feels stress, arousal, or thrill; pathological gamblers use gambling to increase their levels of this neurotransmitter.

Another researcher, neuroscientist Hans Breiter, has done extensive research on gambling and its effects on the brain. Deficiencies in serotonin another neurotransmitter might also contribute to compulsive behavior, including a gambling addiction.

However, it is very difficult to ascertain the cause because it is impossible to conduct a true experiment it would be unethical to try to turn randomly assigned participants into problem gamblers.