Operant conditioning in psychology
Learning in psychology is defined as
a relatively permanent change in behavior as a result of
an experience.
B.F. Skinner, John Watson, and Ivan Pavlov are
considered major influencers.
There are three types of learning in psychology:
classical conditioning, operant conditioning, and
observational learning. In this video, we're going to
cover operant conditioning.
Operant conditioning is defined as the learning process
through which the likelihood of a behavior reoccurring is
either increased or decreased based on its consequences.
In operant conditioning, there are two types of
consequences: reinforcement and punishment.
Reinforcement is used to increase the likelihood of
a behavior reoccuring, while punishment is used to
decrease the likelihood of a behavior reoccuring.
Both reinforcement and punishment have two types:
positive and negative.
In operant conditioning, the word positive means
the addition of a stimulus or adding something to the
environment.
To be clear, positive does not mean good.
It just means addition.
In operant conditioning the word negative means
the subtraction of a stimulus, or taking something away
from the environment.
To be clear, negative does not mean bad.
It just means subtraction.
By combining the concepts we just learned, we get four
key terms associated with operant conditioning:
positive reinforcement, negative reinforcement,
positive punishment, and negative punishment.
Positive reinforcement is the addition of a stimulus
in order to make a behavior more likely to reoccur.
Meanwhile, negative reinforcement is the subtraction of
a stimulus in order to make a behavior more likely to
reoccur.
Positive punishment is the addition of a stimulus
in order to make a behavior less likely to reoccur.
Meanwhile, negative punishment is the subtraction
of a stimulus in order to make the behavior less likely to
reoccur.
You may recall that positive reinforcement is
the addition of a stimulus in order to make a behavior
more likely to reoccur.
Here are two examples of positive reinforcement.
Sarayu is training their dog, Rufus, to come when called.
If they reward Rufus with a treat every time he
successfully comes to them when called, that
would be an example of positive reinforcement.
They're adding the pleasant stimulus of a treat to
increase the likelihood of Rufus coming when called in
the future.
In another example, Mr. Jackson is trying to encourage
his fifth-grade students to do well on their English
exams.
If he rewards his students with stickers on their exams
when they do well, that would be an example of
positive reinforcement.
He is adding the pleasant stimulus of a sticker to
increase the likelihood of his students doing well on
exams in the future.
You may recall that negative reinforcement is the
subtraction of a stimulus in order to make a behavior
more likely to reoccur.
Here are two examples of negative reinforcement.
Gloria is training her dog, Pepperoni, to sit calmly after
returning home from a walk so she can easily remove his leash.
In order to accomplish this goal, Gloria will wait while
her dog strains against the leash until he calms down
and sits.
Only then does she remove the unpleasant stimulus of
the leash.
This is an example of negative reinforcement
because Gloria is subtracting the unpleasant stimulus
of the leash to increase the likelihood of Pepperoni
being calm when they first arrive home after their
walks in the future.
In another example, a car manufacturer is trying
to encourage its consumers to wear their seatbelts.
In order to goal, they design their cars with a seatbelt
reminder system, which incorporates an unpleasant
beeping sound whenever a person sits in the car
without their seatbelt on.
As soon as the consumer buckles their seatbelt,
the unpleasant beeping sound stops.
This is an example of negative reinforcement
because the car manufacturer is subtracting the
unpleasant stimulus of a beeping sound to increase the
likelihood of its consumers wearing their seatbelts in
the future.
You may recall that positive punishment is the
addition of a stimulus in order to make a behavior less
likely to reoccur.
Here are two examples of positive punishment.
Misaki is training her cat, Pumpkin, to stop scratching
the furniture.
If she used a spray bottle to mist him in the face with
water whenever he begins to scratch the furniture,
that would be an example of positive punishment.
She is adding the unpleasant stimulus of being misted
in the face with water to decrease the likelihood of
furniture-scratching in the future.
In another example, Coach Bevis is trying to get
soccer players Renata and Brielle
to stop goofing off during practice.
If Coach Bevis makes Renata and Brielle run
laps around the field every time he catches them
goofing off, that would be an example of positive
punishment.
Coach Bevis is adding the unpleasant stimulus of
running laps to decrease the likelihood of the girls
goofing off during practices in the future.
You may recall that negative punishment is
the subtraction of a stimulus in order to make a
behavior less likely to reoccur.
Here are two examples of negative punishment.
Denise is training her dog, Conley, to stop begging
for scraps from the table at dinnertime.
In order to accomplish this goal, Denise will put Conley
outside whenever he begins to beg at the table.
This is an example of negative punishment because
Denise is subtracting the pleasant stimulus of the
family's company to decrease the likelihood of
Conley begging for scraps in the future.
In another example, Hiba is trying to discourage her
daughter, Lamia, from being on her cellphone during
their family dinners.
In order to accomplish this goal, Hiba takes Lamia's
cell phone whenever she takes it out during dinner.
This is an example of negative punishment because
Hiba is subtracting the pleasant stimulus of the cell
phone to decrease the likelihood of Lamia
using it during dinners in the future.
To review, let's go over the four key terms associated
with operant conditioning:
positive reinforcement, negative reinforcement,
positive punishment, and negative punishment.
Positive reinforcement is the addition of a stimulus in
order to make a behavior more likely to reoccur.
Meanwhile, negative reinforcement is the subtraction
of a stimulus in order to make a behavior more likely
to reoccur.
Positive punishment is the addition of a stimulus in
order to make a behavior less likely to reoccur.
Meanwhile, negative punishment is the subtraction of a
stimulus in order to make a behavior less likely
to reoccur.
(The End. Credits in the description below.)
