Operant Conditioning

Concept: Operant conditioning involves increasing or decreasing a behavior by adding a consequence.
Reinforcement vs. Punishment:
- Reinforcement: Increases likelihood of a behavior.
  - Positive Reinforcement: Adding something pleasant (e.g., giving a dog a cookie).
  - Negative Reinforcement: Removing something unpleasant (e.g., taking off a leash).
- Punishment: Decreases likelihood of a behavior.
  - Positive Punishment: Adding something unpleasant.
  - Negative Punishment: Removing something pleasant (e.g., the comfy carpet).
Extinction: If manipulation stops, conditioned behavior eventually disappears.

Historical Context

Edward L. Thorndike: First studied operant conditioning.
B. F. Skinner: Advanced the theory, developed the Skinner box.
- Skinner Box Experiment: Demonstrated conditioning with a rat and a lever releasing food.
- Three-Term Contingency (ABCs of Behavior):
  - A - Antecedent: Initial trigger (rat hits lever).
  - B - Behavior: The response (rat presses lever).
  - C - Consequence: What follows (food is released).
- Schedule of Reinforcement: Affects response strength.
  - Consistent reinforcement leads to predictable behavior.
  - Random reinforcement leads to erratic behavior.

Behaviorism: Advocated studying only visible behavior.
Beliefs:
- Free will is an illusion.
- Behavior is a reaction to environmental stimuli.
Applications:
- Behavioral therapy.
- Military drills.
- Animal training.

Positive Reinforcement Demo:
- One person leaves the room.
- The group decides on a task for them to complete.
- Use non-verbal reinforcement (e.g., clapping) to guide the individual.
- Adjust clapping intensity based on the correctness of the task.

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