Operant Conditioning Lecture Notes
Overview
- Operant Conditioning: A method of learning that occurs through rewards and punishments for behavior.
- Key Concept: Behavior is more or less likely to happen based on its consequences.
- Reinforcement: Increases likelihood of behavior.
- Punishment: Decreases likelihood of behavior.
Differences from Classical Conditioning
- Operant Conditioning focuses on observable behaviors.
- Classical Conditioning involves reflexive, internal responses.
- Operant conditioning is about how organisms operate in their environment.
Consequences of Behavior
- Neutral Consequences: No impact on behavior likelihood.
- Reinforcement: Strengthens the response, increasing likelihood of recurrence.
- Example: Giving a dog food when it begs reinforces begging behavior.
- Punishment: Weakens the response, decreasing likelihood of recurrence.
- Consistency is key for punishment to be effective.
- Immediate consequences have stronger effects than delayed ones.
Key Experiments and Concepts
- Skinner Box: Used to study operant conditioning with rats.
- Rats learn to press a lever to receive food.
- Learning is observable and recordable.
Principles of Operant Conditioning
- Extinction: Behavior stops when reinforcement is removed.
- Spontaneous Recovery: Extinct behavior reappears after time in a similar environment.
- Stimulus Generalization: Response to stimuli similar to the original learned stimuli.
Reinforcement Schedules
- Continuous Reinforcement
- Immediate learning and extinction.
- Example: Vending machine gives a coke every time money is inserted.
- Intermittent/Partial Reinforcement
- Slower learning but more resistant to extinction.
- Example: Slot machines.
Types of Intermittent Reinforcement Schedules
- Fixed Ratio: Reinforcement after a set number of responses.
- Predictable, quick learning, rapid behaviors.
- Variable Ratio: Reinforcement after an average number of responses.
- Slower learning, persistent behaviors, used by casinos.
- Fixed Interval: Reinforcement after a fixed time.
- Animals develop a sense of timing.
- Variable Interval: Reinforcement after an average time.
- Slow, steady behaviors, unpredictable timings.
Learning and Extinction
- Continuous Schedules
- Quick learning and quick extinction.
- Intermittent Schedules
- Slow learning and slow extinction.
- Extinction Trials
- Gradual extinction curve with partial schedules.
Conclusion
- For a behavior to persist longer, it should be reinforced intermittently.
- Extinction is quicker with continuous reinforcement and slower with intermittent reinforcement.
This concludes the summary of operant conditioning principles and experiments discussed. Use these notes to review the key concepts and prepare for further lectures on the topic.