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Operant Conditioning

Operant conditioning is a method of learning that uses rewards and punishments to modify behavior. Behaviors that are rewarded are likely to be repeated, while behaviors that are punished are unlikely to reoccur. For example, receiving a bonus at work for exceptional performance positively reinforces that behavior, making it likely to be repeated in hopes of future rewards.

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Rozette Cabayacruz
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15 views

Operant Conditioning

Operant conditioning is a method of learning that uses rewards and punishments to modify behavior. Behaviors that are rewarded are likely to be repeated, while behaviors that are punished are unlikely to reoccur. For example, receiving a bonus at work for exceptional performance positively reinforces that behavior, making it likely to be repeated in hopes of future rewards.

Uploaded by

Rozette Cabayacruz
Copyright
© © All Rights Reserved
We take content rights seriously. If you suspect this is your content, claim it here.
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Download as DOCX, PDF, TXT or read online on Scribd
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Operant Conditioning

By B.F. Skinner

Operant Conditioning is a method of learning that uses


rewards and punishment to modify behavior. Through operant
conditioning, behavior that is rewarded is likely to be repeated,
and behavior that is punished will rarely occur.
For example, when you are rewarded at work with a
performance bonus for exceptional work, you will be inclined to
continue performing at a higher level in hopes of receiving
another bonus in the future. Because this behavior was followed
by a positive outcome, the behavior will likely be repeated.
(a)
Reinforcement- Responses from the
environment that increase the probability of
a behavior being repeated.
Types of Reinforcement
1. Positive Reinforcers- to strengthen
the probability of a behavior by
means of addition of something. An
example for this is when you train your pets to do some tricks by offering them a pat on
the head or praise them whenever they perform the behavior correctly.
2. Negative Reinforcers- is the removal of the unfavorable stimuli after the display of
behavior. So the example for this is when the professor tells the students that if they have
perfect attendance all semester, then they do not have to take the final exam. By
removing the exam, the students are negatively reinforced to attend class regularly.
(b) Punishment- is a process where in a stimulus is presented after the display of behavior and
causes the decline in the likelihood of behavior to reoccur.
Types of Punishment
1. Positive Punishment- also known as punishment by removal, occurs when a favorable
event or outcome is removed after a behavior occurs. An example is when you fail to
hand in a project on time, your teacher becomes angry and berates your performance in
front of your classmates. This acts as a positive punisher, making it less likely that you
will finish projects late in the future.

2. Negative Punishment-is the removal of something which is favorable, in order to


decrease the likelihood of the behavior to reoccur. An example for this is when a teen girl
does not clean up her room as she was asked, so her parents take away her phone for the
rest of the day. So taking away his phone is a negative punishment.

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