Skinner
Operant Conditioning
Evaluation:
Key terms:
Method:
Findings:
Origins: (a behaviourist approach)
Animals were required to press a lever to release a food pellet into a food tray
Skinner's rats soon learned to press the lever through reinforcement
Skinner wanted to investigate whether he could change a rat's behaviour through reinforcement
Positive reinforcement:
Negative reinforcement:
Punishment:
Decreases the likelihood of a behaviour
Causes either physical or mental distress by giving an unpleasant stimuli or withdrawing a pleasant one
Something pleasant is given when the desired behaviour is performed
This increases the probability of behaviour being repeated
Something unpleasant is removed because the desired behaviour is produced
Increases the probability of the behaviour being repeated
Secondary reinforcement:
Primary Reinforcement:
Not reinforcing alone, but becomes associated with the primary reinforcer
Innately reinforcing
S - There have been practical applications for society from OC (based on principles of positive reinforcement)
S - Behaviourist approach is praised for its scientific credibility
W - OC sees behaviour as being determined by the environment and doesn't take into account free will
W - Experiment was conducted on animals, humans may react differently
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