Page 5 - LN 1_Learning

2. The interval or length of time that lapses between occurrence of response and
reinforcement also influences operant learning.

TYPES OF REINFORCEMENT
1. Positive Reinforcement
a) Involves stimuli that have pleasant consequences.
b) They strengthen and maintain the responses that have caused them to occur.
c) They satisfy needs like food, praise, money etc.

2. Negative Reinforcement
a) Involves unpleasant and painful stimuli.

b) Responses that lead organism to get rid of it and leads to learning of avoidance
and escape responses.
c) One learns to use electric heaters to avoid cold weather.

3. Punishment
a) Use of punishment reduces or suppresses the responses but a negative
reinforcer increases the probability of avoidance or escape responses.

b) Drivers wear their seat belts to avoid fines.
c) The stronger the punishment, the more lasting is the suppression effect but not
permanently.
d) Mild or delayed punishment has no effect.
e) Sometimes has no effect irrespective of its intensity.

NUMBER OF REINFORCEMENT

a) It refers to the number of trials on which an organism has been reinforced or
rewarded.

b) Chickpeas or pieces of bread are of inferior quality as compared with raisins or
pieces of cake as reinforcer.
c) The course of operant conditioning is usually accelerated to an extent as the
number, amount, and quality of reinforcement increases.

SCHEDULE OF REINFORCEMENT
a) A reinforcement schedule is the arrangement of the delivery of reinforcement

during conditioning trials.
b) Each schedule of reinforcement influences the course of conditioning in its own
way; and thus conditioned responses occur with differential characteristics.
c) The organism being subjected to operant conditioning may be given
reinforcement in every acquisition trial or in some trials it is given and in others
it is omitted. Thus, the reinforcement may be continuous or intermittent.