Introduction to Psychology - Conditioning and Learning PDF

CHAPTER 7 Conditioning and Learning Gateway Theme The principles of learning can be used to understand and manage behavior. Dan Barba/Jupiterimages Gateway Questions What is learning? How are we influenced...

CHAPTER 7 Conditioning and Learning Gateway Theme The principles of learning can be used to understand and manage behavior. Dan Barba/Jupiterimages Gateway Questions What is learning? How are we influenced by patterns of reward? How does classical conditioning occur? What does punishment do to behavior? Does conditioning affect emotions? What is cognitive learning? How does operant conditioning occur? Does learning occur by imitation? Are there different kinds of operant reinforcement? How does conditioning apply to practical problems? 218  preview Rats! Larry vividly remembers his mother describing how a rat explained how he had come to dread rats. After reading several had terrified her. She gestured excitedly as she relived the more books, he returned to the jungle, certain that he could horror of seeing the creature scamper out of a camp stove. cope with his next close encounter. However, he was shocked Although everyone else laughed, 6-year-old Larry shivered as to discover that his newfound knowledge was no help at all. he imagined the attacking rodent. That’s the day he learned Larry had bumped into a strange truth: All his abstract “book to fear rats. learning,” a form of cognitive learning, was powerless to protect Years later, while studying gorillas in Africa, he encountered him in the presence of a rat. Chastened, he went to a therapist his first live rat. Larry was shocked by his own reaction. Despite who used classical conditioning to help him overcome his fear. being a respected scientist, he ran away shrieking like a little Larry eventually came to like rats and now has a pet rat named child. After failing to control his fear a few more times (and Einstein. Larry also went on to study how baby gorillas learn being good-naturedly ribbed about it by others), he resolved by observing others — much as he did when he observed his to conquer it. mother’s story about the rat. Back home, Larry read about irrational fears and realized Different forms of learning reach into every corner of our that a form of learning called vicarious classical conditioning lives. Are you ready to learn more? If so, let’s begin! What Is Learning — Does Practice Associative Learning Isn’t learning the result of practice? It depends on what you mean by Make Perfect? practice. Merely repeating a response will not necessarily produce Gateway Question: What is learning? learning. You could close your eyes and swing a tennis racket hun- Almost all human behavior is learned. Imagine if you suddenly lost dreds of times without improving your swing. Reinforcement is the all you had ever learned. What could you do? You would be unable key to associative learning. Reinforcement refers to any event that to read, write, or speak. You couldn’t feed yourself, find your way increases the probability that a response will occur again. A response home, and drive a car, play the bassoon, or “party.” Needless to say, is any identifiable behavior. Responses may be observable actions, you would be totally incapacitated. (Dull, too!) Learning is a rela- such as blinking, eating a piece of candy, or turning a doorknob. tively permanent change in behavior due to experience (Domjan, They can also be internal, such as having a faster heartbeat. 2006). Notice that this definition excludes both temporary changes To teach a dog a trick, we could reinforce correct responses by and more permanent changes caused by motivation, fatigue, matu- giving the dog some food each time it sits up. Similarly, you could ration, disease, injury, or drugs. Each of these can alter behavior, teach a child to be neat by praising him for picking up his toys. but none qualifies as learning. Learning can also occur in other ways. For instance, if a girl gets stung by a bee, she may learn to associate pain with bees and to fear Types of Learning them. In this case, the girl’s fear is reinforced by the discomfort she As Larry’s rat experience illustrates, there are different types of feels immediately after seeing the bee. learning. Associative learning occurs whenever a person or an Unlocking the secrets of associative learning begins with noting animal forms a simple association among various stimuli and/or what happens before and after a response. Events that precede a responses. Humans share the capacity for associative learning with response are antecedents. For example, Ashleigh, who is 3, has many other species. In a moment, we will explore two types of associative learning called classical conditioning and operant con- ditioning. Learning Any relatively permanent change in behavior that can be Humans also engage in cognitive learning, which refers to attributed to experience. understanding, knowing, anticipating, or otherwise making use of Associative learning The formation of simple associations between information-rich higher mental processes. More complex forms of various stimuli and responses. cognitive learning, such as learning from written language, are Cognitive learning Higher-level learning involving thinking, knowing, unique to humans and are why our species is called Homo Sapiens understanding, and anticipation. (from the Latin for man and wise). However, some animals do Reinforcement Any event that increases the probability that a engage in simpler forms of cognitive learning, which we will particular response will occur. describe later in this chapter. Antecedents Events that precede a response. 219 220 CHAPTER 7 learned that when she hears a truck pull into the driveway, it Classical Conditioning — Does means that daddy is home. Ashleigh runs to the front door. Effects that follow a response are consequences. The hug she gets from the Name Pavlov Ring a Bell? her father is what reinforces Ashleigh’s tendency to run to the Gateway Question: How does classical conditioning occur? door. As this suggests, paying careful attention to the “before and How was classical conditioning discovered? At the beginning of the after” of associative learning is a key to understanding it. twentieth century, something happened in the lab of Russian Classical conditioning is based on what happens before we physiologist Ivan Pavlov that brought him the Nobel Prize: Pav- respond. It begins with a stimulus that reliably triggers a response. lov’s subjects drooled at him. Actually, Pavlov was studying diges- Imagine, for example, that a puff of air (the stimulus) is aimed at tion. To observe salivation, he placed meat powder or some tidbit your eye. The air puff will make you blink (a response) every time. on a dog’s tongue and measured the resulting flow of saliva. How- The eyeblink is a reflex (automatic, nonlearned response). Now, ever, after repeating his procedure many times, Pavlov noticed that assume that we sound a horn (another stimulus) just before each his dogs were salivating before the food reached their mouths puff of air hits your eye. If the horn and the air puff occur together (Schultz & Schultz, 2005). Later, the dogs even began to salivate many times, what happens? Soon, the horn alone will make you when they saw Pavlov enter the room. blink. Clearly, you’ve learned something. Before, the horn didn’t Pavlov knew that salivation is an automatic, inherited reflex. It make you blink. Now it does. really shouldn’t change from one day to the next. His dogs were In classical conditioning, an antecedent stimulus that doesn’t supposed to salivate when he put food in their mouths, but they produce a response is linked with one that does (a horn is associ- were not supposed to salivate when they merely saw him. This was ated with a puff of air to the eye, for example). We can say that a change in behavior due to experience. Pavlov realized that some learning has occurred when the new stimulus will also elicit (bring type of learning had occurred and soon began investigating “con- forth) responses ( Figure 7.1). ditioning,” as he called it ( Figure 7.2). Because of its place in In operant conditioning, learning is based on the conse- history, this form of learning is now called classical conditioning quences of responding. A response may be followed by a reinforcer (also known as Pavlovian conditioning or respondent conditioning) (such as food). Or by punishment. Or by nothing. These results (Mackintosh, 2003). determine whether a response is likely to be made again (see Figure 7.1). For example, if you wear a particular hat and get lots Pavlov’s Experiment of compliments (reinforcement), you are likely to wear it more often. If people snicker, insult you, call the police, or scream (pun- How did Pavlov study conditioning? To begin, he rang a bell. At ishment), you will probably wear it less often. first, the bell was a neutral stimulus (the dogs did not respond to Now that you have an idea of what happens in the two basic it by salivating). Immediately after Pavlov rang the bell, he placed kinds of associative learning, let’s look at classical conditioning in meat powder on the dog’s tongue, which caused reflex salivation. more detail. This sequence was repeated a number of times: bell, meat powder, salivation; bell, meat powder, salivation. Eventually (as condition- ing took place), the dogs began to salivate when they heard the bell Classical Conditioning Result: Horn Eye blink ( Figure 7.3). By association, the bell, which before had no effect, Key began to evoke the same response that food did. This was shown relationship by sometimes ringing the bell alone. Then the dog salivated, even though no food had been placed in its mouth. Stimulus Stimulus Response Horn Air puff Eye blink Operant Conditioning Result: Whistle Sit-up Key relationship Stimulus Response Reinforcer Whistle Sit-up Food Antecedents Response Consequences Time response Figure 7.1 In classical conditioning, a stimulus that does not produce a is paired with a stimulus that does elicit a response. After many such pair- ings, the stimulus that previously had no effect begins to produce a response. In the example shown, a horn precedes a puff of air to the eye. Eventually the horn alone fromFigure 7.2 An apparatus for Pavlovian conditioning. A tube carries saliva the dog’s mouth to a lever that activates a recording device (far left). During will produce an eye blink. In operant conditioning, a response that is followed by a conditioning, various stimuli can be paired with a dish of food placed in front of reinforcing consequence becomes more likely to occur on future occasions. In the the dog. The device pictured here is more elaborate than the one Pavlov used in his example shown, a dog learns to sit up when it hears a whistle. early experiments.  Conditioning and Learning 221 T HE CLI N I CA L FI LE Coping with Chemo Our hearts go out to children with cancer. initially a neutral stimulus. However, because conditioned nausea only complicates treat- Even the treatment, chemotherapy, makes it is associated with nausea and vomiting, it ment for young cancer patients. If Gita eats them miserable because it causes nausea becomes a CS. These sights or tastes can now pepperoni pizza, her favorite meal, before and vomiting. In a cruel twist, after a few elicit anticipatory nausea (a CR) even at times she has a chemotherapy session, the taste of treatments, nausea can occur even when no when the child doesn’t receive chemother- pizza may come to make her feel sick. chemotherapy is scheduled. Typically, it is apy (Chance, 2006). Is there any way to prevent conditioned triggered by certain sights or tastes, like the In nature, many species are biologically nausea? No, but classical conditioning can sight of the treatment center or the taste of prepared to associate specific locations and provide some relief (Taylor, 2002). Meals a food the child ate before an earlier chemo- tastes with nausea. If animals eat contami- eaten before chemotherapy can be strongly therapy session. nated food and then get sick and vomit, flavored with an unusual taste, such as pep- In classical conditioning terms, chemo- later the same locations or tastes may trig- permint. The unique flavor overshadows therapy is a US that leads to nausea, which ger anticipatory nausea and vomiting. These other tastes, which don’t become linked with is a UR. The sight of the treatment center or reactions discourage animals from eating nausea (Bovbjerg et al., 1992). In this way, Gita the taste of food eaten before treatment is potentially dangerous food. Unfortunately, can continue to enjoy her pepperoni pizza. Before Conditioning During Conditioning (Acquisition) Test for Conditioning Time Bell Bell Salivation (CS) (CS) (CR) Bell (NS) No salivation Conditioned Associated reflex Meat powder Salivation Meat powder Salivation (US) (UR) (US) (UR) Reflex Reflex Figure 7.3 The classical conditioning procedure. Psychologists use several terms to describe these events. The After Conditioning Example meat powder is an unconditioned stimulus (US) (a stimulus CS → CR Horn → eye blink innately capable of producing a response; salivation in this case). See “Coping with Chemo” for an example of how classical con- Notice that the dog did not have to learn to respond to the US. ditioning is used to solve a clinical problem. Such stimuli naturally trigger reflexes or emotional reactions. Because a reflex is innate, or “built in,” it is called an uncondi- tioned (nonlearned) response (UR). Reflex salivation was the Consequences Effects that follow a response. UR in Pavlov’s experiment. Reflex An innate, automatic response to a stimulus; for example, an The bell starts out as a neutral stimulus (NS). In time, the bell eyeblink. becomes a conditioned stimulus (CS) (a stimulus that, because of Classical conditioning A form of learning in which reflex responses are learning, will elicit a response). When Pavlov’s bell also produced associated with new stimuli. salivation, the dog was making a new response. Thus, salivation Operant conditioning Learning based on the consequences of had also become a conditioned (learned) response (CR). (See responding. Figure 7.3). Table 7.1 summarizes the important elements of Unconditioned stimulus (US) A stimulus innately capable of eliciting classical conditioning. a response. Are all these terms really necessary? Yes, because they help us Unconditioned response (UR) An innate reflex response elicited by an recognize similarities in various instances of learning. Let’s sum- unconditioned stimulus. marize the terms using an earlier example: Neutral stimulus (NS) A stimulus that does not evoke a response. Conditioned stimulus (CS) A stimulus that evokes a response because Before Conditioning Example it has been repeatedly paired with an unconditioned stimulus. US → UR Puff of air → eye blink Conditioned response (CR) A learned response elicited by a NS → no effect Horn → no effect conditioned stimulus. 222 CHAPTER 7 Table 7.1 Elements of Classical Conditioning 14 14 Drops of saliva to CS Drops of saliva to CS 12 12 Element Symbol Description Example 10 10 Unconditioned US A stimulus innately Meat powder stimulus capable of eliciting 8 8 a response 6 6 Unconditioned UR An innate reflex Reflex saliva- 4 4 response response elicited tion to the US 2 2 by an uncondi- tioned stimulus 0 4 8 12 16 0 2 4 6 8 10 Neutral NS A stimulus that Bell before Test trials during acquisition Test trials during extinction stimulus does not evoke conditioning the unconditioned Figure 7.4 Acquisition and extinction of a conditioned response. Pavlov, 1927.) (After response Conditioned CS A stimulus that Bell after con- stimulus evokes a response ditioning because it has been Before Conditioning repeatedly paired with an uncondi- US UR tioned stimulus Lemon juice Salivation Conditioned CR A learned response Salivation to During Conditioning response elicited by a condi- the CS tioned stimulus CS — US UR Bell Lemon juice Salivation Test for Conditioning Principles of Classical CS CR Bell Salivation Conditioning — Here’s Johnny Higher Order Conditioning Imagine a boy named Johnny. To observe conditioning, you could CS2 — CS1 CR ring a bell and squirt lemon juice into Johnny’s mouth. By repeat- Clap Bell Salivation ing this procedure several times, you could condition Johnny to salivate to the bell. Johnny might then be used to explore other Test for Conditioning aspects of classical conditioning. CS2 CR Clap Salivation Acquisition ditioned Figure 7.5 Higher order conditioning takes place when a well-learned con- During acquisition, or training, a conditioned response must be stimulus is used as if it were an unconditioned stimulus. In this example, a reinforced (strengthened) ( Figure 7.4). Classical conditioning child is first conditioned to salivate to the sound of a bell. In time, the bell will elicit salivation. At that point, you could clap your hands and then ring the bell. Soon, is reinforced when the CS is followed by, or paired with, an uncon- after repeating the procedure, the child would learn to salivate when you clapped ditioned stimulus. This process is called respondent reinforce- your hands. ment because the US brings forth a response, which becomes associated with the CS. For Johnny, the bell is the CS, salivating is the UR, and the sour lemon juice is a US. To reinforce salivat- would be used.) Through higher order conditioning, Johnny would ing to the bell, we must link the bell with the lemon juice. Condi- soon learn to salivate when you clapped your hands ( Figure 7.5). tioning will be most rapid if the US (lemon juice) follows imme- (This little trick could be a real hit with friends and neighbors.) diately after the CS (the bell). With most reflexes, the optimal Higher order conditioning extends learning one or more steps delay between CS and US is from one-half second to about beyond the original conditioned stimulus. Many advertisers use 5 seconds (Chance, 2006). this effect by pairing images that evoke good feelings (such as people smiling and having fun) with pictures of their products. Higher Order Conditioning They hope that you will learn, by association, to feel good when Once a response is learned, it can bring about higher order condi- you see their products (Priluck & Till, 2004). tioning. In this case, a well-learned CS is used to reinforce further learning (Lefrançois, 2006). That is, the CS has become strong Expectancies enough to be used like an unconditioned stimulus. Let’s illustrate Pavlov believed that classical conditioning does not involve any again with our salivating child. higher mental processes. Today, many psychologists think that As a result of earlier learning, the bell now makes Johnny sali- classical conditioning does have mental origins because it is related vate. (No lemon juice is needed.) To go a step further, you could to information that might aid survival. According to this informa- clap your hands and then ring the bell. (Again, no lemon juice tional view, we look for associations among events. Doing so cre-  Conditioning and Learning 223 ates new mental expectancies, or thoughts about how events are High Percentage of eye blinks to CS interconnected. How does classical conditioning alter expectancies? Notice that the conditioned stimulus reliably precedes the unconditioned stimulus. Because it does, the CS predicts the US (Rescorla, 1987). During conditioning, the brain learns to expect that the US will follow the CS. As a result, the brain prepares the body to respond to the US. Here’s an example: When you are about to get a shot Low with a hypodermic needle, your muscles tighten and there is a catch in your breathing. Why? Because your body is preparing for Lower tones CS Higher tones pain. You have learned to expect that getting poked with a needle will hurt. This expectancy, which was acquired during classical conditioning, changes your behavior. Extinction and Spontaneous Recovery Test stimuli CS Test stimuli Once an association has been classically conditioned will it ever go (a) away? If the US never again follows the CS, conditioning will extinguish, or fade away. Let’s return to Johnny. If you ring the bell many times and do not follow it with lemon juice, Johnny’s expec- tancy that “bell precedes lemon juice” will weaken. As it does, he will lose his tendency to salivate when he hears the bell. Thus, we see that classical conditioning can be weakened by removing the connection between the conditioned and unconditioned stimulus (see Figure 7.4). This process is called extinction. If conditioning takes a while to build up, shouldn’t it take time to reverse? Yes. In fact, it may take several extinction sessions to Dennis Coon completely reverse conditioning. Let’s say that we ring the bell until Johnny quits responding. It might seem that extinction is complete. However, Johnny will probably respond to the bell (a) again on the following day, at least at first (Rescorla, 2004). The return of a learned response after apparent extinction is called Figure 7.6 (a) Stimulus generalization. Stimuli similar to the CS also elicit a response. (b) This cat has learned to salivate when it sees a cat food box. Because of spontaneous recovery. It explains why people who have had a stimulus generalization, it also salivates when shown a similar-looking detergent box. car accident may need many slow, calm rides before their fear of driving extinguishes. why many stores carry imitations of nationally known products. For many customers, positive attitudes conditioned to the real products tend to generalize to the cheaper knockoffs (Till & Generalization Priluck, 2000). After conditioning, other stimuli similar to the CS may also trig- ger a response. This is called stimulus generalization. For exam- ple, we might find that Johnny salivates to the sound of a ringing Acquisition The period in conditioning during which a response is telephone or doorbell, even though they were never used as condi- reinforced. tioning stimuli. Respondent reinforcement Reinforcement that occurs when an It is easy to see the value of stimulus generalization. Consider unconditioned stimulus closely follows a conditioned stimulus. the child who burns her finger while playing with matches. Most Higher order conditioning Classical conditioning in which a likely, lighted matches will become conditioned fear stimuli for conditioned stimulus is used to reinforce further learning; that is, a CS is her. Because of stimulus generalization, she may also have a healthy used as if it were a US. fear of flames from lighters, fireplaces, stoves, and so forth. It’s Informational view Perspective that explains learning in terms of fortunate that generalization extends learning to related situa- information imparted by events in the environment. tions. Otherwise, we would all be far less adaptable. Expectancy An anticipation concerning future events or relationships. As you may have guessed, stimulus generalization has limits. Extinction The weakening of a conditioned response through removal As stimuli become less like the original CS, responding decreases. of reinforcement. If you condition a person to blink each time you play a particular Spontaneous recovery The reappearance of a learned response after note on a piano, blinking will decline as you play higher or lower its apparent extinction. notes. If the notes are much higher or lower, the person will not Stimulus generalization The tendency to respond to stimuli similar to, respond at all ( Figure 7.6). Stimulus generalization explains but not identical to, a conditioned stimulus. 224 CHAPTER 7 Discrimination drawal. No wonder the pet disobeys when called on future occa- sions. Parents who belittle, scream at, or physically abuse their Let’s consider one more idea with Johnny (who by now must be children make the same mistake. ready to hide in the closet). Suppose we again condition Johnny, with a bell as the CS. As an experiment, we occasionally sound a buzzer instead of ringing the bell. However, the buzzer is never Learned Fears followed by the US (lemon juice). At first, Johnny salivates when Some phobias (FOE-bee-ahs) are also based on emotional condi- he hears the buzzer (because of generalization). But after we sound tioning. A phobia is a fear that persists even when no realistic the buzzer several times more, Johnny will stop responding to it. danger exists. Fears of animals, water, heights, thunder, fire, bugs, Why? In essence, Johnny’s generalized response to the buzzer has elevators, and the like, are common. Psychologists believe that extinguished. As a result, he has learned to discriminate, or respond many phobias begin as conditioned emotional responses (CERs), differently, to the bell and the buzzer. or learned emotional reactions to a previously neutral stimulus. Stimulus discrimination is the ability to respond differently to People who have phobias can often trace their fears to a time various stimuli. As an example, you might remember the feelings when they were frightened, injured, or upset by a particular stimu- of anxiety or fear you had as a child when your mother’s or father’s lus, especially in childhood (King, Muris, & Ollendick, 2005). voice changed to the dreaded give-me-that-Wii-controller tone. Just one bad experience in which you were frightened or disgusted Most children quickly learn to discriminate voice tones associated by a spider may condition fears that last for years (de Jong & with punishment from those associated with praise or affection. Muris, 2002). Stimulus generalization and higher order condi- tioning can spread CERs to other stimuli (Gewirtz & Davis, 1998). As a result, what began as a limited fear may become a dis- Classical Conditioning in Humans — abling phobia ( Figure 7.7). During a CER, an area of your brain called the amygdala becomes An Emotional Topic more active and produces feelings of fear. The amygdala is part of the Gateway Question: Does conditioning affect emotions? limbic system, which is responsible for other emotions, as well (see Chapter 2). Cognitive learning has little effect on these lower brain How much human learning is based on classical conditioning? At its areas (Olsson, Nearing, & Phelps, 2007). Perhaps that’s why fears and simplest, classical conditioning depends on unconditioned reflex phobias cannot be readily eased by merely reading about how to responses. As mentioned earlier, a reflex is a dependable, inborn control fears—as our friend Larry found with his rat phobia. How- stimulus-and-response connection. For example, your hand reflex- ever, conditioned fears do respond to a therapy called desensitiza- ively draws back from pain. Bright light causes the pupil of the eye tion. This is done by gradually exposing the phobic person to feared to narrow. A puff of air directed at your eye will make you blink. stimuli while she or he remains calm and relaxed. For example, peo- Various foods elicit salivation. Any of these reflexes, and others as ple who fear heights can be slowly taken to ever-higher elevations well, can be associated with a new stimulus. At the very least, you until their fears extinguish. This therapy even works when computer have probably noticed how your mouth waters when you see or graphics are used to simulate the experience of heights (Wiederhold smell a bakery. Even pictures of food may make you salivate (a & Wiederhold, 2005). photo of a sliced lemon is great for this). Conditioned Emotional Responses More complex emotional, or “gut,” responses may also be associated with new stimuli. For instance, if your face reddened when you were punished as a child, you may blush now when you are embar- rassed or ashamed. Or think about the effects of associating pain with a dentist’s office during your first visit. On later visits, did your heart pound and your palms sweat before the dentist began? (a) (b) Many involuntary, autonomic nervous system, responses (“fight- or-flight” reflexes) are linked with new stimuli and situations by classical conditioning. For example, learned reactions worsen many cases of hypertension (high blood pressure). Traffic jams, argu- ments with a spouse, and similar situations can become condi- tioned stimuli that trigger a dangerous rise in blood pressure (Reiff, Katkin, & Friedman, 1999). Of course, emotional conditioning also applies to animals. One (c) (d) of the most common mistakes people make with pets (especially dogs) is hitting them if they do not come when called. Calling the approaches Figure 7.7 Hypothetical example of a CER becoming a phobia. Child dog (a) and is frightened by it (b). Fear generalizes to other household animal then becomes a conditioned stimulus for fear and with- pets (c) and later to virtually all furry animals (d).  Conditioning and Learning 225 bridges 3. You smell the odor of cookies being baked and your mouth waters. See Chapter 15, pages 503–509, for more information about Apparently, the odor of cookies is a __________ and your salivation is a ______________. therapies based on learning principles. a. CR, CS b. CS, CR c. consequence, neutral stimulus d. reflex, CS Undoubtedly, we acquire many of our likes, dislikes, and fears 4. The informational view says that classical conditioning is based on as conditioned emotional responses. As noted before, advertisers changes in mental _________________________________ about try to achieve the same effect by pairing products with pleasant the CS and US. 5. After you have acquired a conditioned response, it may be weak- images and music. So do many students on a first date. ened by a. spontaneous recovery Vicarious, or Secondhand, Conditioning b. stimulus generalization c. removing reinforcement Conditioning can also occur indirectly. Let’s say, for example, d. following the CS with a US that you watch another person get an electric shock. Each time, a 6. When a conditioned stimulus is used to reinforce the learning of signal light comes on before the shock is delivered. Even if you a second conditioned stimulus, higher order conditioning has don’t receive a shock yourself, you will soon develop a CER to the occurred. T or F? 7. Psychologists theorize that many phobias begin when a CER gener- light. Children who learn to fear thunder by watching their par- alizes to other, similar situations. T or F? ents react to it have undergone similar conditioning. Many Amer- 8. Three-year-old Josh sees his 5-year-old sister get chased by a neigh- icans were traumatized as a consequence of watching media cov- bor’s dog. Now Josh is as afraid of the dog as his sister is. Josh’s fear is erage of the September 11 terrorist attacks in New York and a result of a. stimulus discrimination Washington (Blanchard et al., 2004). Similarly, people who coun- b. vicarious conditioning sel traumatized victims of sexual abuse can themselves develop c. spontaneous recovery vicarious trauma (Rothschild & Rand, 2006; Way et al., 2004). d. higher order conditioning Vicarious classical conditioning occurs when we learn to REFLECT respond emotionally to a stimulus by observing another person’s Critical Thinking emotional reactions (Olsson, Nearing, & Phelps, 2007). Such 9. Lately you have been getting a shock of static electricity every time “secondhand” learning affects feelings in many situations. Being you touch a door handle. Now there is a hesitation in your door- told that “snakes are dangerous” may not explain the child’s emo- opening movements. Can you analyze this situation in terms of clas- sical conditioning? tional response. More likely, the child has observed others reacting Relate fearfully to the word snake or to snake images on television (King, US, CS, UR, CR — How will you remember these terms? First, you should Muris, & Ollendick, 2005). That is exactly how Larry, the note that we are interested in either a stimulus (S) or a response (R). What researcher we met at the beginning of this chapter, developed his else do we need to know? Each S or R can be either conditioned (C) or fear of rats. As children grow up, the emotions of parents, friends, unconditioned (U). Can a stimulus provoke a response before any learning has occurred? and relatives undoubtedly add to fears of snakes, caves, spiders, If it can, then it’s a US. Do you have to learn to respond to the stimulus? heights, and other terrors. Even “horror” movies filled with scream- Then it’s a CS. ing actors can have a similar effect. Does a response occur without being learned? Then it’s a UR. If it has The emotional attitudes we develop toward foods, political to be learned, then it’s a CR. parties, ethnic groups, escalators — whatever — are probably con- shock. This conditioned response has also generalized to other handles. the reflex withdrawal and muscle tensing that normally follows getting a ditioned not only by direct experiences but vicariously as well. No 6. T 7. T 8. b 9. Door handles have become conditioned stimuli that elicit one is born prejudiced — all attitudes are learned. Parents may do Answers: 1. c 2. Pavlov, Pavlovian or respondent 3. b 4. expectancies 5. c well to look in a mirror if they wonder how or where a child “picked up” a particular fear or emotional attitude. K N O W L E D GE B U I L D E R Classical Conditioning Stimulus discrimination The learned ability to respond differently to RECITE similar stimuli. 1. The concept of reinforcement applies to both a. antecedents and consequences Conditioned emotional response (CER) An emotional response that b. neutral stimuli and rewards has been linked to a previously nonemotional stimulus by classical c. classical and operant conditioning conditioning. d. acquisition and spontaneous recovery Desensitization Reducing fear or anxiety by repeatedly exposing a 2. Classical conditioning, studied by the Russian physiologist person to emotional stimuli while the person is deeply relaxed. ____________________________ , is also referred to as _________________________ conditioning. Vicarious classical conditioning Classical conditioning brought about by observing another person react to a particular stimulus. 226 CHAPTER 7 Operant Conditioning — Day 1 doll Can Pigeons Play Ping-Pong? duh Gateway Question: How does operant conditioning occur? dat The principles of operant conditioning, another form of associative Day 5 learning, are among the most powerful tools in psychology. You doll won’t regret learning how to use them. Operant conditioning explains duh much day-to-day behavior and can be used to alter the behavior of dat pets, children, other adults, and your own behavior, too. Day 10 As stated earlier, in operant conditioning (also known as doll instrumental learning) we associate responses with their conse- duh quences. The basic principle is simple: Acts that are reinforced dat tend to be repeated (Mazur, 2006). Pioneer learning theorist Day 20 Edward L. Thorndike called this the law of effect: The probabil- doll ity of a response is altered by the effect it has (Schultz & Schultz, duh 2005). Learning is strengthened each time a response is followed dat by a satisfying state of affairs. You are much more likely to keep telling a joke if people laugh at it. If the first three people frown dollFigure 7.8 Assume that a child who is learning to talk points to her favorite and says either “doll,” “duh,” or “dat” when she wants it. Day 1 shows the number when they hear the joke, you may not tell it again. of times the child uses each word to ask for the doll (each block represents one In operant conditioning, the learner actively “operates on” the request). At first, she uses all three words interchangeably. To hasten learning, her parents decide to give her the doll only when she names it correctly. Notice how the environment. Thus, operant conditioning refers mainly to learn- child’s behavior shifts as operant reinforcement is applied. By day 20, saying “doll” ing voluntary responses. For example, pushing buttons on a TV has become the most probable response. remote control is a learned operant response. Pushing a particular button is reinforced by gaining the consequence you desire, such as changing channels or muting an obnoxious commercial. In con- to a child as a “reward” for good behavior, it will work only if the trast, classical conditioning is passive. It simply “happens to” the child likes chocolate. What is reinforcing for one person may not learner when a US follows a CS. (See Table 7.2 for a further be for another. As a practical rule of thumb, psychologists define comparison of classical and operant conditioning.) an operant reinforcer as any event that follows a response and increases its probability of occurring again ( Figure 7.8). Positive Reinforcement The idea that reward affects learning is nothing new to parents Acquiring an Operant Response (and other trainers of small animals). However, parents, as well as Many studies of operant conditioning in animals make use of an teachers, politicians, supervisors, and even you, may use reward in operant conditioning chamber (Skinner, 1938). This device is ways that are inexact or misguided. A case in point is the term also called a Skinner box, after B. F. Skinner, who invented it reward. To be correct, it is better to say reinforcer. Why? Because ( Figure 7.9). The walls are bare except for a metal lever and a rewards do not always increase responding. If you give chocolate tray into which food pellets can be dispensed. The fact that there’s Water Light Screen Table 7.2 Comparison of Classical and Operant Conditioning Classical Operant Food pellet dispenser Conditioning Conditioning Nature of Involuntary, reflex Spontaneous, voluntary response Reinforcement Occurs before response Occurs after response (CS paired with US) (response is followed by reinforcing stimu- lus or event) Role of learner Passive (response is elic- Active (response is ited by US) emitted) Nature of Neutral stimulus Probability of making a learning becomes a CS response is altered by Food tray through association consequences that Lever with a US follow it allows Figure 7.9 The Skinner box. This simple device, invented by B. F. Skinner, careful study of operant conditioning. When the rat presses the bar, a pellet Learned US will follow CS Response will have a expectancy specific effect of food or a drop of water is automatically released.  Conditioning and Learning 227 not much to do in a Skinner box increases the chances that a sub- 100 ject will make the desired response, which is pressing the bar. Also, hunger keeps the animal motivated to seek food and actively emit, 75 or freely give off, a variety of responses. A look into a typical Skin- Learning score ner box will clarify the process of operant conditioning. 50 Einstein Snags a Snack A smart and hungry rat (yes, it’s Larry’s rat) is placed in an operant condi- tioning chamber. For a while our subject walks around, grooms, sniffs at the 25 corners, or stands on his hind legs — all typical rat behaviors. Then it hap- pens. He places his paw on the lever to get a better view of the top of the 0 cage. Click! The lever depresses, and a food pellet drops into the tray. The 0 50 100 150 rat scurries to the tray, eats the pellet, and then grooms himself. Up and Delay of reinforcement (in seconds) exploring the cage again, he leans on the lever. Click! After a trip to the food learning Figure 7.10 The effect of delay of reinforcement. Notice how rapidly the score drops when reward is delayed. Animals learning to press a bar in tray, he returns to the bar and sniffs it, then puts his foot on it. Click! Soon a Skinner box showed no signs of learning if food reward followed a bar press by Einstein settles into a smooth pattern of frequent bar pressing. more than 100 seconds (Perin, 1943. A quantitative investigation of the delay of Notice that the rat did not acquire a new skill in this situation. He reinforcement gradient. Journal of Experimental Psychology, 32, 37–51. Copyright © 1943, APA. Reprinted with permission of the publisher.). was already able to press the bar. Reinforcement only alters how frequently he presses the bar. In operant conditioning, new behav- ior patterns are molded by changing the probability that various response you wish to change. Thus, a child who is helpful or cour- responses will be made. teous should be immediately praised for her good behavior. Let’s say I work hard all semester in a class to get an A grade. Information and Contingency Wouldn’t the delay in reinforcement keep me from learning any- thing? No, for several reasons. First, as a mature human you can Like classical conditioning, we can think of operant learning as anticipate future reward. Second, you get reinforced by quiz and being based on information and expectancies (Pierce & Cheney, test grades all through the semester. Third, a single reinforcer can 2004). In operant conditioning, we learn to expect that a certain often maintain a long response chain (a linked series of actions response will have a certain effect at certain times. That is, we learn that lead to reinforcement). that a particular response is associated with reinforcement (Her- An example of response chaining is provided by the sport of genhahn & Olson, 2005). Further, operant reinforcement works dog agility training. Dogs are taught to navigate a variety of best when it is response contingent (kon-TIN-jent). That is, it must obstacles. These include jumping over hurdles, walking over see- be given only after a desired response has occurred. From this saws, climbing up and jumping off inclined walls, and running point of view, a reinforcer tells a person or an animal that a through tunnels made out of cloth (Helton, 2007). During com- response was “right” and worth repeating. petitions, a trainer can only reinforce a dog with a snack or a hug For example, one severely disturbed 9-year-old child was taught to after the dog completes the entire response chain. The winning say “Please,” “Thank you,” and “You’re welcome.” During the initial, dog is the one who finishes the course with the fewest mistakes baseline period, the child rarely used the word “please.” Typically, he and the fastest time. (Good dog!) just grabbed objects and became angry if he couldn’t have them. Many of the things we do every day involve similar response However, when he was consistently reinforced for saying “Please,” he chains. The long series of events necessary to prepare a meal is soon learned to use the word nearly every time he wanted something. rewarded by the final eating. A violinmaker may carry out thou- When the child said “Please” he was reinforced in three ways: He sands of steps for the final reward of hearing a first musical note. received the object he asked for (a crayon, for example); he was given And as a student, you have built up long response chains for the a small food treat, such as a piece of candy, popcorn, or a grape; and final reward of getting good grades (right?). he was praised for his good behavior (Matson et al., 1990). In similar ways, operant principles greatly affect behavior in homes, schools, and businesses. It is always worthwhile to arrange Operant conditioning Learning based on the consequences of reinforcers so that they encourage productive and responsible responding. behavior. Law of effect Responses that lead to desirable effects are repeated; those that produce undesirable results are not. The Timing of Reinforcement Operant reinforcer Any event that reliably increases the probability or Operant reinforcement is most effective when it rapidly follows a frequency of responses it follows. correct response (Mazur, 2006). For rats in a Skinner box, little or Operant conditioning chamber (Skinner box) An apparatus no learning occurs if the delay between bar pressing and receiving designed to study operant conditioning in animals; a Skinner box. food exceeds 50 seconds. ( Figure 7.10). In general, you will be Response chaining The assembly of separate responses into a series of most successful if you present a reinforcer immediately after a actions that lead to reinforcement. 228 CHAPTER 7 Yale Joel/Life Magazine/TimePix/Getty Images John Carnemolla/Corbis pigeons Figure 7.11 Operant conditioning principles were used to train these to play Ping-Pong. Dogs must build up long response chains to compete in agility training competitions. the gradual molding of responses to a desired pattern. Let’s look again at our favorite rat, Einstein. Are You Superstitious? Einstein Shapes Up If a golfer taps her club on the ground three times and then hits a Instead of waiting for Einstein’s first accidental bar press, which might have great shot, what happens? The successful shot reinforces not only taken a long time, we could have shaped his behavior. Assume that Einstein the correct swing but also the three taps. Reinforcers affect not has not yet learned to press the bar. At first, we settle for just getting him to only the specific response they follow but also other responses that face the bar. Any time he turns toward the bar, he is reinforced with a bit of food. Soon Einstein spends much of his time facing the bar. Next, we rein- occur shortly before. This helps explain many human supersti- force him every time he takes a step toward the bar. If he turns toward the tions. (During operant training, animals often develop similar bar and walks away, nothing happens. But when he faces the bar and takes unnecessary responses.) If this happens a few times more, the a step forward, click! His responses are being shaped. golfer may superstitiously tap her club three times before every shot. Some examples of actual superstitious behaviors of profes- By changing the rules about what makes a successful response, sional baseball players include drawing four lines in the dirt before we can gradually train the rat to approach the bar and press it. In getting in the batter’s box, eating chicken before each game, and other words, successive approximations (ever-closer matches) to a always playing in the same athletic supporter — for 4 years (phew!) desired response are reinforced during shaping. B. F. Skinner once (Burger & Lynn, 2005). taught two pigeons to play Ping-Pong in this way ( Figure 7.11). Superstitious behaviors are repeated because they appear to Shaping applies to humans, too. Let’s say you want to study more, produce reinforcement, even though they are actually unnecessary clean the house more often, or exercise more. In each case, it would (Burger & Lynn, 2005). If you walk under a ladder and then break be best to set a series of gradual, daily goals. Then you can reward a leg, you may avoid ladders in the future. Each time you avoid a yourself for small steps in the right direction (Watson & Tharp, ladder and nothing bad happens, your superstitious action is rein- 2007). forced. Belief in magic can also be explained along such lines. Rituals to bring rain, ward off illness, or produce abundant crops Operant Extinction very likely earn the faith of participants because they occasionally Would a rat stop bar pressing if no more food arrived? Yes, but not appear to succeed. immediately. Through operant extinction, learned responses that are not reinforced gradually fade away. Just as acquiring an operant Shaping response takes time, so does extinction. For example, if a TV pro- How is it possible to reinforce responses that rarely occur? Even in a gram repeatedly bores you, watching the program will likely extin- barren Skinner box, it could take a long time for a rat (even one as guish over time. smart as Einstein) to accidentally press the bar and get a food pel- Even after extinction seems complete, the previously reinforced let. We might wait forever for more complicated responses to response may return. If a rat is removed from a Skinner box after occur. For example, you would have to wait a long time for a duck extinction and given a short rest, the rat will press the bar again to accidentally walk out of its cage, turn on a light, play a toy when returned to the box. Similarly, a few weeks after they give up piano, turn off the light, and walk back to its cage. If this is what on buying state lottery tickets, many people are tempted to try you wanted to reward, you would never get the chance. again. Then how are the animals on TV and at amusement parks taught Does extinction take as long the second time? If reinforcement is to perform complicated tricks? The answer lies in shaping, which is still withheld, a rat’s bar pressing will extinguish again, usually  Conditioning and Learning 229 more quickly. The brief return of an operant response after extinc- increases (punishment) or if the neighbor comes over and pounds tion is another example of spontaneous recovery (mentioned ear- on you (more punishment), wall pounding becomes less likely. lier regarding classical conditioning). Spontaneous recovery is Here are two more examples of punishment, in which an unpleas- very adaptive. After a rest period, the rat responds again in a situ- ant result follows a response: ation that produced food in the past: “Just checking to see if the You are driving your car too fast. You are caught in a radar trap and given a rules have changed!” speeding ticket. Henceforth, you will be less likely to speed. (Speeding was Marked changes in behavior occur when reinforcement and punished by a fine.) extinction are combined. For example, parents often unknowingly Every time you give advice to a friend she suddenly turns cold and dis- reinforce children for negative attention seeking (using misbehavior tant. Lately, you’ve stopped offering her advice. (Giving advice was pun- to gain attention). Children are generally ignored when they are ished by rejection.) playing quietly. They get attention when they become louder and louder, yell “Hey, Mom!” at the top of their lungs, throw tantrums, Isn’t it also punishing to have privileges, money, or other positive show off, or break something. Granted, the attention they get is things taken away for making a particular response? Yes. Punish- often a scolding, but attention is a powerful reinforcer, neverthe- ment also occurs when a reinforcer or positive state of affairs is less. Parents report dramatic improvements when they ignore their removed, such as losing privileges. This second type of punish- children’s disruptive behavior and praise or attend to a child who ment is called response cost. The best-known form of response is quiet or playing constructively. cost is time out, in which children are removed from situations that normally allow them to gain reinforcement. When your parents Negative Reinforcement put you on time out by sending you to your room, they denied you the reinforcement of being with the rest of your family or hanging Until now, we have stressed positive reinforcement, which occurs out with your friends. Parking tickets and other fines are also when a pleasant or desirable event follows a response. How else could operant learning be reinforced? The time has come to con- based on response cost. For your convenience, Table 7.3 sum- marizes four basic consequences of making a response. sider negative reinforcement, which occurs when making a response removes an unpleasant event. Don’t be fooled by the word negative. Negative reinforcement also increases responding. Table 7.3 Behavioral Effects of Various Consequences However, it does so by ending (negating) discomfort. Consequence Effect on Let’s say that you have a headache and take an aspirin. Your of Making a Response aspirin taking will be negatively reinforced if the headache stops. Response Example Probability Likewise, a rat could be taught to press a bar to get food (positive Positive Positive event Food Increase reinforcement), or the rat could be given a continuous mild shock reinforcement begins given (through the floor of its cage) that is turned off by a bar press Negative rein- Negative event Pain stops Increase forcement ends (negative reinforcement). Either way, the rat will learn to press the Punishment Negative event Pain Decrease bar more often. Why? Because it leads to a desired state of affairs begins begins (food or an end to pain). Here are two additional examples of Punishment Positive event Food Decrease negative reinforcement: (response cost) ends removed While walking outside, your hands get so cold they hurt. You take a pair of Nonreinforcement Nothing — Decrease gloves out of your backpack and put them on, ending the pain. (Putting on the gloves is negatively reinforced.) A politician who irritates you is being interviewed on the evening news. You change channels so you won’t have to listen to him. (Channel changing Superstitious behavior A behavior repeated because it seems to is negatively reinforced.) produce reinforcement, even though it is actually unnecessary. Shaping Gradually molding responses to a final desired pattern. Punishment Operant extinction The weakening or disappearance of a Many people mistake negative reinforcement for punishment. nonreinforced operant response. However, punishment refers to following a response with an aver- Positive reinforcement Occurs when a response is followed by a sive (unpleasant) consequence. Punishment decreases the likeli- reward or other positive event. hood that the response will occur again. As noted, negative rein- Negative reinforcement Occurs when a response is followed by an forcement increases responding. The difference can be seen in a end to discomfort or by the removal of an unpleasant event. hypothetical example. Let’s say you live in an apartment and your Punishment Any event that follows a response and decreases its neighbor’s stereo is blasting so loudly that you can’t concentrate on likelihood of occurring again. reading this book. If you pound on the wall and the volume sud- Aversive stimulus A stimulus that is painful or uncomfortable. denly drops (negative reinforcement), future wall pounding will Response cost Removal of a positive reinforcer after a response is be more likely. But if you pound on the wall and the volume made. 230 CHAPTER 7 BR AIN WAVES Tickling Your Own Fancy Suppose you could have an electrode will ignore food, water, and sex in favor of One shudders to think what might hap- implanted in your brain and connected to bar pressing. pen if brain implants were easy and practical an iPod-style controller. Twirl the control- to do. (They are not.) Every company from ler and electrical impulses stimulate one of Playboy to Microsoft would have a device on your brain’s “pleasure centers.” The very few bridges the market, and we would have to keep a humans who have ever had a chance to try Electrical stimulation is a valuable tool closer watch on politicians than usual! direct brain stimulation report feeling intense for studying the functions of various pleasure that is better than food, water, sex, brain structures. See Chapter 2, drugs, or any other primary reinforcer (Heath, pages 57–58. 1963) ( Figure 7.12). Most of what we know about intracranial self-stimulation comes from studying rats with similar implants (Olds & Fobes, 1981). Many natural primary reinforcers activate A rat “wired for pleasure” can be trained to the same pleasure pathways in the brain that press the bar in a Skinner box to deliver make ICS so powerful (McBride, Murphy, & (a) (b) electrical stimulation to its own limbic sys- Ikemoto, 1999). So do psychoactive drugs, tem. (Refer back to Figure 2.26.) Some rats such as alcohol and cocaine (Eisler, Justice, Jr., brainFigure 7.12 Humans have been “wired” for stimulation, as shown in (a). Occasionally done will press the bar thousands of times per & Neill, 2004; Rodd et al., 2005). In fact, rats hour to obtain brain stimulation. After 15 will also self-administer nicotine. When they as an experimental way to restrain uncontrollable outbursts of violence, temporary implants have rarely or 20 hours of constant pressing, animals do, they are even more likely to engage in ICS been done merely to produce pleasure. Most research sometimes collapse from exhaustion. When (Kenny & Markou, 2006). Apparently, nicotine has been carried out with rats. Using the apparatus they revive, they begin pressing again. If the further increases the sensitivity of pleasure shown in (b), the rat can press a bar to deliver mild reward circuit is not turned off, an animal pathways in the brain. electric stimulation to a “pleasure center” in the brain. Operant Reinforcers — Secondary Reinforcers What’s Your Pleasure? Much human learning is still strongly tied to food, water, and Gateway Question: Are there different kinds of operant reinforcement? other primary reinforcers. Regardless, humans also respond to a For humans, learning may be reinforced by anything from a candy much broader range of rewards and reinforcers. Money, praise, bar to a word of praise. In categorizing reinforcers, a useful distinc- attention, approval, success, affection, grades, and the like, all tion can be made between primary reinforcers and secondary rein- serve as learned or secondary reinforcers. forcers. It is also important to distinguish reinforcement, which How does a secondary reinforcer gain its ability to promote exerts its effect through associative learning from feedback, a key learning? Some secondary reinforcers are simply associated with component of cognitive learning. Let’s examine reinforcement a primary reinforcer. For example, if you would like to train a and feedback in more detail. dog to follow you (“heel”) when you take a walk, you could reward the dog with small food treats for staying near you. If Primary Reinforcers you praise the dog each time you give it a treat, praise will become a secondary reinforcer. In time, you will be able to skip Primary reinforcers produce comfort, end discomfort, or fill an giving treats and simply praise your pup for doing the right immediate physical need: They are natural, nonlearned, and thing. The same principle applies to children. One reason that rooted in biology. Food, water, and sex are obvious examples. parents’ praise becomes a secondary reinforcer is because it is Every time you open the refrigerator, walk to a drinking fountain, frequently associated with food, candy, hugs, and other primary turn up the heat, or order a double latte, your actions reflect pri- reinforcers. mary reinforcement. In addition to obvious examples, there are other, less obvious, primary reinforcers, such as psychoactive drugs. One of the most Tokens powerful reinforcers is intracranial self-stimulation (ICS). ICS Secondary reinforcers that can be exchanged for primary reinforc- involves the direct activation of “pleasure centers” in the brain. ers gain their value more directly (Mazur, 2006). Printed money (See “Tickling Your Own Fancy.”) obviously has little or no value of its own. You can’t eat it, drink it,  Conditioning and Learning 231 50 40 Performance, total number of hours/day Reinforcement Reinforcement Reinforcement contingent NOT contingent upon contingent upon performance upon performance 30 performance Chimp-O-Mat, Yerkes Regional Primate Research Center, Emory 60 20 10 20 40 60 butFigure 7.13 Poker chips normally have little or no value for chimpanzees, Days this chimp will work hard to earn them once he learns that the “Chimp-O-Mat” will dispense food in exchange for them. of using Figure 7.14 Reinforcement in a token economy. This graph shows the effects tokens to reward socially desirable behavior in a mental hospital ward. Desirable behavior was defined as cleaning, making the bed, attending therapy ses- sions, and so forth. Tokens earned could be exchanged for basic amenities such as meals, snacks, coffee, game-room privileges, or weekend passes. The graph shows or sleep with it. However, it can be exchanged for food, water, more than 24 hours per day because it represents the total number of hours of desir- lodging, and other necessities. able behavior performed by all patients in the ward. (Adapted from Ayllon & Azrin, 1965.) A token reinforcer is a tangible secondary reinforcer, such as money, gold stars, poker chips, and the like. In a series of classic experiments, chimpanzees were taught to work for tokens. The bridges chimps were first trained to put poker chips into a “Chimp-O- A token economy is a system for managing and altering Mat” vending machine. Each chip dispensed a few grapes or behavior through reinforcement of selected responses. See raisins. Once the animals had learned to exchange tokens for Chapter 15, page 509, for more information on the uses of food, they would learn new tasks to earn the chips. To maintain token economies in behavior therapy. the value of the tokens, the chimps were occasionally allowed to use the “Chimp-O-Mat” ( Figure 7.13) (Cowles, 1937; Wolfe, 1936). Social Reinforcers A major advantage of tokens is that they don’t lose reinforcing As we have noted, learned desires for attention and approval, value as quickly as primary reinforcers do. For instance, if you use which are called social reinforcers, often influence human behav- candy to reinforce a developmentally disabled child for correctly ior. This fact can be used in a classic, if somewhat mischievous, naming things, the child might lose interest once he is satiated demonstration. (fully satisfied) or no longer hungry. It would be better to use Shaping a Teacher tokens as immediate rewards for learning. Later, the child can For this activity, about one half (or more) of the students in a classroom exchange his tokens for candy, toys, or other treats. must participate. First, select a target behavior. This should be something Tokens have also been used with troubled children and adults like “lecturing from the right side of the room.” (Keep it simple, in case in special programs, and even in ordinary elementary school class- rooms (Alberto & Troutman, 2006; Spiegler & Guevremont, 2003) ( Figure 7.14). In each case the goal is to provide an imme- Primary reinforcers Nonlearned reinforcers; usually those that satisfy diate reward for learning. Typically, tokens may be exchanged for physiological needs. food, special privileges, or trips to movies, amusement parks, and Secondary reinforcer A learned reinforcer; often one that gains so forth. Many parents find that tokens greatly reduce discipline reinforcing properties by association with a primary reinforcer. problems with younger children. For example, children can earn Token reinforcer A tangible secondary reinforcer such as money, gold points or gold stars during the week for good behavior. If they earn stars, poker chips, and the like. enough tokens, they are allowed on Sunday to choose one item out Social reinforcer Reinforcement based on receiving attention, of a “grab bag” of small prizes. approval, or affection from another person. 232 CHAPTER 7 your teacher is a slow learner.) Begin training in this way: Each time the correct responses. Yet, because it provided feedback, rapid learn- instructor turns toward the right or takes a step in that direction, partici- ing took place. pating students should look really interested. Also, smile, ask questions, How can feedback be applied? Increased feedback (also called lean forward, and make eye contact. If the teacher turns to the left or knowledge of results, or KR) almost always improves learning takes a step in that direction, participating students should lean back, and performance (Horn et al., 2005). If you want to learn to yawn, check out their split ends, close their eyes, or generally look bored. play a musical instrument, to sing, to speak a second language, Soon, without being aware of why, the instructor should be spending or to deliver a speech, recorded feedback can be very helpful. In most of his or her time each class period lecturing from the right side of sports, videos replays are used to provide feedback on ev