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Remember, the best way to teach a person or animal a behavior is to use positive reinforcement. For example, Skinner used positive reinforcement to teach rats to press a lever in a Skinner box. At first, the rat might randomly hit the lever while exploring the box, and out would come a pellet of food. After eating the pellet, what do you think the hungry rat did next? It hit the lever again, and received another pellet of food. Each time the rat hit the lever, a pellet of food came out. When an organism receives a reinforcer each time it displays a behavior, it is called continuous reinforcement . This reinforcement schedule is the quickest way to teach someone a behavior, and it is especially effective in training a new behavior. Let’s look back at the dog that was learning to sit earlier in the chapter. Now, each time he sits, you give him a treat. Timing is important here: you will be most successful if you present the reinforcer immediately after he sits, so that he can make an association between the target behavior (sitting) and the consequence (getting a treat).
Watch this video clip where veterinarian Dr. Sophia Yin shapes a dog’s behavior using the steps outlined above.
Once a behavior is trained, researchers and trainers often turn to another type of reinforcement schedule—partial reinforcement. In partial reinforcement , also referred to as intermittent reinforcement, the person or animal does not get reinforced every time they perform the desired behavior. There are several different types of partial reinforcement schedules ( [link] ). These schedules are described as either fixed or variable, and as either interval or ratio. Fixed refers to the number of responses between reinforcements, or the amount of time between reinforcements, which is set and unchanging. Variable refers to the number of responses or amount of time between reinforcements, which varies or changes. Interval means the schedule is based on the time between reinforcements, and ratio means the schedule is based on the number of responses between reinforcements.
| Reinforcement Schedule | Description | Result | Example |
|---|---|---|---|
| Fixed interval | Reinforcement is delivered at predictable time intervals (e.g., after 5, 10, 15, and 20 minutes). | Moderate response rate with significant pauses after reinforcement | Hospital patient uses patient-controlled, doctor-timed pain relief |
| Variable interval | Reinforcement is delivered at unpredictable time intervals (e.g., after 5, 7, 10, and 20 minutes). | Moderate yet steady response rate | Checking Facebook |
| Fixed ratio | Reinforcement is delivered after a predictable number of responses (e.g., after 2, 4, 6, and 8 responses). | High response rate with pauses after reinforcement | Piecework—factory worker getting paid for every x number of items manufactured |
| Variable ratio | Reinforcement is delivered after an unpredictable number of responses (e.g., after 1, 4, 5, and 9 responses). | High and steady response rate | Gambling |
Now let’s combine these four terms. A fixed interval reinforcement schedule is when behavior is rewarded after a set amount of time. For example, June undergoes major surgery in a hospital. During recovery, she is expected to experience pain and will require prescription medications for pain relief. June is given an IV drip with a patient-controlled painkiller. Her doctor sets a limit: one dose per hour. June pushes a button when pain becomes difficult, and she receives a dose of medication. Since the reward (pain relief) only occurs on a fixed interval, there is no point in exhibiting the behavior when it will not be rewarded.
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