Operant Conditioning (Group 1)

Operant Conditioning

Learning From The Consequences Of Your Behavior

Group members:

1. Adlin Ichsan - [101402030]

2. Fitria Ningsih Sipahutar - [111402015]

3. M. Ryan Faisal - [111402017]

4. Nathan Polindo - [111402079]
5. Anthonius Kosasih - [111402089]

If you were to move into a new town and you came to a park then an attractive and pretty girl spoke to you, you would probably keep going to that park again. 

The changing frequency of people’s behavior caused by the consequences of their actions is called operant conditioning. People learn from the consequences of their actions and their behavior changes.

Operant Conditioning was first described by American psychologist, Edward Thorndike (1991). At first, Thorndike was interested in the question of animal intelligence, which he investigated using an apparatus he called a "puzzle box." A hungry cat was placed inside the box, food was placed outside, and the cat's efforts to escape were observed. With each trial, the cat becomes more efficient at opening the door of the box. Based on these observations, Thorndike formulated the "Law Of Effect", which states that the behavior that yields good consequences will be strengthen, and the behavior that yields bad consequences will be weakened.

Thorndike's law of effect formed the basis for subsequent study of what is now referred to as operant conditioning in contemporary psychology.

There are three ways in which the desirable and undesirable consequences of our behavior influence our future behavior:

1. Positive Reinforcement

2. Negative Reinforcement

3. Punishment

Positive Reinforcement

In positive reinforcement, the consequences of a behavior are positive. This causes the increasing frequency of that behavior. People tend to repeat the behavior that gives them good result. In positive reinforcement, the good result is called positive reinforcer or reward.  Positive reinforcement is used to increase the frequency of wanted behavior.

For example, a lazy child was told by his parents that he would get a bar of chocolate if he can finish his homework before dinner time. Because he liked chocolate so much, he started to do his homework right after he had finished his lunch. As he finished the homework before dinner time, he got the chocolate his parents promised. This keeps repeating for the next days.

From this case, the reward is the chocolate and the behavior increased is finishing homework as soon as possible.

There  are  two important issues in the use of positive reinforcement:

1.Timing.
Reward must be given directly after the behavior wanted. The more delay or time interval between the behavior and the reward, the slower the learning occur. This delay has been referred to as the principle of delay of reinforcement.

For an example, if we were to train our dog to give a “handshake”, we should give our dog a piece of biscuit right after it took its paw and gave us a “handshake”.  Mostly, the optimal time is only one or two seconds. 

2. Consistency in the delivery of reinforcement.

In the beginning of the learning process, the reinforcement must be given consistently after every response. But after the  learning occur, it’s not always important to reinforce every response.

So, if we were to train our dog to give a “handshake”, we should give our dog a piece of biscuit everytime after it succeed shake your hand. But after the dog is well-trained, the biscuit is not always important anymore.

Negative Reinforcement

Sometimes, the increasing frequency of a behavior is to avoid aversive event. If a behavior is able to take away something we don’t like, then we tend to repeat that behavior again and again.

For example, when a naughty child is given punishment by his parents, he cried. To stop his crying, his parents then cancelled the punishment given. The next time he got punishment, he will cry again to make his parents cancel the punishment.

From this example, the increasing behavior is crying. The aversive event being taken away is the punishment.

Negative reinforcement is a very powerful method of reinforcement, so we learn patterns of behavior quickly and easily.

Punishment

Punishment is a negative consequence that leads to a decreasing in the frequency of the behavior that produced it. For example, if you keep talking in class while teacher is teaching infront, a negative consequence will surely occur. The teacher will scold you or give you another type of punishment. And you will probably not try to talk while teacher is teaching again. Punishment can be a valuable way for discouraging inappropriate behavior only if the punisment is appropriately used.


Testimony:
I think positive reinforcement is the best method compared with the other two. So, before we try to give others punishment or negative reinforcement, it's better to give the positive one first. 

I think that's all for this operant conditioning topic. I hope you guys  can understand more about this principle of learning.

References:
1. Lahey, Benjamin B. (2005). Psychology: An Introduction(Ninth Edition). Avenue of the Americans, New York: The McGraw-Hill Companies,Inc.
2. King, Laura A. (2010). Psikologi Umum: Sebuah Pandangan Apresiatif. Jakarta: Salemba Humanika.
3. candraardian2.wordpress.com/artikel-psikologi/teori-belajar