Operant Conditioning

Behaviorism

Operant conditioning is part of a greater approach to understand human and animal behavior known as behaviorism. Behaviorism, first coined by John B. Watson, in contrast to cognitive psychology, does not accept unobservable internal states as causes for behavior, but primarily focuses on the effects of environmental factors. In contrast to methodological behaviorism, which dismissed the study of thoughts, feelings, and similar internal states, Skinner’s radical behaviorism redefined behavior to include everything that an organism does, including the production of thoughts and feelings. Like his fellow behaviorists, Skinner held that internal states, such as thoughts and feelings, were not valid explanations of behavior. However, he considered them behaviors in their own right, which, like all behaviors, could be explained by environmental factors. In his 1957 book Verbal Behavior, Skinner classified language as its own type of operant behavior that functions to interact with and control the surrounding environment, thus making it appropriate for empirical analysis. A primary criticism of behaviorist theories is that they do not sufficiently take into account the mind and personality.

Skinner Box

One of Skinner’s valuable contributions to the empirical study of behavior is the operant conditioning chamber, commonly known as the “Skinner box.” This chamber allows the placement of an animal, such as a rat or pigeon, in a carefully controlled environment with the ability to perform a simple task and the experimenter means to administer reinforcement or punishment. For example, a rat presses a lever, and food is dispensed as positive reinforcement for the behavior. Over time, the rat presses the lever with greater frequency, signaling that the association between the behavior and the consequence has been learned. Extinction may occur gradually over time if the behavior that had previously been reinforced or punished no longer produces these consequences. The efficacy of operant conditioning on modifying behavior is determined by a variety of factors, including the time interval between operant and reinforcer, and schedule of reinforcement. For example, a shorter interval between action and consequence results in more efficient learning. Frequent, consistent reward or punishment results in faster learning of a behavior, but intermittent enforcement of a consequence produces a slower rate of extinction.

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