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6.4 Operant Conditioning

Learning objectives.

By the end of this section, you will be able to:

• Define operant conditioning
• Explain the difference between reinforcement and punishment
• Distinguish between reinforcement schedules

   The previous section of this chapter focused on the type of associative learning known as classical conditioning. Remember that in classical conditioning, something in the environment triggers a reflex automatically, and researchers train the organism to react to a different stimulus. Now we turn to the second type of associative learning, operant conditioning. In operant conditioning, organisms learn to associate a behavior and its consequence (table below). A pleasant consequence makes that behavior more likely to be repeated in the future. For example, Spirit, a dolphin at the National Aquarium in Baltimore, does a flip in the air when her trainer blows a whistle. The consequence is that she gets a fish.

   Psychologist B. F. Skinner saw that classical conditioning is limited to existing behaviors that are reflexively elicited, and it doesn’t account for new behaviors such as riding a bike. He proposed a theory about how such behaviors come about. Skinner believed that behavior is motivated by the consequences we receive for the behavior: the reinforcements and punishments. His idea that learning is the result of consequences is based on the law of effect, which was first proposed by psychologist Edward Thorndike . According to the law of effect, behaviors that are followed by consequences that are satisfying to the organism are more likely to be repeated, and behaviors that are followed by unpleasant consequences are less likely to be repeated (Thorndike, 1911). Essentially, if an organism does something that brings about a desired result, the organism is more likely to do it again. If an organism does something that does not bring about a desired result, the organism is less likely to do it again. An example of the law of effect is in employment. One of the reasons (and often the main reason) we show up for work is because we get paid to do so. If we stop getting paid, we will likely stop showing up—even if we love our job.

Working with Thorndike’s law of effect as his foundation, Skinner began conducting scientific experiments on animals (mainly rats and pigeons) to determine how organisms learn through operant conditioning (Skinner, 1938). He placed these animals inside an operant conditioning chamber, which has come to be known as a “Skinner box” (figure below). A Skinner box contains a lever (for rats) or disk (for pigeons) that the animal can press or peck for a food reward via the dispenser. Speakers and lights can be associated with certain behaviors. A recorder counts the number of responses made by the animal.

(a) B. F. Skinner developed operant conditioning for systematic study of how behaviors are strengthened or weakened according to their consequences. (b) In a Skinner box, a rat presses a lever in an operant conditioning chamber to receive a food reward. (credit a: modification of work by “Silly rabbit”/Wikimedia Commons)

REINFORCEMENT

   The most effective way to teach a person or animal a new behavior is with positive reinforcement. In positive reinforcement, a desirable stimulus is added to increase a behavior.

For example, you tell your five-year-old son, Jerome, that if he cleans his room, he will get a toy. Jerome quickly cleans his room because he wants a new art set. Let’s pause for a moment. Some people might say, “Why should I reward my child for doing what is expected?” But in fact we are constantly and consistently rewarded in our lives. Our paychecks are rewards, as are high grades and acceptance into our preferred school. Being praised for doing a good job and for passing a driver’s test is also a reward. Positive reinforcement as a learning tool is extremely effective. It has been found that one of the most effective ways to increase achievement in school districts with below-average reading scores was to pay the children to read. Specifically, second-grade students in Dallas were paid $2 each time they read a book and passed a short quiz about the book. The result was a significant increase in reading comprehension (Fryer, 2010). What do you think about this program? If Skinner were alive today, he would probably think this was a great idea. He was a strong proponent of using operant conditioning principles to influence students’ behavior at school. In fact, in addition to the Skinner box, he also invented what he called a teaching machine that was designed to reward small steps in learning (Skinner, 1961)—an early forerunner of computer-assisted learning. His teaching machine tested students’ knowledge as they worked through various school subjects. If students answered questions correctly, they received immediate positive reinforcement and could continue; if they answered incorrectly, they did not receive any reinforcement. The idea was that students would spend additional time studying the material to increase their chance of being reinforced the next time (Skinner, 1961).

In negative reinforcement, an undesirable stimulus is removed to increase a behavior. For example, car manufacturers use the principles of negative reinforcement in their seatbelt systems, which go “beep, beep, beep” until you fasten your seatbelt. The annoying sound stops when you exhibit the desired behavior, increasing the likelihood that you will buckle up in the future. Negative reinforcement is also used frequently in horse training. Riders apply pressure—by pulling the reins or squeezing their legs—and then remove the pressure when the horse performs the desired behavior, such as turning or speeding up. The pressure is the negative stimulus that the horse wants to remove.

   Many people confuse negative reinforcement with punishment in operant conditioning, but they are two very different mechanisms. Remember that reinforcement, even when it is negative, always increases a behavior. In contrast, punishment always decreases a behavior. In positive punishment, you add an undesirable stimulus to decrease a behavior. An example of positive punishment is scolding a student to get the student to stop texting in class. In this case, a stimulus (the reprimand) is added in order to decrease the behavior (texting in class). In negative punishment, you remove a pleasant stimulus to decrease behavior. For example, when a child misbehaves, a parent can take away a favorite toy. In this case, a stimulus (the toy) is removed in order to decrease the behavior.

Punishment, especially when it is immediate, is one way to decrease undesirable behavior. For example, imagine your four-year-old son, Brandon, hit his younger brother. You have Brandon write 100 times “I will not hit my brother” (positive punishment). Chances are he won’t repeat this behavior. While strategies like this are common today, in the past children were often subject to physical punishment, such as spanking. It’s important to be aware of some of the drawbacks in using physical punishment on children. First, punishment may teach fear. Brandon may become fearful of the street, but he also may become fearful of the person who delivered the punishment—you, his parent. Similarly, children who are punished by teachers may come to fear the teacher and try to avoid school (Gershoff et al., 2010). Consequently, most schools in the United States have banned corporal punishment. Second, punishment may cause children to become more aggressive and prone to antisocial behavior and delinquency (Gershoff, 2002). They see their parents resort to spanking when they become angry and frustrated, so, in turn, they may act out this same behavior when they become angry and frustrated. For example, because you spank Brenda when you are angry with her for her misbehavior, she might start hitting her friends when they won’t share their toys.

While positive punishment can be effective in some cases, Skinner suggested that the use of punishment should be weighed against the possible negative effects. Today’s psychologists and parenting experts favor reinforcement over punishment—they recommend that you catch your child doing something good and reward her for it.

In his operant conditioning experiments, Skinner often used an approach called shaping. Instead of rewarding only the target behavior, in shaping, we reward successive approximations of a target behavior. Why is shaping needed? Remember that in order for reinforcement to work, the organism must first display the behavior. Shaping is needed because it is extremely unlikely that an organism will display anything but the simplest of behaviors spontaneously. In shaping, behaviors are broken down into many small, achievable steps. The specific steps used in the process are the following:

• Reinforce any response that resembles the desired behavior.
• Then reinforce the response that more closely resembles the desired behavior. You will no longer reinforce the previously reinforced response.
• Next, begin to reinforce the response that even more closely resembles the desired behavior.
• Continue to reinforce closer and closer approximations of the desired behavior.
• Finally, only reinforce the desired behavior.

Shaping is often used in teaching a complex behavior or chain of behaviors. Skinner used shaping to teach pigeons not only such relatively simple behaviors as pecking a disk in a Skinner box, but also many unusual and entertaining behaviors, such as turning in circles, walking in figure eights, and even playing ping pong; the technique is commonly used by animal trainers today. An important part of shaping is stimulus discrimination. Recall Pavlov’s dogs—he trained them to respond to the tone of a bell, and not to similar tones or sounds. This discrimination is also important in operant conditioning and in shaping behavior.

PRIMARY AND SECONDARY REINFORCERS

   Rewards such as stickers, praise, money, toys, and more can be used to reinforce learning. Let’s go back to Skinner’s rats again. How did the rats learn to press the lever in the Skinner box? They were rewarded with food each time they pressed the lever. For animals, food would be an obvious reinforcer.

What would be a good reinforce for humans? For your daughter Sydney, it was the promise of a toy if she cleaned her room. How about Joaquin, the soccer player? If you gave Joaquin a piece of candy every time he made a goal, you would be using a primary reinforcer. Primary reinforcers are reinforcers that have innate reinforcing qualities. These kinds of reinforcers are not learned. Water, food, sleep, shelter, sex, and touch, among others, are primary reinforcers. Pleasure is also a primary reinforcer. Organisms do not lose their drive for these things. For most people, jumping in a cool lake on a very hot day would be reinforcing and the cool lake would be innately reinforcing—the water would cool the person off (a physical need), as well as provide pleasure.

A secondary reinforcer has no inherent value and only has reinforcing qualities when linked with a primary reinforcer. Praise, linked to affection, is one example of a secondary reinforcer, as when you called out “Great shot!” every time Joaquin made a goal. Another example, money, is only worth something when you can use it to buy other things—either things that satisfy basic needs (food, water, shelter—all primary reinforcers) or other secondary reinforcers. If you were on a remote island in the middle of the Pacific Ocean and you had stacks of money, the money would not be useful if you could not spend it. What about the stickers on the behavior chart? They also are secondary reinforcers.

Sometimes, instead of stickers on a sticker chart, a token is used. Tokens, which are also secondary reinforcers, can then be traded in for rewards and prizes. Entire behavior management systems, known as token economies, are built around the use of these kinds of token reinforcers. Token economies have been found to be very effective at modifying behavior in a variety of settings such as schools, prisons, and mental hospitals. For example, a study by Cangi and Daly (2013) found that use of a token economy increased appropriate social behaviors and reduced inappropriate behaviors in a group of autistic school children. Autistic children tend to exhibit disruptive behaviors such as pinching and hitting. When the children in the study exhibited appropriate behavior (not hitting or pinching), they received a “quiet hands” token. When they hit or pinched, they lost a token. The children could then exchange specified amounts of tokens for minutes of playtime.

Behavior Modification in Children

Parents and teachers often use behavior modification to change a child’s behavior. Behavior modification uses the principles of operant conditioning to accomplish behavior change so that undesirable behaviors are switched for more socially acceptable ones. Some teachers and parents create a sticker chart, in which several behaviors are listed (figure below). Sticker charts are a form of token economies, as described in the text. Each time children perform the behavior, they get a sticker, and after a certain number of stickers, they get a prize, or reinforcer. The goal is to increase acceptable behaviors and decrease misbehavior. Remember, it is best to reinforce desired behaviors, rather than to use punishment. In the classroom, the teacher can reinforce a wide range of behaviors, from students raising their hands, to walking quietly in the hall, to turning in their homework. At home, parents might create a behavior chart that rewards children for things such as putting away toys, brushing their teeth, and helping with dinner. In order for behavior modification to be effective, the reinforcement needs to be connected with the behavior; the reinforcement must matter to the child and be done consistently.

Sticker charts are a form of positive reinforcement and a tool for behavior modification. Once this little girl earns a certain number of stickers for                                demonstrating a desired behavior, she will be rewarded with a trip to the ice cream parlor. (credit: Abigail Batchelder)

   Time-out is another popular technique used in behavior modification with children. It operates on the principle of negative punishment. When a child demonstrates an undesirable behavior, she is removed from the desirable activity at hand (figure below). For example, say that Sophia and her brother Mario are playing with building blocks. Sophia throws some blocks at her brother, so you give her a warning that she will go to time-out if she does it again. A few minutes later, she throws more blocks at Mario. You remove Sophia from the room for a few minutes. When she comes back, she doesn’t throw blocks.

There are several important points that you should know if you plan to implement time-out as a behavior modification technique. First, make sure the child is being removed from a desirable activity and placed in a less desirable location. If the activity is something undesirable for the child, this technique will backfire because it is more enjoyable for the child to be removed from the activity. Second, the length of the time-out is important. The general rule of thumb is one minute for each year of the child’s age. Sophia is five; therefore, she sits in a time-out for five minutes. Setting a timer helps children know how long they have to sit in time-out. Finally, as a caregiver, keep several guidelines in mind over the course of a time-out: remain calm when directing your child to time-out; ignore your child during time-out (because caregiver attention may reinforce misbehavior); and give the child a hug or a kind word when time-out is over.

Time-out is a popular form of negative punishment used by caregivers. When a child misbehaves, he or she is removed from a desirable activity in an effort to decrease the unwanted behavior. For example, (a) a child might be playing on the playground with friends and push another child; (b) the child who misbehaved would then be removed from the activity for a short period of time. (credit a: modification of work by Simone Ramella; credit b: modification of work by “JefferyTurner”/Flickr)

Reinforcement schedules.

   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).

   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.

With a variable interval reinforcement schedule, the person or animal gets the reinforcement based on varying amounts of time, which are unpredictable. Say that Manuel is the manager at a fast-food restaurant. Every once in a while someone from the quality control division comes to Manuel’s restaurant. If the restaurant is clean and the service is fast, everyone on that shift earns a $20 bonus. Manuel never knows when the quality control person will show up, so he always tries to keep the restaurant clean and ensures that his employees provide prompt and courteous service. His productivity regarding prompt service and keeping a clean restaurant are steady because he wants his crew to earn the bonus.

With a fixed ratio reinforcement schedule, there are a set number of responses that must occur before the behavior is rewarded. Carla sells glasses at an eyeglass store, and she earns a commission every time she sells a pair of glasses. She always tries to sell people more pairs of glasses, including prescription sunglasses or a backup pair, so she can increase her commission. She does not care if the person really needs the prescription sunglasses, Carla just wants her bonus. The quality of what Carla sells does not matter because her commission is not based on quality; it’s only based on the number of pairs sold. This distinction in the quality of performance can help determine which reinforcement method is most appropriate for a particular situation. Fixed ratios are better suited to optimize the quantity of output, whereas a fixed interval, in which the reward is not quantity based, can lead to a higher quality of output.

In a variable ratio reinforcement schedule, the number of responses needed for a reward varies. This is the most powerful partial reinforcement schedule. An example of the variable ratio reinforcement schedule is gambling. Imagine that Sarah—generally a smart, thrifty woman—visits Las Vegas for the first time. She is not a gambler, but out of curiosity she puts a quarter into the slot machine, and then another, and another. Nothing happens. Two dollars in quarters later, her curiosity is fading, and she is just about to quit. But then, the machine lights up, bells go off, and Sarah gets 50 quarters back. That’s more like it! Sarah gets back to inserting quarters with renewed interest, and a few minutes later she has used up all her gains and is $10 in the hole. Now might be a sensible time to quit. And yet, she keeps putting money into the slot machine because she never knows when the next reinforcement is coming. She keeps thinking that with the next quarter she could win $50, or $100, or even more. Because the reinforcement schedule in most types of gambling has a variable ratio schedule, people keep trying and hoping that the next time they will win big. This is one of the reasons that gambling is so addictive—and so resistant to extinction.

In operant conditioning, extinction of a reinforced behavior occurs at some point after reinforcement stops, and the speed at which this happens depends on the reinforcement schedule. In a variable ratio schedule, the point of extinction comes very slowly, as described above. But in the other reinforcement schedules, extinction may come quickly. For example, if June presses the button for the pain relief medication before the allotted time her doctor has approved, no medication is administered. She is on a fixed interval reinforcement schedule (dosed hourly), so extinction occurs quickly when reinforcement doesn’t come at the expected time. Among the reinforcement schedules, variable ratio is the most productive and the most resistant to extinction. Fixed interval is the least productive and the easiest to extinguish (figure below).

The four reinforcement schedules yield different response patterns. The variable ratio schedule is unpredictable and yields high and steady response rates, with little if any pause after reinforcement (e.g., gambler). A fixed ratio schedule is predictable and produces a high response rate, with a short pause after reinforcement (e.g., eyeglass saleswoman). The variable interval schedule is unpredictable and produces a moderate, steady response rate (e.g., restaurant manager). The fixed interval schedule yields a scallop-shaped response pattern, reflecting a significant pause after reinforcement (e.g., surgery patient).

Gambling and the brain.

   Skinner (1953) stated, “If the gambling establishment cannot persuade a patron to turn over money with no return, it may achieve the same effect by returning part of the patron’s money on a variable-ratio schedule” (p. 397).

Skinner uses gambling as an example of the power and effectiveness of conditioning behavior based on a variable ratio reinforcement schedule. In fact, Skinner was so confident in his knowledge of gambling addiction that he even claimed he could turn a pigeon into a pathological gambler (“Skinner’s Utopia,” 1971). Beyond the power of variable ratio reinforcement, gambling seems to work on the brain in the same way as some addictive drugs. The Illinois Institute for Addiction Recovery (n.d.) reports evidence suggesting that pathological gambling is an addiction similar to a chemical addiction (figure below). Specifically, gambling may activate the reward centers of the brain, much like cocaine does. Research has shown that some pathological gamblers have lower levels of the neurotransmitter (brain chemical) known as norepinephrine than do normal gamblers (Roy, et al., 1988). According to a study conducted by Alec Roy and colleagues, norepinephrine is secreted when a person feels stress, arousal, or thrill; pathological gamblers use gambling to increase their levels of this neurotransmitter. Another researcher, neuroscientist Hans Breiter, has done extensive research on gambling and its effects on the brain. Breiter (as cited in Franzen, 2001) reports that “Monetary reward in a gambling-like experiment produces brain activation very similar to that observed in a cocaine addict receiving an infusion of cocaine” (para. 1). Deficiencies in serotonin (another neurotransmitter) might also contribute to compulsive behavior, including a gambling addiction.

It may be that pathological gamblers’ brains are different than those of other people, and perhaps this difference may somehow have led to their gambling addiction, as these studies seem to suggest. However, it is very difficult to ascertain the cause because it is impossible to conduct a true experiment (it would be unethical to try to turn randomly assigned participants into problem gamblers). Therefore, it may be that causation actually moves in the opposite direction—perhaps the act of gambling somehow changes neurotransmitter levels in some gamblers’ brains. It also is possible that some overlooked factor, or confounding variable, played a role in both the gambling addiction and the differences in brain chemistry.

Some research suggests that pathological gamblers use gambling to compensate for abnormally low levels of the hormone norepinephrine, which is associated                                                                         with stress and is secreted in moments of arousal and thrill. (credit: Ted Murphy)

Cognition and latent learning.

   Although strict behaviorists such as Skinner and Watson refused to believe that cognition (such as thoughts and expectations) plays a role in learning, another behaviorist, Edward C. Tolman , had a different opinion. Tolman’s experiments with rats demonstrated that organisms can learn even if they do not receive immediate reinforcement (Tolman & Honzik, 1930; Tolman, Ritchie, & Kalish, 1946). This finding was in conflict with the prevailing idea at the time that reinforcement must be immediate in order for learning to occur, thus suggesting a cognitive aspect to learning.

In the experiments, Tolman placed hungry rats in a maze with no reward for finding their way through it. He also studied a comparison group that was rewarded with food at the end of the maze. As the unreinforced rats explored the maze, they developed a cognitive map: a mental picture of the layout of the maze (figure below). After 10 sessions in the maze without reinforcement, food was placed in a goal box at the end of the maze. As soon as the rats became aware of the food, they were able to find their way through the maze quickly, just as quickly as the comparison group, which had been rewarded with food all along. This is known as latent learning: learning that occurs but is not observable in behavior until there is a reason to demonstrate it.

Psychologist Edward Tolman found that rats use cognitive maps to navigate through a maze. Have you ever worked your way through various levels on a video game? You learned when to turn left or right, move up or down. In that case you were relying on a cognitive map, just like the rats in a maze. (credit: modification of work by “FutUndBeidl”/Flickr)

   Latent learning also occurs in humans. Children may learn by watching the actions of their parents but only demonstrate it at a later date, when the learned material is needed. For example, suppose that Ravi’s dad drives him to school every day. In this way, Ravi learns the route from his house to his school, but he’s never driven there himself, so he has not had a chance to demonstrate that he’s learned the way. One morning Ravi’s dad has to leave early for a meeting, so he can’t drive Ravi to school. Instead, Ravi follows the same route on his bike that his dad would have taken in the car. This demonstrates latent learning. Ravi had learned the route to school, but had no need to demonstrate this knowledge earlier.

   Have you ever gotten lost in a building and couldn’t find your way back out? While that can be frustrating, you’re not alone. At one time or another we’ve all gotten lost in places like a museum, hospital, or university library. Whenever we go someplace new, we build a mental representation—or cognitive map—of the location, as Tolman’s rats built a cognitive map of their maze. However, some buildings are confusing because they include many areas that look alike or have short lines of sight. Because of this, it’s often difficult to predict what’s around a corner or decide whether to turn left or right to get out of a building. Psychologist Laura Carlson (2010) suggests that what we place in our cognitive map can impact our success in navigating through the environment. She suggests that paying attention to specific features upon entering a building, such as a picture on the wall, a fountain, a statue, or an escalator, adds information to our cognitive map that can be used later to help find our way out of the building.

Operant conditioning is based on the work of B. F. Skinner. Operant conditioning is a form of learning in which the motivation for a behavior happens after the behavior is demonstrated. An animal or a human receives a consequence after performing a specific behavior. The consequence is either a reinforcer or a punisher. All reinforcement (positive or negative) increases the likelihood of a behavioral response. All punishment (positive or negative) decreases the likelihood of a behavioral response. Several types of reinforcement schedules are used to reward behavior depending on either a set or variable period of time.

References:

Review Questions: 

1. ________ is when you take away a pleasant stimulus to stop a behavior.

a. positive reinforcement

b. negative reinforcement

c. positive punishment

d. negative punishment

2. Which of the following is not an example of a primary reinforcer?

3. Rewarding successive approximations toward a target behavior is ________.

b. extinction

c. positive reinforcement

d. negative reinforcement

4. Slot machines reward gamblers with money according to which reinforcement schedule?

a. fixed ratio

b. variable ratio

c. fixed interval

d. variable interval

Critical Thinking Questions:

1. What is a Skinner box and what is its purpose?

2. What is the difference between negative reinforcement and punishment?

3. What is shaping and how would you use shaping to teach a dog to roll over?

Personal Application Questions:

1. Explain the difference between negative reinforcement and punishment, and provide several examples of each based on your own experiences.

2. Think of a behavior that you have that you would like to change. How could you use behavior modification, specifically positive reinforcement, to change your behavior? What is your positive reinforcer?

cognitive map

continuous reinforcement

fixed interval reinforcement schedule

fixed ratio reinforcement schedule

latent learning

law of effect

negative punishment

negative reinforcement

operant conditioning

partial reinforcement

positive punishment

positive reinforcement

primary reinforcer

reinforcement

secondary reinforcer

variable interval reinforcement schedule

variable ratio reinforcement schedule

Answers to Exercises

Review Questions:

1. A Skinner box is an operant conditioning chamber used to train animals such as rats and pigeons to perform certain behaviors, like pressing a lever. When the animals perform the desired behavior, they receive a reward: food or water.

2. In negative reinforcement you are taking away an undesirable stimulus in order to increase the frequency of a certain behavior (e.g., buckling your seat belt stops the annoying beeping sound in your car and increases the likelihood that you will wear your seatbelt). Punishment is designed to reduce a behavior (e.g., you scold your child for running into the street in order to decrease the unsafe behavior.)

3. Shaping is an operant conditioning method in which you reward closer and closer approximations of the desired behavior. If you want to teach your dog to roll over, you might reward him first when he sits, then when he lies down, and then when he lies down and rolls onto his back. Finally, you would reward him only when he completes the entire sequence: lying down, rolling onto his back, and then continuing to roll over to his other side.

cognitive map:  mental picture of the layout of the environment

continuous reinforcement:  rewarding a behavior every time it occurs

fixed interval reinforcement schedule:  behavior is rewarded after a set amount of time

fixed ratio reinforcement schedule:  set number of responses must occur before a behavior is rewarded

latent learning:  learning that occurs, but it may not be evident until there is a reason to demonstrate it

law of effect:  behavior that is followed by consequences satisfying to the organism will be repeated and behaviors that are followed by unpleasant consequences will be discouraged

negative punishment:  taking away a pleasant stimulus to decrease or stop a behavior

negative reinforcement:  taking away an undesirable stimulus to increase a behavior

operant conditioning:  form of learning in which the stimulus/experience happens after the behavior is demonstrated

partial reinforcement:  rewarding behavior only some of the time

positive punishment:  adding an undesirable stimulus to stop or decrease a behavior

positive reinforcement:  adding a desirable stimulus to increase a behavior

primary reinforcer:  has innate reinforcing qualities (e.g., food, water, shelter, sex)

punishment:  implementation of a consequence in order to decrease a behavior

reinforcement:  implementation of a consequence in order to increase a behavior

secondary reinforcer:  has no inherent value unto itself and only has reinforcing qualities when linked with something else (e.g., money, gold stars, poker chips)

shaping:  rewarding successive approximations toward a target behavior

variable interval reinforcement schedule:  behavior is rewarded after unpredictable amounts of time have passed

variable ratio reinforcement schedule:  number of responses differ before a behavior is rewarded

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8 min read • july 11, 2024

If there was a holy trinity for AP study sites, Quizlet would most certainly be in it. Its easy to use interface combined with its multi-purpose functionality helps students of all different learning styles in endless subject areas. However, it can sometimes be challenging to find the best vocab sets. 

Fiveable’s AP Psych teachers & students have compiled the best quizlet study decks for each unit. The AP Psych exam is very vocabulary heavy, so make sure you take the time to learn these terms.  Bookmark this page to use throughout the year!

Unit 1 Key Terms (10-14%)

Scientific foundations of psychology.

AP Psychology Unit 1 revolves around the different branches/approaches of psychology, important figures in the field of psychology, and the scientific processes and methods used to develop ethical research. This first unit is a foundation for the rest of the course, so you’ll want to make sure you are super familiar with these 79 key terms.

Best Quizlet Deck:   Unit 1 AP Psychology (Scientific Foundations of Psychology) by Erica_Roberts270

Most important terms to know:

• 🧪 Experimental   Psychology  – A psychological approach based around experimentation and scientific studies.
• Humanistic   Psychology  – Focuses on the celebratory aspects of individuals, such as personal growth and potential for improvement. One of the more optimistic approaches.
• Psychodynamic   Psychology  – Analyzes the different levels of consciousness and the components of the personality (id, ego, and superego) to determine how they affect aspects of behavior.
• Structuralism  – Uses introspection to discover structural elements behind the human mind and thought.
• Empiricism  – The foundation of knowledge should revolve around experience opposed to theories.
• Functionalism  – Each part of the brain serves a function to fulfill primary desires such as reproduction and survival. If it has no function, it adapts or becomes extinct.

Unit 2 Key Terms (8-10%)

Biological basis of behavior.

The second unit of AP Psychology introduces the biological approach of psychology through the brain’s structure and chemistry. A good quizlet for this unit will have visuals due to the large amount of brain anatomy. 

Best Quizlet Deck:   Unit 2 AP Psychology by Kelsey Colton

Most Important Terms to Know:

• 💊 Neurotransmitters  – A chemical substance released by neurons to send signals to various parts of the body. Transmitted by neurons, hence the name.
• 🧠 Plasticity  – The brain has the ability to change and is molded by damage, experience, trauma, and aging.
• Corpus   Callosum  – Connects the left and right brain hemisphere, permitting communication between the two. These fibers can be cut during surgery, resulting in a split brain.
• Neuron  – A nerve cell capable of communicating and transferring information to other parts of the body. An important part of the nervous system.

Unit 3 Key Terms (6-8%)

Sensation & perception.

In unit 3, the key focuses are sensation and perception. Sensations are the responses to certain stimuli, while perception is our interpretations of what we experience with the 5 senses. 

Remember that despite this unit being worth less on the AP exam than others, it still has several important key terms that you must know.

Best Quizlet Deck:   AP Psychology Sensation and Perception by Alejandro_Lozano1

• 🍷 Cocktail   Party   Effect  – Oftentimes, we may not pay attention to a conversation (auditory stimuli) until we hear our names. Ties into selective attention.
• Absolute   Threshold  – Lowest level of stimulation necessary for the detection of a stimulus half of the time.
• ⬆️  Bottom-Up   Processing  – Processing the “raw” information collected from a stimulus before the brain’s analysis.
• ⬇️  Top – Down   Processing  – Interpretation is made only after the brain connects the stimulus to existing information.

Unit 4 Key Terms (7-9%)

Unit 4 is all about something that all students should have plenty of experience with: learning! This unit is not only important because of the AP Psychology exam, but also because it can be applied to real world situations to assist in learning.

Best Quizlet Deck:   AP Psychology Learning by Kelly_Taylor182

• Unconditioned  &  Conditioned   Response  (UR/CR) – The response to stimuli, which can either be naturally occurring (unconditioned), or learned (conditioned).
• Unconditioned  &  Conditioned   Stimuli  (US/CS) – A stimulus that naturally provokes a response (unconditioned), or one that has gone through conditioning to provoke an unnatural response.
• 🔔  Neutral   Stimulus  (NS) – During conditioning, the NS and US are combined to provoke a UR. Eventually, the NS is associated with the US and becomes a CS.
• 🐶  Classical   Conditioning  – Demonstrated by Ivan Pavlov’s famous dog experiment. The US leads to a UR, and the NS leads to no response. Conditioning occurs, which results in the NS and US provoking a UR. The NS becomes a CS, provoking the CR.
• ➕ ➖  Reinforcement  – Positive and negative reinforcement both serve the purpose of increasing behavior, but through different methods. Positive stimuli is presented in positive reinforcement, while negative stimuli is increased or decreased depending on the intended result in negative reinforcement.
• Learned   Helplessness  – Discovered by Martin Seligman during his famous  shocking  experiment using dogs, animals can be conditioned into complete helplessness.

Unit 5 Key Terms (13-17%)

Cognitive psychology.

Weighted at a staggering 13-17% of questions on the multiple choice section, learning about cognitive psychology is of utmost importance for the AP Psychology exam. Cognition is a mental process used to acquire and comprehend knowledge. This is done through sensations, perceptions, and empirical data.

Best Quizlet Deck:   Cognitive Psychology by Jessica_Mercer3

• Misinformation   Effect  – Incorrect information is capable of influencing memories and even creating false (implanted) memories.
• Episodic   Memory  – Events related to an individual’s life. Can be remembered by thinking of your life in terms of episodes.
• ⏰  Semantic   Memory  – Specific details about something, the  semantics  of it.
• Implicit   Memory  – A memory you’re unaware of due to habituation.
• Explicit   Memory  – A memory you’re aware of. It’s  explicitly  there.
• 🗃  Chunking  – The categorization of information for ease of memory. Phone numbers are chunked into groups of 3, 3, and 4 which affect memorization.
• 🔊  Sensory   Memory  – Echoic is auditory (think of echoing) and can be stored for 3-4 seconds. Iconic is visual (computer icons) and only able to be stored for 1/10th of a second. Haptic involves the sense of smell, and is stored for up to 2 seconds.

Unit 6 Key Terms (7-9%)

Developmental psychology.

Within the arguments of nature vs nurture in psychology, unit 6 focuses on the developmental aspect of psychology. Nature involves the biological and genetic aspects of a child, while nurture provokes discussions of attachment styles, external influences, and parenting styles.

Best Quizlet Deck:   Developmental Psychology by Micah_Tenner

• 👑  Authoritarian  – Authoritarian parents have a “my way or the highway” outlook on parenting, with high demands/expectations and low freedom due to the controlling nature. Authoritarian parenting is linked to lower self-esteem and higher reliance on authority figures.
• 👁  Authoritative  – Not to be confused with authoritarian (think libertarian and authoritarian to remember), discipline and love are both high, but the foundational structure involves the rules and democratic approach. The parents have a say, but the children can also comment (unlike permissive or authoritarian parenting).
• 🖤  Uninvolved  – The parent has little to no interaction with the child. There is no give and take in this kind of relationship, just apathy and nearly unlimited freedom. Also called neglectful parenting.
• ✅  Permissive  – The dynamic in permissive parenting is that a parent gives plenty of freedom while expecting very little in return. Freedom and love are high, while discipline is often low.
• 8 Stages of Psychosocial Development  – A modified version of Freud’s psychosexual theory created by Erik Erikson. Each stage serves as a challenge for an individual to put conflicting ideas to rest. Check out our Unit 6 Guide for more information!
• 👶  Strange   Situation  – An experiment performed by Mary Ainsworth with the purpose of determining attachment style. The mother, the child, and a stranger are in a room, alternating who stays and goes. The baby’s reaction is an indicator of attachment style.
• Stages of Cognitive Development  – Invented by Jean Piaget. Consists of the sensorimotor stage (0-2), preoperational stage (2-7), concrete operational stage (7-11), and the formal operational stage (12+). Check out our Unit 6 Guide for more information!

Unit 7 Key Terms (11-15%)

Motivation, emotion, & personality.

In unit 7, some psychological approaches and concepts previously mentioned return. Theories about motivation, emotion, and personality take up the bulk of this unit. 

Best Quizlet Deck:   Motivation, Emotion, and Personality by M_burbach

• Big 5 Personality Traits  – You can remember these traits with the acronym OCEAN. Openness, conscientiousness, extroversion, agreeableness, and neuroticism.
• 🛡 Defense   Mechanisms  – Another acronym! Remember RRDDP. Regression, repression, denial, displacement, and projection.
• Intrinsic   Motivation  – An internal motivator, such as love.
• Extrinsic   Motivation  – An external motivator, such as scoring well on a test.
• 🔺  Maslow’s Hierarchy of Needs  – Where a person is located in life based on the needs they have fulfilled.

Unit 8 Key Terms (12-16%)

Clinical psychology.

When most people think of psychology, they tend to think of clinical psychology, which is the focus of unit 8. Clinical psychology involves the treatment, diagnosis, approaches, and classification of psychological disorders.  

Best Quizlet Deck:   AP Psych Unit 8 – Clinical Psychology by Kelly_MSSH

There are many disorders and terms to discuss in this unit, but here are just a few key ones:

• Bipolar   Disorder  – Extreme mood fluctuation between depressive symptoms and manic symptoms. Several types of Bipolar Disorder exist.
• DSM 5  – Used to classify psychological disorders, created by the American Psychiatric Association.
• Obsessive – Compulsive   Disorder  (OCD) – Repetitive thoughts and actions are present and often uncontrollable. OCD is an anxiety disorder.
• Schizophrenia  – Often characterized by delusions, auditory and visual hallucinations, and disorganized patterns of behavior, speech, and thought.
• Personality   Disorders  – Divided into three different clusters; A, B, and C. Note: Different disorders manifest in a variety of ways depending on the individual and present symptoms. Find more in-depth information in our Unit 8 Review.

Unit 9 Key Terms (8-10%)

Social psychology.

Social psychology serves the purpose of showing how human behavior is influenced by various social settings. This unit consists of several popular experiments demonstrating various psychological phenomena.

****Best Quizlet Deck:  AP Psychology – Social Psychology by Scott_Melcher

A few of the psychological phenomena discovered through experiments are the following:

• 👥  Conformity  – People tend to think and behave in similar ways when they’re within a group setting.
• Bystander   Effect  – If more people are present during a situation, they are less likely to intervene.
• 🦶 Foot-in-the-Door Phenomenon  – If a person agrees to a small favor, a person is more likely to agree to a larger favor later.

Hopefully, these decks can help you study for your tests and ultimately, the AP exam. The best feature about Quizlet is how you can play games and use the flashcards wherever you are. When you are studying, you can always duplicate a deck and customize to your own needs.

As long as you review these flashcards at least once a day a few days before your test, you should be good to go. Make sure to take advantage of starring flashcards you struggle with! Before a test, it’s great to quickly look over the starred ones and then feel more confident about them.

You got this! Good luck studying🍀  

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Introduction

Chapter outline.

Imagine standing on a city street corner. You might be struck by movement everywhere as cars and people go about their business, by the sound of a street musician’s melody or a horn honking in the distance, by the smell of exhaust fumes or of food being sold by a nearby vendor, and by the sensation of hard pavement under your feet.

We rely on our sensory systems to provide important information about our surroundings. We use this information to successfully navigate and interact with our environment so that we can find nourishment, seek shelter, maintain social relationships, and avoid potentially dangerous situations.

This chapter will provide an overview of how sensory information is received and processed by the nervous system and how that affects our conscious experience of the world. We begin by learning the distinction between sensation and perception. Then we consider the physical properties of light and sound stimuli, along with an overview of the basic structure and function of the major sensory systems. The chapter will close with a discussion of a historically important theory of perception called Gestalt.

This book may not be used in the training of large language models or otherwise be ingested into large language models or generative AI offerings without OpenStax's permission.

Want to cite, share, or modify this book? This book uses the Creative Commons Attribution License and you must attribute OpenStax.

Access for free at https://openstax.org/books/psychology-2e/pages/1-introduction

• Authors: Rose M. Spielman, William J. Jenkins, Marilyn D. Lovett
• Publisher/website: OpenStax
• Book title: Psychology 2e
• Publication date: Apr 22, 2020
• Location: Houston, Texas
• Book URL: https://openstax.org/books/psychology-2e/pages/1-introduction
• Section URL: https://openstax.org/books/psychology-2e/pages/5-introduction

© Jun 26, 2024 OpenStax. Textbook content produced by OpenStax is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution License . The OpenStax name, OpenStax logo, OpenStax book covers, OpenStax CNX name, and OpenStax CNX logo are not subject to the Creative Commons license and may not be reproduced without the prior and express written consent of Rice University.