Schedules of Reinforcement

Chapter 6Learning and Behavior (Chance)

Chapter QuestionsO What is a schedule of reinforcement?O What are the four basic kinds of intermittent

schedules?O What sort of reinforcement schedule would make

behavior most persistent?O What is “stretching the ratio,” and how do you do it?O What do you call a schedule in which a behavior is

never reinforced?O What is a multiple schedule?O What is the matching law, and what does it have to

do with making choices?O Why are reinforcement schedules important?

Today’s Guiding Questions

O What is a schedule of reinforcement?O What are the four basic intermittent

schedules?O What is “stretching the ratio,” and how do

you do it?O What sort of reinforcement schedule

would make behavior most persistent?O Why are reinforcement schedules

important?O What is the matching law?

What is a schedule of reinforcement?

O Schedule of reinforcement

O Continuous reinforcement (CRF)

4 Simple Intermittent Schedules of Reinforcement

Fixed Ratio (FR) Schedules

Variable Ratio (VR) Schedules

Fixed Interval (FI) Schedules

Variable Interval (VI) Schedules

Other Simple Schedules

O Fixed duration (FD) scheduleO Variable duration (VD) scheduleO Differential reinforcement of low rate

(DRL)O Differential reinforcement of high

rate (DHL)O Noncontingent reinforcement (NCR)

O Fixed time (FT) scheduleO Variable time (VT) schedule

Complex SchedulesO Multiple scheduleO Mixed scheduleO Chain scheduleO Tandem scheduleO Cooperative scheduleO Concurrent schedule

Extinction

Why are some behaviors more resistant to extinction?

O Partial reinforcement effect (PRE)

Why does the PRE exist?

O According to the discrimination hypothesis…

O According to the frustration hypothesis…

O According to the sequential hypothesis…

O According to the response unit hypothesis…

What is the matching law?