Reinforcement Schedules Explained
Continuous reinforcement is when an action is repeated repeatedly. (Skinner (2018) A continuous reinforcement schedule would be, for example, when a pigeon presses on a button to receive food each time. When a behavior is only reinforced after a certain amount of responses, it’s called a fixed ratio schedule. If a pigeon gets food 5 times per peck, then the reinforcement schedule will be fixed. When a behavior gets reinforced after receiving a variety of responses, it is called a variable ratio schedule. If a pigeon gets food for 5 pecks on the button, but it needs reinforcement more often, then the reinforcement ratio is variable. This reinforcement program can increase frequency of desired behaviors by providing reinforcement once the behavior has been displayed. They have been studied extensively in psychology. Their effectiveness in shaping behavior has been proven (Skinner 2018). Cont…
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