Operant conditioning chamber

The behavior I chose to attempt modify is my daily activity level. Behavior modification is defined in the textbook as "the systematic application of behavior principles to facilitate adaptive behavior". I chose this behavior because I wanted to increase my number of steps taken per day. This behavior is one I consider a good one to attempt to modify is because higher activity leads to weight management and better overall health. Better health is associated with more confidence, happiness, and…

Operant conditioning is a way of regulating behavior through rewards or punishment. American Psychologist B.F Skinner developed the concept of operant conditioning. The term operant was chosen to describe behavior of an organism (SITE). According to Skinner operant behavior occurs spontaneously and the consequences that follow that behavior determine if it will be repeated. E.L Thorndike, also a Psychologist was the first to develop the power of consequences with the law of effect. The law of…

Have you ever wondered how babies develop verbal skills? Or maybe why a problem child continues to do the same thing over and over? Or maybe why some children will only act out before a test? Well, B.F Skinner developed a theory that was able to answer these questions and many more. He challenged many of the norms of the educational systems of his day and was able to take the field of education and its theories and put them into a measurable and observable science. He is probably one of the…

I have worked with all types of behavioral students for the past 4 years on all different levels. Every student has required their own specialized behavior plan that would reinforce positive behaviors not the negative. It is challenging because what works for one particular student might not work for another. Teachers have to get creative when making these behavior plans to fit students individualized needs. The first step when creating a behavior plan for a special needs student is…

Summary: Of the countless theories covered in the first half of the course, I'm going to review (summarize) Albert Bandura's "Social Learning Theory." One key difference between Bandura's theory and other theories is a non-stage theory, and was an adaptation of Robert Sear's, "Social Learning theory". The origins of Bandura's theory are found in Behaviorism, exemplified in his famous "Bobo Doll" experiment. The Social Learning theory posits that learning comes predominately through one's own…

III. Experiment Results The in-class experiment took place using three different rats, and having all test subjects being exposed to four different situations. The first rat was used as the control subject, setting its outcomes from the experiments as the normal responses for a healthy individual rat. The first experiment was conducted to determine the normal metabolic rate for each rat. The control rat had a metabolic rate of 1465ml O2/kg/hr. This number will be compared to following numbers…

In this essay, I will be discussing the similarities and differences between conformity and obedience. We’ll discuss the developments of conformity and obedience over time as well as how the two can be completely different and still cross lined at the same time. I will also be analysing experiments designed to better understand conformity and obedience. There are different forms of conformity and obedience and people can react differently to both. In some situations, people like having a figure…

Walk into any bookstore or library and it is easy to find self-help books that promise to transform your life. Karen Pryor demonstrates in Don’t Shoot the Dog! that the principles of behavioral training are applicable in all walks of life and illustrates the value of utilizing these techniques in daily life, as these principles can be used to train your pet, your parents or yourself with equal success. In this book she presents several concepts including reinforcers, shaping, stimulus control,…

The story “The Pit and the Pendulum’ is one of Edgar Allen’s most famous stories. He has three adjectives that describe him really well and there is supporting evidence from the story that will confirm it. The three adjectives that describe the character in this story are brave, scared and smart because of his choices he makes in the story and how he reacts to the different situations. The first adjective that describes the character would be brave. Brave describe this character in the “The Pit…

Maggie believes that her main problem in the classroom is an issue of poor behavior on behalf of her students. She spends the majority of her time in the classroom rebuking the actions of different students who are not focused, noting that “the students seem[ed] to be even less cooperative when [she] most needed them to stay on task.” (p. 17) Her students are frequently milling about the room, and are seldom focused on the tasks she assigns to them. As a result of this, she fears taking them…