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 - By Zachary Helth In Psychology, operant conditioning is a form of learning that takes place when paired with an appetitive or aversive stimulus. Unlike Classical Conditioning which is learning through association, Operant Conditioning is learning through consequence. Operant Conditioning is an invaluable tool that can be used to shape valuable behaviors and extinguish undesirable behaviors and this is achieved through reinforcement and punishment.  In regards to education, Operant Conditioning plays a pivotal role in both academic and developmental outcomes. For education, educators use Operant Conditioning on children at a very young age to culture curiosity, initiative, and industry. This is important not only from an educational standpoint, but from a developmental standpoint too because of the development of identity. According to Erickson's Theory Of Psychosocial Development, personality develops in stages throughout ones lifespan. For example, infants before they reac...

Would You Want a Teacher Giving Your Child a Time-Out? By: Olivia Wood Many parents and guardians think of time-out at school as something akin to sitting in the corner with a dunce cap. A time-out in front of the class can feel like a form of public shaming, especially in regards to our own children. However, when used correctly, this intervention can have a positive impact on behavior. A time-out, in psychology terms, is a form of negative punishment. This term may sound like an extreme form of discipline, but it really means that something is being taken away after an individual has an undesired response to lessen that response in the future. Time-outs specifically remove children from positive reinforcers–desired events and items–after they exhibit a problematic behavior to discourage future occurrences of that behavior (Honey, Symbaluk, & Powell, 2016) . Of course, like any behavioral intervention, time-outs must be used correctly . This form of behavior management is most eff...

Counterconditioning at Home: What You Can Do to Change Your Reactions By: Olivia Wood We all wish we could change something about ourselves, and sometimes it really is possible. If you find that you really can’t stand to be around dogs or are uneasy in the dark, you have the ability to combat those issues by yourself. The process of counterconditioning can be pretty simple and, if done correctly, just might get you the results you desire. Many people successfully follow counterconditioning principles at home to train their dogs (Gibeault, 2024). Counterconditioning is a procedure that involves intentionally associating a conditioned stimulus that elicits a certain response with a different, incompatible response. Using this reciprocal inhibition, therapists help clients change their (usually negative) emotional response to something–like a dog or darkness–to a new (usually more positive) emotional response. Typically, we see this type of procedure used for treating phobias (Honey, Symb...

What is Adjunctive Behavior? Why You Might Care By Olivia Wood Have you ever noticed yourself drinking excessively from your water bottle or picking your nails? In many instances, these behaviors can be described as adjunctive. Adjunctive behaviors are ones that arise when one finds themself in-between reinforcements during an intermittent reinforcement schedule (Honey, Symbaluk, & Powell, 2016). In other words, they are the things we do when we are waiting for something to happen to us . These behaviors are often found to be done excessively during these periods of time. Adjunctive behavior is not a phenomenon often researched in humans, though some believe it could be an important topic to explore regarding applied behavior analysis (ABA). If you or someone you know has been enrolled in ABA therapy, you might have heard about these types of behaviors or read about them in informational packets or on a website. Some instances of stereotypy –or stimming– when individuals engage in ...

        Positive reinforcement, a cornerstone of operant conditioning, involves adding a desirable stimulus following a behavior to increase the likelihood that the behavior will occur again. This foundational principle of learning psychology shapes behavior across contexts, from classrooms to family dynamics, where praise, tangible rewards, and recognition guide and sustain desirable actions. Participation trophies, at their core, attempt to operationalize positive reinforcement on a broad community scale by rewarding the act of participation itself.   The effectiveness of participation trophies, and the controversy surrounding them, cannot be understood without examining what learning psychology reveals about reinforcement, motivation, contingency, and developmental readiness.      The debate surrounding participation trophies centers on whether awarding children simply for showing up promotes engagement and confidence or fosters entitlem...

     In the preface to our Psychology of Learning text, the author shares how a student once objected that she “wouldn’t do this” to her budgie, seeing reinforcement as manipulative or cruel. The author notes that reinforcement is not something we impose, but something that happens whether we intend it or not. Reading this made me reflect on my own life with animals, realizing how deeply learning psychology has always been present in the relationships we build with them, whether we are aware of it or not.      Last month, just before this course began, I was in the kitchen playfully poking one of my cats who rarely plays with me, preferring a different human in our household. He ignored my overtures as usual, and, as I always do when playing with my cats, I made my habitual “popping” noise with my mouth. Almost immediately, Catticus Maximus, Gladiator, the cat who typically plays with me, came running into the room. At the time, I thought he looked annoyed...