Chapter 11 “Aversion, Avoidance, Anxiety” - Maica and Owen
owen peters
A stimulus is defined as aversive if its removal is reinforcing, for
example an extremely bright light is aversive because the removal of
it is beneficial to vision and one is therefore going to continue to
remove the bright light whenever it occurs. Painful stimuli are often
aversive, but not necessarily so. Aversive stimuli can also have no
physical properties, but have acquired their aversive power in the
process of conditioning. This is made easier because aversive stimulus
also tends to prompt an immediate response, making this response
condition-able as addressed later.
2. What is a problem with the use of aversive stimuli?
It is difficult to observe the effect of the aversive stimuli alone
because aversive stimuli often elicit reflexes and generate emotional
predispositions that can interfere with the operant to be
strengthened.
3. Why are aversive stimuli often used both inside and outside the
lab?
Often used because of the immediacy of the result. When an aversive
stimulus is presented any behavior that has previously been
conditioned by the withdrawal of the stimulus immediately follows, and
the possibility of conditioning other behavior is immediately
provided. By presenting an aversive stimulus, we create the
possibility of reinforcing a response by withdrawing the stimulus.
This is used inside the lab because it becomes very clear which
aversive stimulus causes a certain reaction. Because of this,
reactions to aversive stimulus, like giving someone your money when
they are holding a gun to you, are very predictable and happen
quickly.
4. Is negative reinforcement the same thing as punishment?
No. Reinforcement makes a behavior more probable, while punishment
makes a behavior less probable. Negative reinforcement works by
teaching a behavior that removes something bad. Punishment may either
add something bad (positive) or remove something good (negative).
5. How do people use negative reinforcement? (2 ways)
• Reduction of a conditioned aversive stimulus. Used to stop smoking
or drinking by pairing the taste of tobacco or alcohol with nausea
(and maybe vomiting). This feeling is then transferred to the tobacco
or alcohol itself making people want to smoke or drink less.
• An aversive stimulus that has already been withdrawn to reinforce a
desired operant offers an immediate mode of control. Arms are twisted
until a gun is dropped. A horse is whipped until it moves fast enough.
6. How do the effects compare between withdrawing a positive
reinforcer to the presentation of a negative?
By definition they have the same effect. Taking away privileges
(removing a positive reinforcer) is very similar to establishing an
aversive condition (adding a negative reinforcer).
7. How does “avoidance” differ from “escape?”
Avoidance implies a lapse in time between the aversive stimuli and the
conditioned response. Escape implies that the aversive stimuli begins
and then the conditioned response is seen. Avoidance is the attempt
not to experience the aversive stimuli at all achieved through the
recognition of conditioned stimuli that create future aversive stimuli
and the action upon these conditioned stimuli to prevent future
aversive stimuli.
8. What is a “conditioned negative reinforcer” and what role does it
play in avoidance?
A conditioned negative reinforcer is any stimuli that is directly
associated with the future appearance of aversive stimuli. For
example, the visual pattern of rapidly approaching objects is a
conditioned negative reinforcer for pain because previous episodes of
rapidly approaching objects have resulted in pain. Therefore any
action in response to this conditioned negative reinforcer, like
dodging, is reinforced through operant conditioning because when the
subject has dodged, the aversive stimulus was avoided. The negative
reinforcer tends to weaken over time as it is not experienced because
of avoidance and eventually the threat of injury disappears. When this
happens it is not avoided and immediately after becomes a negative
reinforcer because it is again directly associated with aversive
stimuli.
9. In Skinner’s terms, what causes anxiety?
Anxiety occurs when a benign stimulus characteristically precedes an
aversive stimulus by an interval of time sufficiently great to permit
behavioral changes to be observed. Thus the future occurrence of such
benign stimuli, which could be completely unrelated to what it
supposedly causes, triggers an expectation for that aversive stimuli
because it has become a positive reinforcer.
10. What happens when a stimulus is preceded a positive reinforcement
at an appreciable interval?
A counterpart of anxiety occurs when a stimulus is preceded a positive
reinforcement at an appreciable interval. In this case responses
characteristic of elation or joy ay be observed instead of common
anxiety responses of grief, sorrow, and fear.