Dan and Marina Skinner Assignment Ch. 6
Marina Guigli
Another name for the method of approximations is "shaping". It
involves reinforcing a behavior and then looking for variations
2) What does Skinner mean by “differential reinforcement”?
Differential reinforcement is the contingency which improves skill.
Differential reinforcement is used for special properties such as
throwing a ball, push or pulling something or jumping up and down.
Differential reinforcement can be described by certain actions you do
to make another action happen. Each action is reinforced for the
different factors.
3) What is “intermittent reinforcement”?
Intermittent reinforcement is when one is reinforced after either
every action or through a certain ratio of actions. Intermittent
reinforcement is resistant to extinction because of the constant
reinforcement. Intermittent reinforcement also has a “chance” aspect
to it because you can never be certain of a response especially when
people are involved (calling a friend: you can never be sure you will
be reinforced by them answering the phone). Behavior is also an
important aspect to intermittent reinforcement because the type or
amount of reinforcement can change depending on one’s behavior.
4) Which reinforcement schedule is used in gambling casinos?
Variable ratio reinforcement is used because casinos are designed to
pay off on a schedule. The systems are randomized so the reinforcement
is very unpredictable. Casinos usually use a schedule where
reinforcement occurs over several hundreds of uses.