Reforços e punições: o condicionamento operante

If we want to summarize, in a very simple way, what operant conditioning is, which can also be called instrumental conditioning, we can say that it is a form of learning in which a behavior is associated with its consequences. That is, before a stimulus there will be an answer, a behavior and this behavior will have a result, a consequence. It is these consequences that will dictate the frequency of such behavior in the future.

If the consequences are pleasant the behavior will be repeated, but if on the other hand the consequences are bad or unpleasant the behavior diminishes or disappears completely. Although operant conditioning is more associated with the American psychologist Skinner, it would be unfair not to refer to Thorndike's work. Through experimental research, Thorndike tried to understand whether we humans learn in the same way as other animals.

To study this, he created a problem box, which consisted of a crate cage, where he placed hungry cats. On the outside was placed food that cats could see and smell. To escape from the cage, cats had to learn how to open the door.

In a first phase the cats tried to leave the cage in anyway, but after several attempts and mistakes they would open the cage in an accidental way and receive the food as a reward. When they repeated the experiment with the same animals, they found that they took less and less time to open the cage, until there was a time when they immediately reached the mechanism and were able to open the grids and receive the food. These animals were able to solve the problem and learned through trial and error.

Thorndike then created, the Law of Effect where he stated that an answer or a behavior will be strengthened if it is rewarded, but if there is no reward or there is even a punishment it will be weakened. And it is exactly this Law of Effect that serves as the starting point for Skinner's operative conditioning. In his most famous research, Skinner's box, mice were used.

The animals were placed in a box containing a lever. When the mice pulled the lever, food was released. Initially the mice touched the lever by chance, but upon receiving the food they began to repeat this behavior.

The food was then a booster that encouraged learning. Reinforcement is one of the most important concepts in operant conditioning theory. Skinner described positive reinforcements as favorable situations or pleasing results that occur soon after a behavior that sustain or strengthen it.

In the case of rats, the food was a positive reinforcement. Getting a compliment from someone who has just tasted something you have cooked is also a positive reinforcement if you have strengthened your desire to cook again. On the other hand, negative reinforcements mean the elimination of a situation or a stimulus that puts an end to an aversive or uncomfortable situation.

Like positive reinforcement, it occurs soon after the behavior and serves to maintain or strengthen it. For example, if your child pretends to be sick not to put away the toys and you let him go to bed without tidying them up, this will reinforce this behavior, since pretending to be sick has freed him from an unpleasant situation, that is to put the toys in the right place. If a teacher promises is students that if they don't miss class for a week they do not have to answer development questions in the next test, this will also be a negative reinforcement.

A final example is the reduction of a prison sentence for good behavior. Skinner also used the term punishment. Punishments are unpleasant or adverse outcomes that occur soon after a certain behavior or response.

Unlike reinforcements, punishments serve to diminish the occurrence of these behaviors or responses. Punishments can be positive when unpleasant consequences occur soon after the behavior. For example, when you punish your son because he cursed, having him clean the dishes.

Or they may be negative when a pleasant event is removed shortly after the behavior. For example, if your child had an F in a school test, he won't be allowed to play videogames for a week. While its certain that punishments or sanctions lessen unwanted behaviors, it is also true that they are not the most effective form of learning, especially in the training of human beings.

And Skinner warned against the undesirable effects of punishments: in the previous example, if you punished your son for having said a curse, he may not say it again in front of you, but it is important to see if he continues to say it in other contexts and in the presence of other people. Because punishments show what not to do, but do not guide people into desirable behaviors. It is important to have the notion that we can reformulate punishment in a more positive and effective way: instead of punishing a child for having an F in a test, one can reinforce study behavior by promising something that she likes, when she achieves an A.