Operant behavior

Operant behavior

Operant Behavior is the network of factors and events involved in the behavior of human and non-human animals. It is a psychological term derived from Operant Conditioning, developed by B.F. Skinner. The operant is the behavior that acts on the environment to produce a consequence. This consequence is known as a reinforcer, which is meted out by the environment in response to the operant. This response encourages the operant to repeat the behavior or causes it to cease the behavior.For example, if a child were to cry out at night when her parents put her to bed. The child's crying would be an operant behavior. When the parents attempted to soothe the child when it behaved as such, the parents' attention would be the reinforcer. If crying at night resulted in this immediate consequence (reinforcer), the child's crying(Operant) would be encouraged by the consequence(reinforcer): She would then be more likely to cry out at night in the future.Conversely, acting the same child with different parenting techniques, would result in a differing behavior. The child would cry out at night when her parents put her to sleep (operant behavior). The differing parenting techniques (change in the environment) would then dictate that the parents(environment) were to punish the child. This action would be reinforcer for the behavior, being quiet. This would then discourage the child(operant) to repeat the behavior.There is, however, a third option, this being that the parents do not respond at all, thus removing all reinforcers. Without reinforcers(parents) acting on the operant(child) the behavior is decided entirely by the child, and therefore completely random.


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  • operant behavior — see under conditioning …   Medical dictionary

  • Operant conditioning — is a form of psychological learning during which an individual modifies the occurrence and form of its own behavior due to the association of the behavior with a stimulus. Operant conditioning is distinguished from classical conditioning (also… …   Wikipedia

  • operant — In conditioning, any behavior or specific response chosen by the experimenter; its frequency is intended to increase or decrease by the judicious pairing with it of a reinforcer when it occurs. SYN: target behavior (1), target response. * * *… …   Medical dictionary

  • operant — I. adjective Date: 15th century 1. functioning or tending to produce effects ; effective < an operant conscience > 2. of or relating to the observable or measurable 3. of, relating to, or being an operant or operant conditioning < operant… …   New Collegiate Dictionary

  • Behavior modification — is the use of empirically demonstrated behavior change techniques to improve behavior, such as altering an individual s behaviors and reactions to stimuli through positive and negative reinforcement of adaptive behavior and/or the reduction of… …   Wikipedia

  • behavior therapy — or behavioral therapy n behavior modification * * * a therapeutic approach in which the focus is on the patient s observable behavior, rather than on conflicts and unconscious processes presumed to underlie his maladaptive behavior. This is… …   Medical dictionary

  • operant — (adj.) that works, early 15c., from L. operantem (nom. operans), prp. of operari to work (see OPERATION (Cf. operation)). Psychological sense of involving behavior modification coined 1937 by U.S. psychologist B.F. Skinner (e.g. operant… …   Etymology dictionary

  • operant conditioning — n conditioning in which the desired behavior or increasingly closer approximations to it are followed by a rewarding or reinforcing stimulus compare CLASSICAL CONDITIONING * * * instrumental c …   Medical dictionary

  • operant — [äp′ər ənt] adj. [< L operans, prp. of operari: see OPERATE] 1. operating, or producing an effect or effects 2. Psychol. a) designating behavior defined by the resulting stimulus rather than the stimulus which elicits it b) designating… …   English World dictionary

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