Classical and Operant Conditioning - Research Paper Example

ical and operant conditioning ical and operant conditioning are some of the most important concepts in the field of behavioral psychology.They have been invariably used in the practice of psychology and have played a major role in the development of this field. Classical conditioning was first described by a Russian physiologist Ivan Pavlov and operant conditioning was first described by an American psychologist B. F. Skinner (Cherry, 2013). Although both processes promote learning in an individual, they are inherently different from each other. Classical conditioning is a process in which an association is developed between a stimulus that exists naturally and another stimulus that is previously neutral. This can be explained with the help of an example of fish in an aquarium. When the pump of the aquarium is turned off, fish swim to the surface in search of food. Turning off of the pump is a naturally occurring stimulus. If somebody also turns the light of the aquarium off every time he turns off the pump, this would create an association between the two activities in the mind of the fish. Eventually, turning the light of the aquarium off alone, which in this case is the conditioned stimulus, without turning the pump off, would evoke the response of swimming to the surface in search of food in the fish. Operant conditioning, on the other hand, makes use of punishment and reinforcement to develop links between different behaviors and their consequences. For instance, let’s suppose a parent that scolds his child every time the child misbehaves with another child. As a result, the child develops an association between the behavior of misbehaving with another child and its consequence of getting scolded by the parent. This link deters the child from executing the problematic behavior of misbehaving with other children. Likewise, when a child gets a good grade, and his parent buy him new gadgets as a gift and a mark of their appreciation, the child develops an association between getting a good grade and its consequence of getting a new gadget from the parents. This link encourages the child to achieve good grade. The positive and negative in operant conditioning is not translated as good and bad; positive and negative in operant conditioning means addition or removal of the stimulus respectively. The main difference between classical and operant conditioning is that classical conditioning includes a neutral stimulus which triggers a response naturally and automatically whereas operant conditioning uses punishment or reinforcement. While the classical conditioning places emphasis on behaviors that are automatic and involuntary, operant conditioning focuses on weakening or strengthening of behaviors that are voluntary. The behavior modification techniques of classical and operant conditioning are frequently used in understanding behavioral psychology and delivering behavioral counseling and therapy. Positive and negative attributes of classical and operant conditioning The positive attribute of classical conditioning is that it does not require the trainer to provide the learner with rewards or incentives like the operant conditioning requires. The negative attribute of classical conditioning is that the response does not last for a long time if the provision of conditioned stimulus with the naturally occurring stimulus is stopped. The positive attribute of operant conditioning is that it provides people with effective ways of training others in ways that would make them more civilized and useful. Operant conditioning provides a two-way approach wherein not only good behaviors can be reinforced but also bad behaviors can be suppressed. Furthermore, the operant conditioning does not require a behavior to be reinforced every time the behavior is shown. The most successful way of accomplishing the conditioning is by doing it according to a specific schedule. Variable interval and variable ratio are the most successful schedules. “Variable interval and ratio schedules are the same as those used in gambling, which in terms of operant conditioning, is why many people find it so addictive” (Renata, 2013). The negative attribute of operant conditioning are mainly related to negative reinforcement. When punishment is used as a negative reinforcement in operant conditioning, it merely suppresses the behavior rather than eliminating it completely. It is also not effective unless punishment is given immediately after the objectionable behavior is displayed. In addition to that, the subject has a tendency to start fearing the punisher since punishment gets associated with the giver of negative reinforcement. “Although there may be some justification for occasional punishment …it usually leads to negative effect” (Ahmad, 2007, p. 6). Use of classical and operant conditioning in modern psychology Both modalities are utilized today to deal with the issues of behavioral psychology in a variety of settings including homes, schools, hospitals, and workplaces by the parents, teachers, psychologists, and employers respectively. Classical and operant conditioning are equally useful and effective when applied on humans and animals. These modalities are also frequently used in animal training. Trainers use classical conditioning in different ways e.g. pairing a clicker’s sound repeatedly with a food’s taste. Eventually, the clicker’s sound alone makes the animal produce the same response that is otherwise produced by the food’s taste. Similarly, teachers in a classroom setting use operant conditioning by reward the students for their good behavior with offering them tokens. Students can use the tokens to get rewards of their choice like getting extra time for play or treat. Classical conditioning is successfully applied to handle a vast range of psychological problems like phobias by means of systematic desensitization. The person who has the phobia learns the techniques of relaxation in a series of sessions that are followed by gradual exposure of the person to the object that is feared. For instance, an individual who fears spiders is taught the techniques of relaxation that are used for their treatment. The psychologist achieves this by showing the person a photo of a spider and allows the patient some time in which he can practice the techniques of relaxation to control the phobia for spiders. In the successive sessions, the psychologist shows the person more photos as well as models of spiders. Over the passage of time, with sustained practice, the person achieves control over the fear of the real spiders. Aversion therapy is another way in which psychologists use classical conditioning to eliminate an unwanted behavior in an individual e.g. nail biting. This can be achieved by making the individual experience an unpleasant event as he/she displays the unwanted behavior like getting to taste an unpleasant substance painted on the nails as they are bitten. The revolting substance is tasted every time the nails are bitten. “In theory, this repeated association between the unwanted behaviour and the unpleasant-tasting substance changes a person’s behavior” (oup.com.au, n.d., p. 99). The management of motivation in the contemporary organization almost invariably involves the use of operant conditioning. For example, when a worker violates a rule of safety at the construction site by not wearing helmet or safety shoes, he is issued a red card. This red card might mean a deduction from the salary by a certain percentage or a warning. This is used by the construction managers as a way to deter the workers from displaying unsafe behaviors at the construction site. Similarly, when a customer services agent receives more than a certain number of positive reviews from the customers, he gets his salary increased in the performance appraisal process. This is how organizations use operant conditioning to encourage the customer services agents to be respectful toward the customers at all times and project a positive image of the culture of the organization in the society. References: Ahmad, A. (2007). Operant Conditioning. Retrieved from http://fac.hsu.edu/ahmada/3%20Courses/1%20General%20Psychology/1%20GenNotes/Module%2022.pdf. Cherry, K. (2013). Classical vs Operant Conditioning. Retrieved from http://psychology.about.com/od/behavioralpsychology/a/classical-vs-operant-conditioning.htm. oup.com.au. (n.d.). Four modern approaches to psychology. Retrieved from http://www.oup.com.au/__data/assets/pdf_file/0006/248730/EDW_PSYCH_1_and_2SB_C05.pdf. Renata, R. (2013). The Advantages of Operant Conditioning. Retrieved from http://www.ehow.com/info_8122477_advantages-operant-conditioning.html. Read More