Final answer:
Behavior is maintained through reinforcements and punishments according to operant conditioning, with the law of effect suggesting that behaviors followed by satisfying consequences are likely to repeat. Animal behaviors are influenced by natural selection, while human behavior is additionally shaped by genetic and environmental factors, including various reinforcement schedules.
Step-by-step explanation:
The events that maintain a behavior, increasing or decreasing it, are known as reinforcements and punishments according to the principles of operant conditioning. The notion here is that behaviors are more likely to be repeated if they're followed by desirable consequences, a process that relates to the law of effect. Conversely, behaviors followed by undesirable consequences are less likely to occur, which can lead to extinction if the negative outcomes continue.
For instance, a child learning to put away toys may receive positive reinforcement through a bedtime story, enhancing the likelihood of the behavior repeating. In the wild, animal behaviors that foster survival and reproduction will increase an animal's fitness, and these behaviors are more likely to be passed on to future generations, demonstrating the effects of evolution by natural selection. In the human context, behaviors can also be influenced by our genetic predispositions and environmental interactions, which include conditioning by rewards and punishments within our social contexts.
Moreover, behaviors can be shaped through different schedules of reinforcement, such as continuous reinforcement or intermittent reinforcement, seen in human activities like gambling or consumer behaviors influenced by advertising. These principles collectively illustrate how human behavior can be learned, maintained, or extinguished through various forms of conditioning.