Question

The final principle of effective conditioned reinforcement is that the conditioned reinforcer should be the only stimulus signaling the delay reduction to the backup reinforcer. If another stimulus already signals this, then the token, points, click-click, and so on will be _______________. The individual already knows the delay has been reduced. As a result, the stimulus we want to function as a conditioned reinforcer will not acquire this function.

Answer 1

Another stimulus signaling the reduction to the backup reinforcer makes a new potential conditioned reinforcer ineffective, because the expected outcome is already predicted by the existing stimulus, leading to extinction of the new conditioned response.

Step-by-step explanation:

If another stimulus is already signaling the delay reduction to the backup reinforcer, then the token, points, click-click, and so on will be ineffective. This happens because the individual is already aware that the delay for the desired outcome has been reduced, and the new stimulus we wish to serve as a conditioned reinforcer fails to acquire this function.

In other words, for a secondary reinforcer to be effective in operant conditioning, it must be the only cue that predicts the upcoming primary reinforcer. If another cue or stimulus already predicts this occurrence, then the new potential conditioned reinforcer may not capture the attention or influence the behavior of the animal or person. This effect is due to a competition of sorts between stimuli for associational strength.

In a scenario where the conditioned stimulus is presented without the unconditioned stimulus, such as in the example of Pavlov's dogs, the response to the conditioned stimulus (the bell) without receiving the unconditioned stimulus (food) will gradually diminish in a process called extinction. This weakening response to the conditioned stimulus over time when not paired with the unconditioned stimulus reflects one of the important aspects of classical conditioning.