Question

Using principles of operant conditioning, identify which consequence is at work.

Josefina wasn't a coffee drinker before college. Once the homework assignments started rolling in, she started drinking coffee and found that she could stay up late and get all her work done. Ten years later she drinks several cups of coffee per day.

Answer 1

Operant conditioning (sometimes called instrumental conditioning) is a method of learning that occurs through rewards and punishments for behavior. Through operant conditioning, an association is made between a behavior and a consequence for that behavior.

But operant conditioning is not just something that happens in experimental environments when training laboratory animals; It also plays a powerful role in everyday learning. Reinforcement and punishment happen almost every day in natural environments, as well as in more structured environments, such as the classroom or therapy sessions.