Other Schedules of Reinforcement and Punishment
Differential Schedules
Also called Differentiation or IRT schedules. Usually used with reinforcement
Used where the reinforcer depends BOTH on time and the number of reinforcers.
Provides an intervention for behavior problems associated with rate of response.
Can be very effective in producing or reducing behavior.
Interresponse Time ( IRT)
Is the time that occurs between two responses
IRT and rate of responding are functionally related Long IRT schedules produce low rates of
responding Short IRT schedules produce high rates
of responding
Differentiation Rate of High Responding (DRH)
Have to respond at a high rate within a certain amount of time.
Examples 1. Need to complete 25 math problems within 30 minutes
You work your tail off to get them done and receive recess for 15 minutes
2. Must sell 15 car in the next 10 days Work hard, get them sold and receive a $15,000 bonus
Is very effective - Get very high rates of responding.
Variations of DRH
Full Session DRH Provides reinforcement if the total
number of responses during the session meets or exceeds a number criterion across the entire session
Interval Session DRH Reinforcement is available only for
responses that over during short periods of time during the session. (Get additional bonuses during the 10 day session)
Issues
Cannot make the level to high If the organism does not respond
enough, it will receive less reward and ultimately decrease their response rate.
Sell 25 cars in 10 days
Responding looks like an FI schedule.
Work hard, get cars sold, then you take a break.
Differentiation Rate of Low Responding DRL
Sometimes referred to as Spaced-Responding DRH or Space-responding DRL
Is designed to create low levels of responding during a particular time period.
A period of time must elapse with few or responses of the undesired behavior. (Number of responses is defined by the schedule)
E.g., Don’t want a child to act out in class. Give the kid a reinforcer when acting out responses are low
during a particular time period.
Will give low rates of responding.
Variations
Full Session DRL Provides reinforcement if the total
number of responses during the entire session is at or below some level
Interval Session DRL Reinforcement is available only for lack
of responding during short intervals of time during the entire session
Attributes
Works well in applied settings. Schools Group homes Other
Differentiation Rates of Responding for Other Behaviors (DRO)
Provide reinforcement only in the absence of a response in a specified period of time
No acting out for the next hour and you get 15 minutes of recess.
Differential Reinforcement of Alternative Behavior (DRA)
Is similar to DRO Inappropriate behavior is replaced by
reinforcing alternative behaviorsDecreases inappropriate behavior
Differential Reinforcement of Incompatible Behavior (DRI)
Also similar to DRO Reinforce a behavior that is
incompatile with the targeted behavior Reduce out of seat behavior by
reinforcing in seat behavior
Points to Note for Differentiation Schedules
Cannot make the schedule to thin initially
If the organism cannot get reinforced, may not get the desired response May get alternative reinforcement for
others
Progressive Schedules of Reinforcement
Systematically thins each successive reinforcement opportunity independent of the participant’s behavior. ▪ Progressive Ratio Schedules of Reinforcement
(PR)▪ Progressive Interval Schedules of
Reinforcement (PI)
Systematically increase the ratio or interval requirements for reinforcement
Differential Reinforcement of Diminishing Rates
Similar to a DRL schedule
Get reinforced for the lack of responding over a period of time Reinforced for only 5 outbursts in 30
minutes Then reinforced for only 4 outbursts in
30 minutes Etc.
Compound Schedules of Reinforcement
Combine elements of continuous, intermittent, or differential reinforcement
Requires the participant to choose between two or more stimuli
Arranging two or more reinforcers for the participant to choose from contingent upon the occurrence of a target behavior.
The Matching Law
Rate of responding typically is proportional to the rate of reinforcement received from each choice alternative.
Subject Performance
Concurrent interval schedules – participants typically do not allocate all of their responses exclusively to the richer schedule.
Concurrent ratio schedules – participants are sensitive to the ratio schedules an tend to maximize reinforcement by responding primarily to the ratio that produces the higher rate of reinforcement.
Discriminative Schedules of Reinforcement
Presents two or more basic schedules of reinforcement in an alternating, usually random, sequence.
Basic schedules occur successively and independently.
A discriminative stimulus is correlated with each basic schedule and is present as long as the schedule is in effect
Non-discriminative Schedules of Reinforcement
Mixed Schedules (mix) Identical to multiple schedules, except
the mixed schedule has no discriminative stimuli correlated with the independent schedules
Example: mix FR 10 FI 1 schedule
Things to note
Need to monitor the behavior and develop a baseline
Implement the intervention based on some particular schedule
Monitor the outcome and determine if the behavior has changed. If not, examine the behavior
If the behavior changes, after the behavior is stable, change the schedule
Do not change until the behavior is stable
Conclusions
Lots of schedules Make sure you understand them Consider the schedule BEFORE you
begin planning your intervention When will you change it, how will you
thin it, etc.