How Animals Learn- Part 2: Operant Conditioning

Posted on August 20, 2022.

“Behavior is determined by its consequences”-B.F. Skinner

Part 1 we talked about classical conditioning and how to use it to create a helpful training tool. There are other ways to use it, like desensitization, but we will have to save that topic for another day because we are going to jump to the second way of learning, through consequence. This is called operant conditioning and is really effective at shaping an animal’s behavior.

When their actions lead to rewarding consequences they will repeat them more often. An example might be your dog sitting in front of you and you reaching down to pet them. If your puppy loves interacting with you, they are likely to come and sit in front of you again. If instead the consequence is something your puppy dislikes, they will be less likely to do that behavior again.

Perhaps they jumped up on the countertop and slipped on a dish towel, spooking themselves. Your puppy may be less likely to jump up again, but there is always a fallout for unpleasant consequences. Remember learning by association (classical conditioning aka associative learning) is always happening, so in this example your puppy might not jump up on the countertop, but they may also become wary of going into the kitchen or develop concern with slippery surfaces as a result.

Some terms to know*:

Operant= a voluntary behavior which acts on and produces a change in the environment

Antecedent= the situation under which the behavior is produced

Behavior= the ‘operant’ that is performed on the environment

Consequence= the outcome of the behavior

Positive= adding something to the environment (attractive or approaching drive)

Negative= something being taken away from the environment (avoidance drives)

Reinforcement= the event which increases the frequency of the behavior it follows

Punishment= the event which decreases the frequency of the behavior it follows

See the Operant Conditioning Info Sheet for a visual explanation of the technical terms “positive reinforcement”, “negative reinforcement”, “positive punishment”, and “negative punishment”.

A simplified version would be that if an animal does something right, and you want to see more of it, then reward it to establish reinforcement for that behavior. If an animal does a behavior that is undesirable, and you want to decrease it, you should give no reaction to not reinforce it.

The classically conditioned tool, like a clicker/marker-word is incredibly helpful in communicating the exact moment of reinforcement. So, since any behavior reinforced is more likely to occur, this tool increases the efficiency of operant conditioning.

The reason you may not have heard about operant conditioning in its entirety is because it has been over simplified to help with general person understanding. Credentialed training professionals find it concerning to tell people positive punishment will decrease unwanted behaviors since it can be harmful short and long-term, proven less humane, and is against multiple veterinary association guidelines.

Certified animal/dog trainers, through reputable boards, are professionals that use Least Intrusive, Minimally Aversive methods (more about this later). Only after discussing the situation and working with a certified animal/dog trainer should you use positive punishment (aka aversive) due to the potential serious side effects.

Note: This is not talking about an interrupter (having to loudly or physically stop a dangerous and serious situation) that is not continued after the behavior has ended as a consequence. Extreme example: If there is a dog jumping on top of a person doing harm and you need to get them off of the victim as quickly and safely as possible, you likely used an aversive for an obviously appropriate reason and specific, one-time-only situation.

Note: Operant conditioning can also be referred to as instrumental conditioning.

If there are any parts of this that has peaked your interest and you want to know more. We are here to serve the community and educate, so we are taking suggestions on what you would like us to write about next. Just email [email protected]or fill out the contact form at the bottom of this page.

Check back for a new Info-Portal where we will use a real training example to solidify your understanding of classical and operant conditioning!

*References:

Animal Training by Ken Ramirez

Animal Training 101 by Jenifer A. Zeligs, PH.D.

Written by: Dr. Emily Hall, DVM, CCRT, CPAT-KA