What we would like you to do is to continue applying what we are learning in class to real world matters. Some might ask, "What good is learning psychology if we can't apply it to real world matters?" So that is what we are going to do with this week's topical blog assignment.
What we would like you to do is to either go to NPR (http://www.npr.org/ ), the BBC (http://www.bbc.co.uk/ ) there are some good news source links at the bottom of the following page (http://www.huffingtonpost.com/ listed in their news sources) and read, watch, or listen to something that is interesting to you and relates to reinforcement.
For your news I would like you to 1) briefly describe/summarize your piece, 2) tell us what behavior (target behavior) you are using that illustrates reinforcement, 3) tell us what the consequence of the behavior is, 4) tell us how, that consequence will increase the frequency of the behavior, 5) tell us if the consequence involves the addition of something desirable or if it involves the removal of something undesirable, finally 6) tell us to the antecedent is.
Please then list the ABC's of the behavior
A=
B=
C=
Now state if this is an example of positive reinforcement, or negative reinforcement. Explain why.
Tell us if it involves extinction, establishing operations, use as many terms from the chapters we have already covered as you can.
“Somalia: Government charges woman who says she was raped by Security Forces.”
1) In this article a Somalian woman has accused security forces of raping her. The government has turned around and arrested on on the pretense that she has made a false claim. She has been charged with inducing false evidence and insulting the government body. As a result she may face 3-6 years in prison.
2) The target behavior that illustrates reinforcement is a woman speak out against the government in the male dominated society of Somalia.
3) The consequence of the behavior is a woman being charged and put on trial for making false accusations against the government.
4) The consequence of being charged will increase the amount of women who do not speak up against the government, though they rightfully deserve to.
5) The consequence is the removal of something desirable - a voice and freedom.
6) The antecedent is women living in a male dominated society.
A= Women living in a male dominated society
B= Women speaking up and against their treatment
C= Women charged and locked up
This is a form of negative reinforcement because something is being taken away from the women-their rights and freedoms. Thus women are reinforced that to keep any sort of freedom they must not speak up and must sit back in a male dominated society otherwise an aversive consequence will ensue.
This example could act as an establishing operation to reinforce the Somalian society that women have no rights in the male dominated society. The reinforcer, women losing their freedom- is more reinforcing when what little freedoms they have are personally abused and then nationally abused. The government deprives women of their verbal rights; a woman is sexually abused; the woman is then accused of lying. As a consequence she is sent to prison, establishing the importance that women are meaningless in Somalian society. This is clearly a form of punishment too. The woman is presented with an aversive consequence for her behavior.
TERMS: reinforcement, consequence, desirable, antecedent, negative reinforcement, reinforced, aversive, establishing operation, reinforcer, deprive, punishment
http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2013/01/31/somalia-rape-victim-charged_n_2588519.html
1)This aricle is about how the Russian government is violating human rights and making it the worst human rights violations since the Soveit Union in 1991. Vladamir Putin has cracked down on political freedoms and began harrassment of any opposition of critics and activists. The Russian ministry is attacking the US and other countries saying that they should look at themselves when it comes to human rights instead of looking at others first.
2)The target behavior that illustrates reinforcement is Vladamir Putin passing bills that exreamly restrict human activism and anyone one who critizes the Russian government.
3)The consequence of this behavior is that the citizens of Russia are protesting and media from other countries are scrutinizing the Russian government.
4)If these consequences of the behavior continue then the Russian government will reverse the bills passed giving the citizens more freedom.
5)The consequence is the removal of something desirable, political freedom
6)The anteceedent is Vladamir Putin being elected as president again.
A= Vladimir Putin is elected president
B= Passes bills constricting citezens political freedoms
C= Citezens protest and other governments scrutinize Russian government
This is an example of negative reinforcement because the bills being passed and being taken in a negative way and people and acting out against it. This is going to discourage the passing of bills restricting political freedom and reduce that behavior from happening again.
This could be an example of establishing operation to reinforce that the people of Russia do not want to go back to the same soceity as the Soviet Union. The people of Russia were happy and content till bills were passed to restrict their political freedom. This elicited a response from citezens and they emmitted a response behavior of protesting and arguing against the current government. The adversive behavior of taking away political rights emitted a behavior of the populace to try and punish Putin's behavior by taking away the pleasurable behavior of civilian cooperation and peace. By doing this, the civilians are hoping to elicit a desirable behavior from Putin by him giving back political and civil rights.
Terms: establishing operations, reinforce, elicited, response, emitted, behavior, adversive, punish, pleasurable, desirbale,target behavior, consequence, anteceedent, negative reinforcement.
1. In Oakland California painted gnomes began to show up on utility poles. These gnomes are all handpainted onto wooden boards and screwed into the utility poles at night so that the creator of these gnomes remains anonymous. At first leaders of the city and utility companies had promised to get rid of what these paintings right away but support rappidly grew for them to leave them there. The whole community became excited about these gnomes and took great pride in how they represented there town. As a result more began to show up all around the city and many people get very excited to follow the slight differences made in each and how they encompass what the community is all about.
2. The emitted target behavior illustrates reinforcement is posting the gnome paintings.
3. The consequence of this behavior is the support and excitement of the community.
4. This consequence increased the frequency of the target behavior. The additional support and great excitement of the community posed as a reinforcer that led the creator of these gnomes to make and post more around the city.
5. This consequence involves the addition of something desirable because the community adds praise and support which the artists views as desirable.
6. The antecedent is the city of Oakland California.
A- The antecendant is the city of Oakland California.
B- The behvaior is hanging gnome paintings of utility poles.
C- The consequence is public support and excitement.
This is an example of positive reinforcement. Positive reinforcement means that something desirable is added which increases the frequency of a behavior occuring. In this situation the emitted behavior of posting gnome paintings on utility poles is increased in frequency, shown by the greater number of paintings that continue to show up around the community, due to the desirable additiong of the community being supportive and getting excited about the paintings.
This situation does not provide an example for extinction. When the city leaders and utility companies at first responded in opposition to these paintings this could be viewed to serve as an establishing operation. The deprivation of support from the first responses could be seen to make those reinforcers from the community that much more pleasurable to the artists and allowed for the reinforcers to be more reinforcing.
Terms used: target behavior, emmit, consequence, reinforcer, positive reinforcement, establishing operation, deprivation, pleasurable, antecedent
The article describes the possibility of enforcing a three day weekend instead of a two day. This would include having Friday, Saturday, and Sunday off. Throughout the article pros and cons are weighted about the idea including the health of employees, the reduction in carbon footprints, and productivity. The target behavior that illustrates reinforcement in this article is increasing work productivity. The consequence of the behavior is not working on Friday. The consequence will increase the frequency of the behavior of the workers only if not working on Fridays is desirable to them. This type of consequence involves the removal of something undesirable which is working on Fridays. The antecedent is the work place.
Please then list the ABC's of the behavior
A= antecedent= work place
B= behavior= increased work productivity
C= consequence= no work on Fridays
This is an example of negative reinforcement because the consequence of the emitted behavior is the removal of something undesirable which is removing work on Fridays.
This reinforcement did not involve extinction because people increased their work productivity and continued to receive Fridays off. If the workers are not productive within the week, they may receive positive punishment in which they would have to work on Friday. Working on Friday would be aversive to them which will then decrease their behavior of being unproductive. To help reinforce the workers, the company may use establishing operation. To do this, the company may schedule aversive activities that would be held on Friday if the behavior is not emitted. Such activities could include long meetings or work productivity classes and information.
http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/magazine-21242782
Terms: antecedent, behavior, consequence, reinforcement, punishment, aversive, desirable, establishing operations, emitted, extinction, positive punishment, negative reinforcement, frequency, target behavior, removal
“Wacky Super Bowl Ads Are Already Getting Serious Play” was about how the social media of today has allowed super bowl commercials to already be shown. Many ad companies are jumping onto the band wagon and allowing their commercial to be shown early on you tube and other various websites.
1)The target behavior that illustrates reinforcement is companies advertising product during the super bowl.
2)The consequence of the behavior is that companies will gain a profit by having their commercials shown.
3)If the company makes more money after showing their product in the Super Bowl this year, then they are more likely to emit the same behavior next year.
4)The consequence involves the addition of something desirable because the company will be making money from the commercials by having people go out and buy the advertised product.
A=Super Bowl
B=Showing commercial
C=People go out and buy that product.
This new article is an example of positive reinforcement. A company showing their commercials during the super bowl to have people go out buy their product is a procedure that will likely increase the frequency of their behavior in the future. It involves the addition of money to the company therefore making the reinforcement desirable. The commercials elicited a buying response from viewers at home because they were shown during the super bowl when there are close to 100 million viewers. The super bowl served as a discriminate stimulus because it set the stage for the commercials to be shown at an opportune time. Advertisement companies to avoid satiation with from viewer will typically only show their commercial once or twice so as not to disrupt the effectiveness of them. Extinction does not occur in this instance because there will always be commercials on television reinforcing us to buy things.
Terms: Positive Reinforcement, reinforcing, procedure, desirable, elicited, discriminate stimulus, satiation, extinction.
http://www.npr.org/blogs/thetwo-way/2013/01/31/170761704/wacky-super-bowl-ads-are-already-getting-serious-play
Washington Inmates Rescue 3 Boys From Drowning In Raging Creek
http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2013/01/31/washington-inmates-rescue_n_2593554.html
The video I watched was about 3 inmates who saved 3 boys from drowning in a river. The three boys were canoeing in the Salmon Creek River in southwest Washington, when the three inmates were working nearby, heard screams, and responded by diving into the water to save the boys. The target behavior was rescuing the boys. The consequence was saving the boys lives, getting recognition and a news report, and knowing they did the right thing. The consequence will increase the frequency of the behavior because they knew they did the right thing and people recognized this- including the news cast that covered their story, which is positive reinforcement. The consequence results in the addition of something desirable- satisfaction with themselves knowing they saved the three boys’ lives, positive feedback from both the father of the sons and the newspeople, and the appreciation from the boys whose lives were saved. It also involves the removal of something bad- the boys drowning. They were removed from the dangerous situation and saved by the three men. The antecedent is hearing screams from the boys.
The ABC’s
A= The 3 men hearing the boys’ screams from the water
B= Diving into the river
C= Rescues the boys and brings them to safety
This video is an example of positive reinforcement and negative reinforcement. It is a positive reinforcement because the three men were praised and thanked by the father and the boys themselves for saving their lives. The newscast commented that their actions were heroic and reported the story, proving that they also agreed it was a very good thing to do. This video is also an example of negative reinforcement because it involved the removal of something bad. By saving the boys- the men avoided the chance of danger and the boys dying by diving into the water and saving their lives. One establishing behavior could be that they were the only people around to save the three boys, so they felt obligated to do something about the situation. This reinforced the chance of saving the boys from drowning.
Terms used: Response, target behavior, consequence, desirable, positive reinforcement, reinforcement negative reinforcement, antecedent, behavior, establishing operation, reinforced
ECS
1. The article that I found was discussing the issue of free contraceptives. Under the Affordable Healthcare Act, contraceptives must be of no cost to women but this violates the beliefs of some religious organizations. To compromise for those organizations that are non-profit religious establishments the government will “Provide their enrollees separate contraceptive coverage, and with no co-pays, but at no cost to the religious organization”, according to the Department of Health and Human Services fact sheet. This new proposal is only extended to non-profit religious organizations. There have been many lawsuits against this plan from for profit private organizations. They make the argument that by forcing them to offer the free contraceptive is against their personal beliefs and against their freedom of religion. Many people don’t believe putting religious freedom negotiations on the table is the best thing. The proposal will be up for pubic discussion for 60 days and the US Conference of Catholic Bishops is expected to give a statement in the near future on the matter.
2. The target behavior is emitting the public to pass the no co-pay policy for contraceptives while taking into consideration religious beliefs.
3. The consequence of the behavior is religious controversy. To pass this policy the government has to have more public support and support its citizens given rights. Although they are accommodating for businesses that are religious, it doesn’t take into account those that are private for-profit organizations that could have strong religious beliefs. It is getting more and more difficult to draw the line. One controversy that has come up is that although an employer may have a strong religious belief and not want to cover contraception, what is to say the employees have the same beliefs? The employees could want the option of free contraception, but not allowed to receive it because of their employer.
4. The consequences of the behavior will continue to spark a debate among the public about no cost contraceptives. The constant debate will fuel people’s arguments. Halting the process to pass the plan will increase the public debate on the issue.
5. The consequence is the addition of something desirable. As a basic right we are allowed the freedom of speech. The consequence from this specific behavior will increase the public debate on the topic will eventually lead to something desirable for the public, which ever way the majority decides to go.
6. The antecedent to the behavior is the Obama’s new healthcare plan offers contraceptives to women at no cost to them. Sparking the whole controversy.
A: Allowing contraceptives to be available at no cost to women.
B. Arguments of religious controversy of the new plan.
C: Halting the process of passing the new policy.
This behavior is positively reinforced. The continued debates will lead to people getting their way. If a company doesn’t want to give contraceptives to their employees and clients for free the government will come up with a way for them to have access through a different provider. Making all parties happy with the compromise eventually. The public has been positively reinforced in the past on different situations, which will lead them to use past experiences as a reinforcer.
This specific behavior has not seen extinction yet, but it is establishing operation. The government is increasing the desirable qualities of the proposal to extend to more people, therefore increase the likelihood it will be passed in the near future.
Terms: target behavior, emitting, consequences, desirable, antecedent, behavior, positively reinforced, reinforcer, extinction, establishing operation
http://www.npr.org/blogs/health/2013/02/01/170879541/white-house-tries-again-to-find-compromise-on-contraception
For this assignment I read an article on Malala Yousafzai,a 15 year old Pakistani who was shot in the head in October after emitting the behavior of campaigning for girls right to education. The article discussed a recent surgery she has undergone and how she is recovering from her initial injuries. The target behavior that I am using that illustrates reinforcement is Malala’s act of campaigning for girls right to an education. In this case the consequence of Malala’s behavior was that of ridicule which let to her attack. In many cases where ridicule leads to the decrease of a behavior, the ridicule in this story has lead to an increase of behavior and people speaking out in the support of Malala and the support of education for young girls in Pakistan. For Malala, the consequence of being attacked added something undesirable and took away a desirable thing from Malala, and will most likely change her response in future situations. In this story, the antecedent is the lack of education for girls in Pakistan.
ABC’s of the Behavior
A= Lack of education for girls in Pakistan
B= Campaigning for the right of education for young girls
C= Ridicule for speaking out for the rights to young girls and education
This story is a example of negative reinforcement because of the consequences of being attacked that Malala experienced after her behavior of speaking out for girls education.
Terms: emit, response, reinforcement, negative reinforcement, antecedent, consequence, behavior, target behavior
http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-england-birmingham-21313821
1) The article I chose for this project is one of interest to the football fans out there. In dedication to the Super Bowl, I decided to write concerning an applicable topic. From NPR news I read a article titled, "Are NFL Football Hits Getting Harder And More Dangerous?" In this article, brain injuries and other bodily damage is being targeted as being caused by bigger and stronger players. The data has been recording this emitted behavior for along time. The evidents points toward increased injury and more dangerous hits associated with the size of players in today's football league.
2) The target behavior is NFL players increasing in size and as a result have more powerful hits.
3) The consequence of the behavior is more injuries within the NFL.
4) Though positive punishment of the undesirable targeted behavior, that being to set weight restrictions on the league, we would be able to see a desirable outcome of reducing extreme injuries to football players.
5)The consequence would be the removal of something undesirable, that being the increased injuries in the league.
6) The antecedent is a league where safeguards have not been elicited.
A-Leagues without safeguards for their players
B-No restriction on size of players
C-Frequency and severity of injuries
To set a weight limit on players would be a form of negative reinforcement because it includes the removal of unlimited size ability. This article does not included extinct behaviors.
http://www.npr.org/blogs/health/2013/01/31/170764982/are-nfl-football-hits-getting-harder-and-more-dangerous
Terms: Elicited, negative reinforcement, extinct, antecedent, target behavior, undersirable, emitted, positive punishment.
I.B
I read an article about the Mars rover at the BBC website. In this article it talked a lot about all the intricate devices that the rover, Curiosity, has equipped. One of the devices is a laser that the rover shoots at rocks. Upon contact, a gas is emitted from the rock that a sensor on the rover analyzes. It can then tell what chemicals are held within the rock. The article focused on the technology held by the rover, as well as the new information we are getting from it. They hope to prove whether or not water was once on Mars, which could have supported simple bacteria life. The behavior I am focusing on here is the work done by NASA. The more information and research done brings forth more conclusive answers as well as more curiosity. This curiosity leads to more questions that require more funding. The more they learn about the surface, the more likely they are to get funding to continue their research. The reinforcement for their work will be funding for more work. This is positive reinforcement, as it is the addition of something good (money).
Antecedent- Little Information held about the surface of Mars
Behavior- Much work put forth by NASA into complicated space robot
Consequence- Awesome complicated space robot finds theoretical traces of a previous existence of water in addition to other new findings about the planet's surface.
http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/science-environment-21312821
Terms: Antecedent, behavior, consequence, emit, reinforcement, positive reinforcement,
Snow Day Assignment
This article as well as the link that provides the actual 911 phone call is my example of negative reinforcement and establishes operations for behavior modification.
1) First of all, it is about an 18 year old male who smokes the new synthetic form of marijuana called K2. He apparently smokes it and then goes to sleep. He awakes from a dream and proceeds to call the police to prove to his family that everything in his dream is going to come true. From the start of the day to the end, in his mind it’s all coming true and he wants to prove it to his family. He calls the police and they inform him that if there is no emergency then he should not call 911 and an officer even goes and tells him that as well. During the second phone call he makes from a neighbor’s house, the operator confirms that there is no emergency and that because of this “dream” he is calling just to prove to his family that everything is going to come true.
2) Calling the police when there is no emergency is the target behavior in my example
3) The consequence for calling the police when there is no emergency is a first degree misdemeanor which you will be taken to jail for and your freedom will be taken away
4) Hopefully by inflicting this type of consequence the behavior will stop
5) By adding this type of consequence the hope is to remove the behavior completely
6) The antecedent is doing drugs (in this case K2) and having the side effects affect your life (a bad dream)
A= did drugs & had side effects (in this case a bad dream)
B= Calling 911 when there is not emergency
C= went to jail for misusing the 911 emergency line
This example does not involve extinction however the use of establishing operations was present through the steps of what the guy did by calling and then being told not to call yet still calling a second time.
This is in my opinion a form of negative reinforcement because the freedom of the individual was what was removed when the target behavior was completed. The guy called the police after being told not to and he was then arrested for doing so. This was all due to the antecedent which was once again doing drugs in the first place.
http://www.wftv.com/news/news/local/cops-teen-who-smoked-k-2-arrested-calling-911-repo/nR28m/
Actual phone call link:
http://www.wftv.com/videos/news/911-calls-teen-reports-odd-dream/vdmYG/
Terms:
Negative reinforcement, target operations, consequence, antecedent, behavior modification, behavior, and extinction
C. L. C.
“Testosterone: Can it make you live longer?”
1) This article talks about a Dr. who is now 74 years old and in better shape than many males half his age. Dr. Life speaks about how he changed his life around when he was in his 50’s. He was overweight and not in very good health when he decided he wanted to turn his life around. He started going to the gym regularly and within a year he was a completely different person. He decided to enter a contest in Vegas for people who have transformed their bodies in a short amount of time. He ended up winning the his age group and being even more inspired to look and feel great about himself. The older he got, the harder it was for him to stay as lean. Dr. Life was introduced to Cenegenics while in Las Vegas for a conference; Cenegenics is an age company whose motto is “look and feel years younger”. Dr. Life was so impressed with Cenegenices he became a partner with them. He admits looking and feeling good about yourself starts with a healthy diet and going to the gym, however, he found out he was low in testosterone and started getting weekly injections of Cenegenics. Dr. Life states, “The problem is that when a man’s testosterone gets low they lose their incentive to go to the gym”. However, this is a very controversial topic there are many advantages of maintaining “normal” levels of testosterone while you age.
2) The target behavior being emitted as a reinforcement behavior is injections of testosterone.
3) The consequence of the behavior is feeling more energized and staying leaner longer.
4) The consequence will increase the frequency of the target behavior being elicited because the patients are happy with their results and feeling much better about themselves as they age.
5) This example of reinforcement is the addition of something desirable.
6) The antecedent is losing muscle mass and energy as you age.
A- Losing muscle mass and energy as you age.
B- Taking injections of testosterone hormone.
C- Feeling great about your body and having more energy to do things as you age.
This is an example of positive reinforcement because you are adding something desirable to the situation. This particular example of reinforcement is not an example of extinction because it’s not a situation where it was previously reinforced but it’s no longer being reinforced. In order for the injections to work for the long haul you need to get them regularly. That means if you get Cenegenics done once you won’t see the same results as you would if you got them regularly. Your testosterone would only be sufficient for a while until the injection wore off. I would say that in Dr. Life’s case, there is an establishing operation involved. The fact that he was losing energy and losing his lean body as he aged makes the injections more reinforcing to him.
TERMS: reinforcement, positive reinforcement, emit, elicit, extinction, establishing operation, target behavior, antecedent, consequence, desirable
http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/magazine-21151163
Malala Yousafzai fund 'to boost education'
1. This article is about a girl from Pakistan that was shot in the head by a member of the taliban for promoting womens and girls rights. She survived the horrible attack and because of it she is now even stronger. She is still continuing to speak out for girls rights and is trying to encourage girls to go to school instead of going straight to the working world. There is now a fund set up in her name to help encourage girls to get an education. According to the article, "The Malala Fund has been set up by international organisation Vital Voices, which says it helps give women a voice to promote prosperity and peace in their communities."
2. The target behavior that illustrates reinforcement is a young girl speaking out about girls rights and encouraging girls to attend school instead of going straight to work.
3. The consequence of her behavior was being shot in the head by a member of the taliban, but surviving.
4. The consequence of her being shot in the head and surviving is that she is now a strong advocate of girls rights in Pakistan and there is now a fund in her name that helps and encourages girls to get and education.
5. The consequence is the addition of something desirable which is the girl getting a fund opened in her name to help support other girls. This would mean that it is positive reinforcement.
6. The antecedent would be the girl living in Pakistan where women don't have many rights.
A: Girl living in Pakistan where women don't have many rights.
B: Girl speaks out and is an advocate for girls rights.
C: She gets shot in the head by a member of the taliban but survives and in turn gets a fund opened in her name to help other girls like her.
This is an example of positive reinforcement because the situation involved the addition of something desireable. This is not an example of extinction because her behavior was not previously reinforced and then no longer reinforced. I think that there was an establishing operation involved because the fact that she survived getting shot was reinforcing to her and she advocated girls rights even more than she did before.
Terms: reinforcement, extinction, establishign operation, consequence, desirable, antecedent, behavior, behavior, positive reinforcement.
1) This piece talks about the new generations view on religion. It explains to us that religion is becoming less and less common in American households. The issues raised include how to let your child decide on their own or to reinforce religious beliefs. So, the target behavior would be for them to decide on your religion on their own. When the child starts to decide on their own you can reinforce the fact you want them to believe. Some parents might not even realize whether they are reinforcing or not.
2) The target behavior for one family is to have their child decide for themselves. Say they are catholic but they want their child to make up their own mind.
3) The article tells a story about a family having their child decide for themselves. When the child brought up Jesus when saying thanks before dinner, you can reinforce that by saying how good the grace was. You could also thank Jesus as well.
4) If the child sees that thanking Jesus makes you happier they will want to do it more. Also, if you start to thank him as well, you are reinforcing the fact that it is the right thing to do. You elicit the behavior by asking the child to say grace. He then emits the behavior and mentions, in this case, Jesus.
5) The consequence is the addition of something desirable. You are making your parents happy by starting to embrace a certain religion.
6) The antecedent in this story would be having to give thanks, openly, to anyone you want at the dinner table.
A= Having to say grace
B= Mention a figure from your parent's religion
C= Seem to get approval from parents
It is an example of positive reinforcement because it is the addition of something the child wants, their parents approval.
Terms: elicit, emitted, reinforcement, positive reinforcement, target behavior, antecedent, behavior, consequence, desirable
http://www.huffingtonpost.com/peggy-drexler/why-kids-and-religion-mix_b_2605554.html
“Stoptober urges smokers to ‘mass quit’”
(This article was actually written back in October but I thought it was very interesting and a good example to use)
1.My article, found on BBC’s website, is about people who smoke cigarettes on a regular basis to give up smoking cold turkey for 28 days, from October 1 to October 28. Cancer Research UK and the British Heart Foundation supported the event, called “Stoptober”. This event was held in hopes to convince England’s long-term smokers to quit the habit (One in two long term smokers die from some kind of smoking-related disease). Researchers have said that it is easier to quit if they have support rather than quitting cold turkey on their own, so participants were given free support by those from those running the event in person and through text messages. The director of tobacco studies at University College London stated, “People are social animals influenced by each other”. The hope is that everyone is able to support each other until each individual has reached satiation.
2.The target behavior is smoking cigarettes, and this illustrates reinforcement because it is a behavior that is trying to be removed.
3.The consequence of the behavior, smoking, is smoking-related diseases that can lead to death.
4.In this situation, the reinforcement is actually targeted at decreasing the frequency of the behavior, smoking.
5.The consequence involves the addition of something desirable, which is emitting verbal support from the volunteers and from text message support
6.The antacedent was the Cancer Research UK setting up the program
A= Cancer Research UK setting up the program
B= Smokers participate in program and try to quit
C= Positive feeling of successfully quitting and helping other to quit
I feel like this is an example of positive reinforcement because positive support is emitted in order to give reinforcement to quit smoking. However, I went back and forth on deciding whether it was positive or negative, because I felt like since they are trying to get them to stop smoking it felt like negative reinforcement. This “experiment” could potentially lead to extinction (the behavior, smoking, is being reinforced and once participants begin to stop smoking that behavior no longer needs to be reinforced).
http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/health-19783472
Terms Used – Antacedent, emitting, positive reinforcement, negative reinforcement, consequence, behavior, satiation, extinction
1. The article I read, “Fears that music volume limits ‘could be ignored,’” discussed that many young people are listening to their music at unsafe levels of 100db. All personal music players and phones in EU must now have a sound limit of 85db. However, users can increase it to 100db. This can cause a constant ringing in the ears that becomes permanent, called Tinnitus. There was an excerpt from a DJ who said the ringing in his ears was “the sign of a good night.” To him, this ringing seems to have acted as a reinforcer (until it became permanent).
2. The target behavior is listening to music at unsafe volume levels higher than 85db. The DJ engaged in this behavior frequently.
3. The consequence of the target behavior is a ringing in the ears of that person. This could potentially become permanent if the behavior is repeated over a long period of time, and is called Tinnitus.
4. The DJ in the article associated a “good night” with the ringing in his ears. This is reinforcement because it increases the frequency of the target behavior (listening to music at volume levels higher than 85db).
5. The consequence involves the addition of something desirable to the DJ. He listens to music at a high volume, and the ringing of the ears is added as a consequence. Some of us may find ringing in our ears to be aversive, but the DJ was reinforced by it.
6. The antecedent is being in a club (or where ever he works as a DJ).
Please then list the ABC's of the behavior
A= The environment is a club atmosphere, or where ever a DJ might work.
B= Listening to music at a high volume, more than 85db.
C= Ears are ringing.
This is an example of positive reinforcement because the ringing of the ears is being added as a consequence of the behavior.
This article could involve extinction if we looked at how the DJ felt about the ringing in his ears once it became permanent. The DJ was no longer reinforced by the ringing in his ears. As a result, he now wears professional, protective ear plugs when he DJs, so he is no longer engaging in the target behavior of listening to music at unsafe levels (because he is using protective gear).
It could potentially have involved establishing operations as well. Perhaps the DJ deprived himself of loud music before going to a club to DJ so it would be more reinforcing for him (This may not be the case, I am only speculating and thinking about how he may have used an establishing operation to make the reinforcement more reinforcing).
http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/health-21294537
TERMS:
establishing operations, extinction, consequence, antecedent, behavior, reinforcement, positive reinforcement, aversive, target behavior, reinforcer, reinforced
1.My news item was about how Lance Armstrong finally came clean about doping to win his titles. In the video there are clips from an interview with Oprah. In the interview he admits to using illegal substances, to enhance his cycling performance.
2. His behavior would be doping or taking the illegal substances. When he took the substances he often won. His victories were a reinforcer to keep doping.
3. The consequence of the behavior was that it helped him win many titles. The drugs helped to improve his cycling abilities.
4. The consequence did increase the frequency of the doping because he admits he used it many times, to win his Tour de France titles.
5. The consequence of of his doping behavior was that he kept winning his many titles, so that would be the addition of something desirable. Everyone who competes in sports wants to win, as that is the point of competition.
6. A= Feeling pressure to win/wanting to win
B= Doping or taking illegal substances
C= Wining
It would be positive reinforcement because the wining of titles was something desirable, and every time he won he was reinforced to keep using the drugs so he could win again.
Terms: Reinforced, Positive Reinforcement, Consequence, Behavior, Desirable, Reinforcer.
http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-us-canada-21070952
"Iran's leader embraces Facebook; Fellow Iranians are blocked"
1. This article talks about the use of Facebook by the Iranian's leader, and the hope that since he could use a blocked site the government would unblock more sites for everyone to use freely. People found it shocking that he was emitting the behavior of using a network that his own government blocks from everyone in their country. The consequence of this behavior by normal citizens is getting arrested, being interrogated, and even tortured.
2. The target behavior that illustrates reinforcement is the use of blocked sites on the internet by Iranian citizens.
3. The consequence of emitting this behavior includes being arrested, interrogated, and tortured.
4. Since the consequence of this behavior is so aversive it will increase the frequency of the behavior of citizens not going onto banned websites.
5. The consequence involves the removal of something desirable; internet freedom.
6. The antecedent is the use of a forbidden website by the Iranian's leader.
A= The use of a forbidden website by leader
B= Citizens want to use forbidden sites as well
C= Citizens will get arrested, interrogated, or tortured if caught
This is an example of negative reinforcement because the consequence of the behavior is aversive to the citizens.
This article definitely involves operant behaviors because the use of a forbidden website by their very own leader sets the occasion for them to emit behaviors like their leader. The only difference is the consequence for the citizens are aversive and include negative reinforcement instead of something pleasurable.
Terms: pleasurable, negative reinforcement, operant behaviors, emit, consequence, antecedent, aversive, target behavior,
B.E.
Snow Day Assignment
1) The story I read was entitled “What Makes You Feel Fear?” In this article, researchers are attempting to uncover the secret behind what makes a part of the human brain, amygdala, produce the behavior called fear. The researchers took an female individual who suffers from a disorder that is suppose to deprive her from feeling fear and used outside sources to try to elicit that impulse. After failing, they took a set of twins with the same disorder as well as the original subject and conducted an experiment using carbon dioxide to elicit the subjects to emit fear. After the subjects breathed it in for a few minutes, they started to flail their arms and flare their nostrils in a moment of panic. Once the masks were removed, they subject settled down and researchers noted that they might be able to feel some fear—however not using outside sources but taping into innate senses of the human brain.
2) The target behavior would be researchers attempting to produce fear using, at times, aversive innate sources.
3) The consequence would be the production of fear.
4) The consequence helps researchers to attempt to reproduce those actions that a brain exhibits when confronted with something from a natural state that taps into our instinctual area of our brains. This can mean that the researchers will use more aversive stimulus to attempt to produce the desired feeling and increase the frequency for individuals with disorders such as Urbach-Wiethe Disease to feel a sort of normalcy when confronted by fearful events or objects.
5) The consequence leads to a positive reinforcement or the addition of something desirable.
6) The antecedent is a research lab.
A= Research lab with neuroscientists.
B= Researchers attempting to produce fear in the subjects.
C= Production of fear.
7) Positive reinforcement. In this case, the desired thing is fear: a feeling we try to avoid but for those who have a disorder that does not trigger a fight or flight response or any response at all this is an issue. To achieve a sense of danger when confronted with something that should frighten us as part of a natural selection survival instinct, researchers are using stimulus to recreate this brain activity. We can also look at it as reinforcement for the experiments that the researchers are conducting—the production of fear means that their experiments are successful and thus another example of positive reinforcement.
Terms: Behavior, Target Behavior, Aversive, Consequence, Stimulus, Desirable, Increase the Frequency, Positive Reinforcement, Antecedent, Reinforcement, Deprive, Elicit, Emit,
1. This article is about a 74 year old man that is very healthy for his age and has a muscle tone that most men do not get in their lifetime. He was a 50 year old man who was out of shape and had high body fat with the risk of diseases when he decided to change his life and his health. He started working hard to get healthy but started to "lose ground" on his achievements. This man is a doctor and knows that men do not produce as much testosterone as they get older. He started taking testosterone and started gaining ground again and at the age of 74 he is extremely healthy.
2. The behavior that is using testosterone to have a healthy life.
3. Another doctor, Dr. Pike, is unsure about the use of testosterone for a long period of time. He says there is no research that says testosterone is good to use over a long period of time. He says if you develop a tumor, testosterone can cause it to grow very large. He also adds that he believes there are better ways to stay healthy. But Dr. Love (the man taking testosterone) is very satisfied with it and will continue to take it because of how good he feels and the muscle tone and how in shape he is at his age.
4. For Dr. Love, he will continue using testosterone because he is in shape, little body fat, is very healthy and very active. The outcome he has had from using testosterone is a reinforcement to keep using it. As for Dr. Pike, he wouldnt suggest the use of testosterone because of how unsure he is about using it over an extended period of time. The unknowns and the fact that is can cause tumors to grow large is his reinforcement to not use testosterone.
5. The consequence of using testosterone is maintaining healthy testosterone levels and having a healthy life.
6. The antecedent could be being unhealthy, out of shape, or lots of body fat.
A- Being unhealthy
B- Taking testosterone
C- Living a healthier lifestyle
C.H.
http://abcnews.go.com/blogs/politics/2013/02/meet-woody-the-bomb-sniffing-dog/
1. This article is about how dogs are being utilized by the TSA to track bombs and explosives. Dogs' noses are 1,000 times more sensitive than humans and can smell things miles away. The article/video explains the debate and controversy of allocating so much money toward this new program. Primarily, this is because the dogs do not always succeed in finding the bombs as done with the tests. Since there are so many people in the airport, it can be overwhelming for the dog. They think more testing and analysis should have occurred before they invested so much money with the program and all of the dogs.
2. The target behavior is training the dog to track the bombs/explosives
3. The consequence of the behavior is the dog identifying the passenger with the bomb to stop the terrible act from occurring. The dog then gets reinforced with a treat if he/she finds the bomb package.
4. The consequence will increase the behavior because the dog gets rewarded with a treat.
5. The consequence involves the addition of something desirable because the dog receives a treat for finding the bomb. The treat is an establishing operation because it makes the dog want to increase the behavior of finding the bomb.
6. The antecendent is the airport.
A- The airport
B-Dog searching for bomb
C-Dog Receiving Treat
This is an example of positive reinforcement because it involves the addition of something desirable (the treat). If the dog continues to fail, extinction could occur which could elicit a behavior of not searching for the bombs anymore. However, this could be an example of punishment for the person who is carrying the explosives because the person will likely be sent to prison for the behavior. Therefore, they would decrease the behavior of bringing explosives in an airport. In an airport, there are discriminative stimuli which are the signs for no explosives or bombs which people should abide by.
Terms: reinforcement, positive reinforcement, extinction, establishing operation, discriminative stimuli, punishment, antecendent, target behavior
1.)The news article I chose is called “When Crime Pays: Prison Can Teach Some To Be Better Criminals.” This article is talking about how criminals that spend time in prison come out of prison being better criminals because they spend a lot of time around individuals who know the ins and outs of being a criminal. In this article they also looked at how much individuals make legally and illegally they looked at this to see whether or not illegal earnings went up or down after serving time in prison.
2.)The target behavior in this article is whether or not individuals come out of prison reformed or if they come out worse.
3.)The consequence is that they learn the ins and outs from veteran criminals like how to get away with crime.
4.)Spending more time in prison increases the time you spend around veteran criminals wish can increase your criminal behavior.
5.)The consequence doesn’t add anything desirable because they are likely to be worse when they get out of prison since they will know how to get away with crimes.
6.)The antecedent is the criminal’s behavior before they leave prison.
A= Criminals behavior before they leave prison
B= Whether or not spending time in prison increases your criminal behavior and how much they make legally or illegally
C= They end up back in prison or they end up getting away with a crime because they learned the ins and outs.
This is an example of both positive and negative reinforcement because criminals spending time in prison are being reinforced to change their behavior but some people the more time they spend in prison the more time they spend around veterans learning the ins and outs of how to get away with a crime wish would be negative. Some individuals who spend time in prison learn to become law-abiding citizens while others don’t so the reinforcement of them being in prison would be positive.
Terms: target behavior, consequence, behavior, desirable, antecedent.
http://www.npr.org/2013/02/01/169732840/when-crime-pays-prison-can-teach-some-to-be-better-criminals
The article I chose is from the Huffington Post called, “I Can’t Wait To Win My First Oscar”. Written by Andy Capper. He is a documentary filmmaker and has won the Academy Award for best documentary for his film, “REINCARNATED,” which is the story of Snoop Dogg’s latest album and how he made it in Jamaica and the reason behind him changing his name to Snoop Lion. Capper talks about his success at the Toronto Film Festival with his film and what his speech will entail and the events that will happen following the Academy Awards.
The behavior that illustrates reinforcement is receiving an Oscar award for best documentary. The consequence of this behavior is continuing making new projects that are even better. The winning of this award reinforces the behavior to make extraordinary documentary films. This consequence involves the addition of something desirable (an Oscar). The antecedent is making a documentary film.
A= Making a documentary film
B= Receiving an Oscar award
C= Making even better documentary films
This is an example of positive reinforcement because Andy Capper is receiving an award for creating a great piece of work. Positive reinforcement means to introduce a positive stimulus, it is added. Capper winning a very important reward and recognition reinforces his behavior to continue making great documentary films in the future.
Terms: Behavior, Reinforcement, Consequence, Antecedent, Positive reinforcement, Positive stimulus
The article I chose from the NPR site, ‘That Was A Great Blackout Last Night’, exploits the reader’s social insecurities as a means to ingrain a habitual behavior. It begins by stating how accessible the ritual of watching the Super Bowl is, even for those non-jocks, due to the artistic nature of the intermezzi. What’s most special about the Super Bowl this year was the blackout (which happened while the 49ers were behind the Ravens). The writer claims the competition wasn’t so hot of an event, but the mini-freak-out induced from the unknown mixed with recent headlines of public shootings fueled an ‘adrenaline-rushed social media frenzy’. Having been a part of the masses as they experienced this adventure will be the greatest moment of some people’s lives until next year.
The target behavior is ‘Watch the Super Bowl’, for which the consequence, the article implies, is ‘Have something to talk about’. Having something to talk about is positively valenced in our social environments, both personally and professionally. The consequence of a, presumably, guaranteed relatable social interaction would be a positive reinforcement, if only for the perceived value. The anticipation of the social event being a period of confidence and assurance could be invaluable to some – those who have never had it will not find it as much of a reinforcer as those who thrive on the avoidance of aversive social behaviors and topics. The Antecedent would be ‘Being an American Consumer, or Consumer of American Goods’.
A = American
B = Watch Super Bowl
C = Have Something to Talk About
This is an example of positive reinforcement, because the consequence is adding something for the subject. If it were a negative reinforcement, the promise would only be to take away ridicule, not to incite praise or ‘a good time’. Having a nostalgic conversation is desirable, and reinforces in social situations chiefly influenced by the ‘American Dream’. The possibility for extinction lies in the scenario of ridicule, or punishment, from those the subject was seeking reward. The possible establishing operation would be part of the Antecedent, ‘Being socialized in an American environment’.
http://www.npr.org/blogs/monkeysee/2013/02/04/171047853/that-was-a-great-blackout-last-night
Terms: Behavior, Target Behavior, Consequence, Positively Valenced, Positive Reinforcement, Reinforcer, Aversive, Antecedent, Negative Reinforcement, Desirable, Reinforces, Extinction, Punishment, Establishing Operation.
http://www.ksdk.com/news/article/360813/3/Super-Bowl-XLVII-by-the-numbers
This article is full of estimations of money spent on various Super Bowl-related things. The interesting part of the article is the amount that the players of both the winning and losing teams get paid.
Last year, each member of the winning team got paid an extra $88,000. Each member of the losing team got paid an extra $44,000.
This shows two different examples of reinforcement.
Antecedent: Winning the playoffs
Behavior: Making it to the super bowl
Consequence: Getting at least a $44,000 bonus.
AND
Antecedent: Winning the playoffs
Behavior: Winning the super bowl
Consequence: Getting an extra $44,000 bonus on top of the $44,000 bonus just for playing in the super bowl
I realize that some people would dispute whether or not this actually increases the likelihood of repeating the behavior. However, it definitely adds an incentive to making it that far, and might possibly make somebody try a little bit harder next year once they know what they're getting out of it.
Terms:
Antecedent, Behavior, Consequence, Incentive
1.) The article I choose to read was over marijuana sales in Colorado that are popping up on craigslist. It is illegal to sell marijuana in Colorado without a permit/license. The drug dealers have figured out loopholes to get around not having a license. They are listing things like free 1/8 bag of pot for a donation to support 100 worms. Also free bag of pot with a $40-60 donation. Also an adult can gift up to one ounce of marijuana legally. 2.) The behavior that’s being used is selling marijuana on craigslist but covering it up as free with other purchases/donations. 3.)The consequence is that drug dealers are able to sell pot legally and make the money they normally would by using legal loopholes in the amendment. 4.) The more legal loopholes these dealers fine the more ways they can offer marijuana to the public that cannot get a medical card to purchase it. They will also continue to make money which will only encourage them to find better ways to get around the legal issues. 5.) In this case it involves something desirable to both the target group and the seller. The target group which is smokers can get marijuana without having to legally get a card but still avoid the law. While the drug dealers are making money off selling product which only encourages them to want to get their product out on the market even more. It seems to be an even addition for both parties involved. 6.) The antecedent would be using craigslist as a middle man to sell drugs but claim its by donation only.
A. Amendment 64
B. Selling drugs via craigslist asking for donations not purchases
C. The dealer makes the money from donations and the unlicensed pot smoker gets his drug.
This is a clear example of positive reinforcement. Both parties involved are getting reinforced positively. The dealers and getting “donations” for their supply while the buyers are giving donation for their vice and search for marijuana. Both of the parties involved are getting what they want out of the deal and legally they aren’t breaking any laws like before. They are using loopholes to figure out ways to get what they want to smoke and what they want to sell. These cronic smokers are so used to smoking that craigslist, and prop 64 has caused operant behavior with both the buyers and sellers.
Terms: consequence, behavior, antecedent, positive reinforcement, operant behavior.
http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2013/02/04/free-marijuana-craigslist_n_2617673.html?utm_hp_ref=drug-war
The article I read was from the huggintonpost it was about the decision congress made over the reforms to the unemployment insurance system. This article concentrated on one particular change, the ability for states to drug test unemployed individuals that are are receiving assistance.
Individuals that are receiving assistance will have to take a drug test to continue to receive assistance or to gain access to assistance. Having to take the drug test is the reinforcement that will hopefully decrease the amount of people using illegal drugs. The consequence of not complying to the new Bill will end in the individuals termination of assistance. The target behavior is actually having to take the drug test to receive government assistance. The antecedent will depend on what state you live in, for example states such as Colorado and Washington may not require individuals to take drug tests.
A= the state you live in
B= taking a drug test
C= decrease of unemployed individuals using illegal drugs.
http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2013/01/15/drug-testing-unemployment_n_2474186.html
This is a form of positive reinforcement because it required the addition of the drug test to unemployed individuals that receive government assistance. In the hope that it will elicit individuals on government assistance to stop using drugs. Although this article did not describe the chances of an extinction in enforcing drug testing individuals. I can for see extinctions within the individuals themselves if they are on government assistance and in fact using illegal drugs.
Terms: antecedent, reinforcement, positive reinforcement, consequence, elicit, extinction and target behavior.
My piece is the Vancouver-100 mile food trail which is exactly as it sounds. You can eat food in Vancouver! The target behavior and the consequence is eating locally grown foods and it is reinforced by feeling good about emitting a purchasing behavior that will reduce your carbon footprint as well as satisfy any hunger you may have had. You are removing something undesirable in this instance because you are removing a carbon impact on the environment which I believe is aversive to many. I suppose the antecedent would be being hungry in Vancouver because is sets the occasion for eating their locally grown foods on the 100- mile food trail.
A= Being in Vancouver with an appetite
B= Eating/purchasing locally grown foods
C= Reducing your carbon footprint
I beleive this is an example of negative reinforcement because it increases the likelihood of people eating/purchasing food on the 100-mile food trail by reducing the carbon impact on the environment, by taking away something aversive.
If any extinction occurs here I think it would be buying food from supermarkets because you can't be reinforced by reducing your carbon footprint when you don't purchase locally grown foods.
Terms: antecedent, target behavior, consequence, aversive, sets the occasion, emit, negative reinforcement, extinction.
http://www.bbc.com/travel/feature/20130201-vancouvers-100-mile-food-trail/1
1) Briefly describe/summarize your piece: The article I read about was about the phantom of the opera show that had a 25th anniversary on Saturday January 26th. I am obsessed with musicals and I love music. The article talked about the set up for the musical. It also talked about how the musical went from $50 when it first opened. Attending a Broadway show is an event that people take seriously and dress up and escape into the world that the producer has made.
2) tell us what behavior (target behavior) you are using that illustrates reinforcement: the behavior that would be the target behavior would be the actual production of phantom of the opera.
3) tell us what the consequence of the behavior is: the consequence of the production of phantom of the opera is the ability to perform a musical and reintroduce the same musical 25 years later and still have interested fans to put profit into the production.
4) tell us how, that consequence will increase the frequency of the behavior: the better the performance is the more times the produce will perform the show also increasing the amount of viewers to come see the show. This show is still the top grossing Broadway show after all these years.
5) tell us if the consequence involves the addition of something desirable or if it involves the removal of something undesirable finally: the consequence is adding something desirable. The show will be making profit and having great ratings which will make the production more desirable and appealing to viewers that have not yet seen the show.
Please then list the ABC's of the behavior
A=Write a plot for a stellar Broadway production and cast a variety of actors that will fulfill the roles
B=Performing a good Broadway show
C=Having customers return and pay a higher price in order to see a Broadway sensation
Now state if this is an example of positive reinforcement, or negative reinforcement. Explain why. This is an example of positive reinforcement, because positive reinforcement is the act of adding a stimulus that is reinforcing and will be likely for the behavior to continue to the future. The applause, encouragement, and gross that the actors and producers receive are more making it more tempting for the show to continue on in the future and produce an equally superb show as before.
terms: target behavior, desirable, positive reinforcement, consequence, undesirable
http://www.npr.org/2013/01/27/170377703/25-years-strong-phantom-of-the-opera-kills-and-kills-again
1) The article I read was “Alabama kidnapper dead and boy saved after police raid.” This article is about a six year old boy who was kidnapped from his school bus by a 65 year old man. The boy had been kept in a storm shelter since last Tuesday. The police negotiated with the kidnaper, Dykes, for 24 hours. In order to save the child, Ethan, a stun or flash grenade was used and in the process, Dykes died. Ethan is physically unharmed and seemingly happy.
2) The target behavior is of the police negotiating with Dykes. The police are hoping that the more they talk to Dykes and negotiate with him, he will let Ethan go.
3) The consequence of the police’s behavior was that Dykes would not let Ethan go so the police had to through a grenade towards Dykes.
4) The police were hoping that if they could negotiate with Dykes, then Dykes would let Ethan go. They were trying to increase the behavior of negotiation in order to have Ethan returned safely.
5) The consequence was an addition of something desirable. The police were willing to give Dykes negotiation to work out the situation so Ethan would be unharmed.
6) The antecedent is Dykes house where he is holding Ethan hostage.
A) Dykes house where Ethan is being held hostage and where the police are negotiating with Ethan.
B) The behavior is the police negotiating with Dykes.
C) Dykes does not go along with the police’s negotiation so a grenade is thrown at the house.
This is an example of positive reinforcement. The police wanted to increase Dykes behavior of cooperation by negotiating
Terms: Emitting, behavior, positive reinforcement, consequence, target behavior, antecedent.
http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-us-canada-21331760
1) In this article it talked about how studies were done on male college students between the ages of 18-22. They were asked to give a sperm sample and answer questions regarding how much TV they watched in a week, and how much physical activity they got in a week. The research showed that men who spend more time watching TV have a lower sperm count, and men who spend 15 hours or more a week getting physical activity have a much higher sperm count.
2) I am using physical activity as my target behavior.
3) The consequence of the behavior is a higher sperm count.
4) Having a higher sperm count will increase the behavior of physical activity because most men want to one day have children. If they know that their chances of having children decrease when they watch too much TV, and increase if they get a moderate amount of physical activity each week, they will want to get more physical activity, only assuming they want to have children that is.
5) The consequence involves the addition of something desirable, more sperm, and better chances of having a child.
6) The antecedent would be men wanting children one day.
A=men want children
B=get more physical activity
C=have a higher sperm count
This is an example of positive reinforcement, because it involves the addition of something desirable, a higher sperm count. This will cause men who want to have children to increase the amount of physical activity they get each week.
This could possibly involve extinction, but more research is needed to know for sure. Although the results showed that men who watch a lot of TV have lower sperm counts, and men who get a moderate amount of physical activity have higher sperm counts, they mentioned that more research would be needed to really conclude their findings indefinitely. Therefore, someone may get 15 or more hours of physical activity in a week and still have a low sperm count. They may even be completely infertile. Physical activity does not guarantee this. If this were the case the reinforced behavior, having a high sperm count, would then be extinct. This could be extremely aversive to some who are really trying to have a child.
http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/health-21326810
1) IHOP is serving free pancakes from 7 pm to 10 pm for the eight year in a row on February 5th (which is also National Pancake Day). IHOP is doing this in hopes to bring in people to donate money to Children's Miracle Network Hospitals and other local charities.
2) The target behavior is donating money to the organization.
3) The consequence is receiving pancakes.
4) The consequence will help increase the behavior because it is rewarding them for their donation. They will be more likely to donate the next time the event happens.
5) The consequence involves the addition of something desirable. In this case, it would be the pancakes.
6) The antecedent is IHOP on National Pancake Day
A= IHOP on National Pancake Day
B= Donating to the charities
C= Receiving free pancakes
This is positive reinforcement because it involves the addition of something desirable. The free pancakes are desirable. It gives you both a meal and tastes good.
http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2013/02/04/free-ihop-pancakes_n_2616833.html?ir=Food
“More Drugs Cited As A Risky Mix With Grapefruit”
http://www.npr.org/blogs/health/2012/11/27/166012281/a-deadly-cocktail-some-medications-don-t-mix-well-with-grapefruit
1. When grapefruit is mixed with different types of medicines there is an aversive consequence because of it. Taking one tablet of a specific medicine with grapefruit is like taking five tablets with a glass of water causing an over dose effect. In the past four years there has been an increase in the number of drugs that will give aversive side effects when taken while eating grapefruit. The side effects can be prevented though.
2. The behavior is the fact that medicine or certain types cannot be taken with grapefruit because of the certain compounds that it consists of.
3. The consequence can be aversive when it comes to taking medicine with grapefruit and can cause side effects such as breathing problems and irregular heartbeats.
4. If you know that is what the consequence is going to be then you are most likely going to try and find a way to have grapefruit still and not have those side effects or just stop eating grapefruit.
5. The consequence will usually be the removal of something because you cannot have the best of both worlds and you will have to get rid of either the grapefruit or the medicine for there to not be an aversive problem.
6. The antecedent is the grapefruit.
A= grapefruit
B= taking certain medicine with grapefruit
C= overdose and dangerous to body
This is an example of positive reinforcement because there is the reinforcement that you do not want those negative side effects to take place so there will be a positive outcome by getting rid of eating the grapefruit or changing your medicine so you can still contain the compounds of the grapefruit.
EMM
1) I decided to read a piece from The New Yorker, called “A Loaded Gun”. The first page talked about a neurobiologist, Amy Bishop, who was at a meeting with her fellow colleagues at the University of Alabama. She was more quiet then usual at the meeting, but she also knew her position was being eliminated, and therefore wasn’t going to receive tenure. Towards the end of the meeting Amy Bishop pulled out a gun and started shooting everyone in the room. In the end no one had expected Amy to be the suspect of this crime. Predominantly males had been the shooters in school and university shootings in the last several years. No one ever suspected Amy to be the shooter.
2) The target behavior that Amy emitted was shooting her colleagues at the meeting.
3) The consequence of Amy shooting her colleagues was that she did not receive tenure.
4) The consequence will increase the frequency of the behavior because Amy was so upset that she didn’t receive tenure.
5) The consequence involves the removal of something desirable.
6) The antecedent that was emitted is that Amy was told she wasn’t going to receive tenure.
A=Threatened not to receive tenure.
B=Amy shoots all colleagues.
C=Amy doesn’t receive tenure.
This example represents a negative reinforcement because something is being removed for the situation, but the behavior is being reinforced by not eliciting tenure. Being threatened to not receive tenure increased Amy’s’ likelihood of killing her colleagues. Therefore, when Amy emitted to shoot her colleagues she really lost her change of ever eliciting tenure in the future. This example does not represent extinction because the reinforced behavior is never extinct.
Terms: target behavior, emitted, consequence, behavior, desirable, increase, antecedent, elicited, negative reinforcement, extinction, extinct
http://www.newyorker.com/reporting/2013/02/11/130211fa_fact_keefe?currentPage=2
W.J.
1) The article I read was about how drones/ unmanned aircraft systems are becoming a very popular not only to the US military but to private entities and recreational users
2) The target behavior emitted that I would like to point out is how the military has been using drones to complete its mission objectives.
3) The consequence of the behavior is that no lives are lost during important but dangerous missions.
4) Considering no lives being lost is a very desirable thing, the military has more than doubles its unmanned aircraft fleet in recent years to continue to use them more frequently.
5) The reinforcement consists of something undesirable being taken away.
6) The Antecedent is war
A=War times
B= Sending in unmanned aircraft to complete objectives
C= No US casualties lost
The consequence of this behavior is a negative reinforce because it is taking away something undesirable.
Terms: Target Behavior, Emitted, Consequence, Desirable, Reinforcement, Undesirable, Antecedent, Negative Reinforcement.
http://www.time.com/time/magazine/article/0,9171,2135132,00.html
My article is about the massive poaching of Elephants in Africa and how their population in slowly dwindling. The target behavior emitted in the article is the the government trying to stop the poachers. The consequence of the behavior has been a government wide act to try and stop the poaching. Even with all this going on there is still a giant massacre of elephants because of the price of ivory on the black market. Hopefully with a convention of endangered species next month they can make a bigger impact on stopping the poaching and get help from outsiders to also step in. The reinforcement is that if people are caught they are taken into custody and have little rights. The antecedent is the poachers hunting the elephants
A=Poachers killing elephants
B=Government trying to stop the poachers and punish them
C=Less people will poach
Terms:Emitted, consequence, antecedent, target behavior, reinforcemnet
http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/science-environment-21352722
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