The Effects of Force Training and Reinforcement Schedules on Human Performance

Abstract

Instrumental behaviors were conditioned in college students under partial (PRF) or continuous (CRF) reinforcement with either a high or low response force requirement. Half the subjects in the resulting four conditions were transferred to a similar task (shuttle) where they received 20 CRF trials. Remaining subjects were transferred to a dissimilar task where they solved (CRF) five anagrams. A subsequent persistence test (extinction) for similar-task subjects consisted of 70 nonreinforced shuttle trials; a persistence test for dissimilar-task subjects was 10 insoluble anagrams. Phase 1 yielded results that showed that training with either partial reinforcement or a high force requirement occasioned greater instrumental responding than training with continuous reinforcement or a low force requirement did. Differential effort effects were found in both shuttle and anagram acquisition, as subjects previously trained under high force requirements responded significantly faster than those trained under low force requirements. The findings from extinction indicated that partial reinforcement training increased resistance to shuttle extinction, as did training with a high force requirement. Further, the effects of schedules and force were found to be additive. Nondifferential effects were found for anagram extinction. Results were discussed in the context of Amsel's frustration theory of persistence and Eisenberger's learned effort hypothesis.