Effects Of Reinforcement Schedules Research Articles

Partial Reinforcement in Game Biofeedback for Relaxation Training

This paper investigates the effect of reinforcement schedules on biofeedback games for stress self-regulation. In particular, it examines whether partial reinforcement can improve resistance to extinction of relaxation behaviors, i.e., once biofeedback is removed. Namely, we compare two types of reinforcement schedules (partial and continuous) in a mobile biofeedback game that encourages players to slow their breathing during gameplay. The game uses a negative-reinforcement instrumental conditioning paradigm, removing an aversive stimulus (random actions in the game) if players slows down their breathing. We conducted an experimental trial with 24 participants to compare the two reinforcement schedules against a control condition. Our results indicate that partial reinforcement improves resistance to extinction, as measured by breathing rate and skin conductance post-treatment. In addition, based on linear regression and correlation analysis we found that participants in the partial reinforcement learned to slow their breathing at the same pace as those under continuous reinforcement. The article discusses the implications of these results and directions for future work.

The effects of ratio and interval schedules on the location variability of pecking responses in pigeons: Application of Bayesian statistical model

Many studies have investigated how variability in animal behavior is induced by different reinforcement schedules. However, the animal species and experimental settings have varied between these studies. The present study investigated the variability of pigeons’ pecking location to operandum under fixed-ratio, fixed-interval, variable-ratio, and variable-interval schedules. A circular response area that was 22.4 cm in diameter was used so that the pecking responses would be effective over a wide range. Pigeons were exposed to a multiple-ratio yoked-interval schedule; the pairs of schedules were fixed-ratio and fixed-interval or variable-ratio and variable-interval. We used a Bayesian statistical approach to probabilistically evaluate the effects of reinforcement schedules on the variability. Bayesian statistical analysis showed the following: (1) interval schedules provided greater variability than did the ratio schedules under the same interreinforcement intervals, (2) fixed schedules provided greater variability than did variable schedules for both the ratio and interval schedule requirements, (3) the larger schedule requirement generated greater variability under the fixed schedules but this effect was not observed on the variable schedules, and (4) the variability did not change as time elapsed in each trial. These results suggested that each reinforcement schedule has a specific effect on the variability of the response location.

Habits without values.

Habits form a crucial component of behavior. In recent years, key computational models have conceptualized habits as arising from model-free reinforcement learning mechanisms, which typically select between available actions based on the future value expected to result from each. Traditionally, however, habits have been understood as behaviors that can be triggered directly by a stimulus, without requiring the animal to evaluate expected outcomes. Here, we develop a computational model instantiating this traditional view, in which habits develop through the direct strengthening of recently taken actions rather than through the encoding of outcomes. We demonstrate that this model accounts for key behavioral manifestations of habits, including insensitivity to outcome devaluation and contingency degradation, as well as the effects of reinforcement schedule on the rate of habit formation. The model also explains the prevalent observation of perseveration in repeated-choice tasks as an additional behavioral manifestation of the habit system. We suggest that mapping habitual behaviors onto value-free mechanisms provides a parsimonious account of existing behavioral and neural data. This mapping may provide a new foundation for building robust and comprehensive models of the interaction of habits with other, more goal-directed types of behaviors and help to better guide research into the neural mechanisms underlying control of instrumental behavior more generally. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2019 APA, all rights reserved).

Reinforcement Schedule Effects on Long-Term Behavior Change.

The primary aim of this study was to determine whether different schedules of contingency management (CM), in conjunction with psychosocial treatment, produced different rates of abstinence and treatment attendance among individuals dependent on methamphetamine. Individuals were randomized into 1 of 3 conditions that sought to equate total potential reinforcer magnitude while varying the frequency with which reinforcement was delivered, and comparing these results to those obtained when psychosocial support alone was used. Results indicate that all 3 CM schedules occasioned more abstinent attendance than the group only receiving psychosocial treatment. However, the 3 CM conditions did not differ in any appreciable way. These results suggest that treatment providers may be able to decrease the frequency of reinforcer delivery in CM paradigms while retaining efficacy to treat psychostimulant use disorders.

Schedule-Induced and Operant Mechanisms that Influence Response Variability: A Review and Implications for Future Investigations

Response variability, a fundamental characteristic of behavior, may be in some cases an induced effect of reinforcement schedules. Research on schedule-induced response variability has shown that continuous reinforcement results in less variability than intermittent reinforcement schedules. Studies on the effects of intermittency of reinforcement, periodicity of reinforcement, and type of schedule have resulted in mixed findings. Contingencies have also been arranged to directly influence operant response variability. These include lag reinforcement schedules, differential reinforcement of novel behavior, differential reinforcement of less frequent behavior, and percentile reinforcement schedules. These procedures are discussed in terms of practicality and implications for use in applied settings. Contingencies and treatment packages that indirectly influence response variability are addressed in terms of response allocation, response generalization, and response covariation. Studies on the effects of a variety of other variables on response variability are also reported, such as levels of food deprivation and drugs. Finally, directions for applied research in response variability are suggested.

Reinforcement schedule effects in rats trained to discriminate 3,4-methylenedioxymethamphetamine (MDMA) or cocaine

Relatively few studies have compared the discriminative stimulus effects of 3,4-methylenedioxymethamphetamine (MDMA) and cocaine, and findings from different laboratories are somewhat inconsistent. One possible reason for discrepant results may be the use of different reinforcement schedules during discrimination training. The present study compared fixed ratio (FR) 20 and variable interval (VI) 15-s reinforcement schedules to determine their influence on discrimination acquisition, response rates, frequency of reinforcements, and stimulus generalization in rats trained to discriminate cocaine or MDMA. Thirty-two male Sprague-Dawley rats were trained to discriminate cocaine (10 mg/kg; n=16) or MDMA (1.5 mg/kg; n=16) from saline under either a FR 20 or a VI 15-s schedule of food reinforcement. Stimulus generalization tests were conducted with a range of doses of cocaine, MDMA, d-amphetamine, and lysergic acid diethylamide in all four training groups. The FR 20 schedule facilitated more rapid discrimination acquisition compared to the VI 15-s schedule and established differential response rates and frequency of reinforcement under drug and vehicle conditions. However, reinforcement schedule had little influence on stimulus generalization between MDMA and cocaine. Cocaine produced partial substitution for MDMA in both training groups (FR 20, 51%; VI 15-s, 58%). Likewise, MDMA produced only partial substitution for cocaine in both training groups (FR 20, 40%; VI 15-s, 72%). The present findings suggest that the number of sessions required to establish discriminative stimulus control varies with different reinforcement schedules. Nevertheless, training schedules alone do not appear to have significant effects on stimulus generalization between MDMA and cocaine.

Competition, superstition and the illusion of control

The effects of reinforcement schedule and competition on generating superstitious behaviors and beliefs were examined in 72 people. Superstition was induced by having participants respond to turn on a tone under a concurrent 2—lever Variable Interval (VI) Extinction (EXT) schedule. During the session, stimulus lights would occasionally be illuminated, although they did not signal any change in contingency. Attributing importance to the inactive lever, a pattern of switching between levers, or to the illumination of the lights were considered to be superstitious beliefs. Participants were either run alone or in pairs, and manipulation of the reinforcement schedule resulted in groups which were matched in probability of reinforcement, as well as in groups which were mismatched. Reinforcement schedule (VI 30” versus VI 60”) and competitive situation did not affect degree of superstitious belief, except when people were placed in a “winning” condition. However, Superstition was associated with participants’ belief in improved future performance and with participants’ perceived skill relative to their opponents. Results are discussed in terms of relationships between superstition, the illusion of control, and self-efficacy. Differences between experimentally-induced and commonly held superstitions are also discussed.

Effects of reinforcement schedule and task difficulty on the performance of attention deficit hyperactivity disordered and control boys

Examined the effects of reinforcement schedule and task difficulty on the performance of attention deficit hyperactivity disordered (ADHD) and normal control boys on a learning task. Forty-five ADHD boys and 45 control boys were randomly assigned to one of three reinforcement conditions: none, partial (PR; i.e., 50%), or continuous (CR). Each child performed two paired-associate memory tasks, varying in difficulty: a related- and an unrelated-word pair task Each child also completed questionnaires about each task and about his memory strategies. Results indicated that the performance of both the boys with ADHD and control boys was adversely affected by PR in the related-word task. In the unrelated-word task, the performance of both groups was optimized under the CR condition. These results do not lend support to findings of previous research suggesting that children with ADHD are more adversely affected than control children by the frustrative effects of partial reinforcement. However, group differences w...

Effects of Reinforcement Schedules on Rats' Choice Behavior in Extinction

The effects of reinforcement schedules on rats' choice behavior in extinction were studied. In a free-operant chamber equipped with two retractable bars, the experimental animals were trained to press the bars separately for a food reward. One bar delivered the reward on a continuous reinforcement (CRF) schedule, and the other delivered the reward on a partial reinforcement (PRF) schedule. Control animals earned the reward from both bars with the same reinforcement schedule, either a CRF or a PRF. When both bars were simultaneously available during extinction, the experimental animals responded more frequently to the CRF than to the PRF alternative, demonstrating a reversed within-subjects partial reinforcement extinction effect (PREE). A conventional between-subjects PREE was replicated in the control subjects. The results of this study were inconsistent with both Amsel's (1962, 1967) frustration hypothesis and Capaldi's (1966, 1967) sequential hypotheses.

CS duration and reinforcement schedule effects on conditioned enhancement and positive conditioned suppression

Two groups of rats learned a discrimination in which responses were reinforced on a variableinterval (VI) schedule during one stimulus and extinguished during another. Eight conditioned stimuli (CSs), each followed by a food unconditioned stimulus (US), were presented during each session: four during the VI component and four during the extinction component. CS duration was 2 min for Group L and 30 sec for Group S. Subjects in both groups responded at higher rates during CSs presented in the extinction component. Group L subjects also responded at higher rates during VI-component CSs, but Group S subjects responded at lower rates during VI-component CSs. These data indicate that reinforcement schedules may affect rate changes during CSs only within a limited range of CS durations.

EFFECTS OF RATIO REINFORCEMENT SCHEDULES ON DISCRIMINATION PERFORMANCE BY JAPANESE MONKEYS

In Experiment 1, Japanese monkeys were trained on three conditional position-discrimination problems with colors as the conditional cues. Within each session, each problem was presented for two blocks of ten reinforcements; correct responses were reinforced under continuous-reinforcement, fixed-ratio 5, and variable-ratio 5 schedules, each assigned to one of the three problems. The assignment of schedules to problems was rotated a total of three times (15 sessions per assignment) after 30 sessions of acquisition training. Accuracy of discrimination increased to a moderate level with fewer trials under CRF than under ratio schedules. In contrast, the two ratio schedules, fixed and variable, were more effective in maintaining accurate discrimination than was CRF. With further training, as asymptotes were reached, accuracy was less affected by the schedule differences. These results demonstrated an interaction between the effects of reinforcement schedules and the level of acquisition. In Experiment 2, ratio sizes were gradually increased to 30. Discrimination accuracy was maintained until the ratio reached 20; ratio 30 strained the performance. Under FR conditions, accuracy increased as correct choice responses cumulated after reinforcement.

Appetitive and Aversive Reinforcement Schedule Effects on Behavior: A Systematic Replication

Three male volunteers lived for six successive days within a laboratory environment programmed for continuous residence. During days when subjects' work on a multiple task performance battery had the effect of preventing reductions in accumulated group earnings, all subjects complained, one subject stopped working, and another subject's productivity declined. When identical work had the effect of incrementing group earnings, such byproducts of aversive control were absent. These results extend the generality of previous analyses of reinforcement schedule effects on behavior and thereby demonstrate their reliability. The reactions of the subjects to the aversive reinforcement schedule were similar to the reactions of the crew manning the last Skylab mission.

Classical conditioning of the rabbit nictitating membrane response: effects of reinforcement schedule on response maintenance and resistance to extinction.

Two experiments were conducted to assess the effects of the introduction of schedules of partial reinforcement (PRF), subsequent to continuous reinforcement training, on the maintenance and resistance to extinction of the rabbit’s nictitating membrane CR. Substantial response levels were maintained by schedules of reinforcement as lean as 15%, and the performance decrements, when observed to be reliable, could not be localized to the immediate effects of one, two, or three consecutive nonreinforced trials by the examination of conditional response probabilities. Moreover, reliable PRF extinction effects were obtained. The relevance of these findings to the purported empirical divergence of PRF effects on classical and instrumental conditioning were discussed.

ON THE FALSITY OF SOME RELATIONS BETWEEN REINFORCEMENT AND INTERRESPONSE TIMES

A formal analysis is made of some conclusions by Anger (1956) and Morse (1966), based on the results of Anger's experimental research into the effects of reinforcement schedules on the distribution of times between successive responses. This analysis shows that the conclusions are fundamentally incorrect.

Partial Reinforcement of Social Behavior in Rats

The effects of partial reinforcement on a social response were studied in 2 groups of rats. One group was trained to follow other rats on a continuous schedule and the other on a partial (50%) schedule. Animals having partial reinforcement training performed at a higher level during extinction than those trained under continuous reinforcement. The results were interpreted as extending reinforcement schedule effects to animal social behavior.

CHANGES IN FRIENDSHIP STATUS AS A FUNCTION OF REINFORCEMENT

48 preschool Ss (mean age = 58 months) were paired as mutually neutral friends to test the hypothesis that friendship status, as defined by a picture sociometric test, is affected by the reinforcement schedule used in a cooperative task. The experimental conditions were continuous reinforcement, fixed ratio 20, fixed ratio 40, and nonreinforcement. Pre-experimental and postexperimental friendship assessments were made on an individual basis. An analysis of variance for repeated measures revealed that all Ss receiving reinforcement increased in friendship status as rated by their partners. Although there were no reinforcement schedule effects, the direction and size of the friendship changes were in the expected order. Implications for further research and practical application of the findings are discussed. Most of the research in the area of friendship has been concerned with the Ss' personality as a major determinant of friendship (e.g., Austin & Thompson 1948; Frankel 1946; McCandless & Marshall 1957; Morton 1960; Philip 1940; Reese 1961; Thompson & Nishimura 1950). There have been studies which investigated the effects of friendship status on performance levels (Cohen 1962; Ex 1959; Gottheil 1955; Hartup 1964; Phillips & D'Amico 1956), although none considered experimental manipulations of variables which may effect changes in friendship. It was the primary purpose of the present study to investigate changes in preschool children's friendship status as the result of reinforcement schedules in a cooperative task.

REPEATED MEASUREMENTS OF REINFORCEMENT SCHEDULE EFFECTS ON GRADIENTS OF STIMULUS CONTROL1

Two experiments studied the effects of reinforcement schedules on generalization gradients. In Exp. 1, after pigeons' responding to a vertical line was reinforced, the pigeons were tested with 10 lines differing in orientation. Reconditioning and the redetermination of generalization gradients were repeated from 8 to 11 times with the schedule of reinforcement varied in the reconditioning phase. Stable gradients could not be observed because the successive reconditionings and tests steepened the gradients and reduced responding. Experiment 2 over-came these effects by first training the birds to respond to all of the stimuli. Then, brief periods of reinforced responding to the stimulus correlated with reinforcement alternated with the presentation of the 10 lines in extinction. The development of stimulus control was studied eight times with each bird, twice with each of four schedules of reinforcement. Gradients were similar each time a schedule was imposed; the degree of control by the stimulus correlated with reinforcement varied with particular schedules. Behavioral contrast occurred when periods of reinforcement and extinction alternated and was more durable with fixed-interval, variable-interval, and variable-ratio schedules than with fixed-ratio or differential-reinforcement-of-low-rate schedules.

Extinction, Stimulus Generalization and Partial Reinforcement for Higher-Order Meaning Conditioning

This study investigated the degree to which higher-order conditioning of word meaning demonstrated acquisition, stimulus generalization, extinction and differential effects of reinforcement schedules. For 120 Ss, using a 2 × 3 factorial design, only extinction was not demonstrated. S awareness was unrelated to acquisition.

Effects of Reinforcement Schedules on Preferences and Variability of Responses in Laboratory Rats

Regardless of reinforcement schedule (CRF, FR-4, VR-4) during training on a single manipulandum, transfer to a multiple-manipulandum situation under CRF showed no schedules effect. Of the transfer devices, the chain was preferred by most Ss. Individual differences were marked and probably account for the discrepancy between these results and those with children.

Effect of reinforcement schedules on reward shifts.

Effect of reinforcement schedules on reward shifts.