Schedules of Reinforcement

Reinforcement is the process of strengthening a behavior by presenting a "rewarding" stimulus (positive reinforcement) or removing an unpleasant stimulus (negative reinforcement). At times, the trainer presents the reinforcer following every instance of the behavior. However, it is very common for a trainer to present the reinforcer after only some instances of the behavior and still maintain, and even strengthen, behavior. The particular pattern of delivering the reinforcer is referred to as the schedule of reinforcement. These schedules include continuous reinforcement schedule, fixed ratio schedule, variable ratio schedule, fixed interval schedule, and variable interval schedule. We recommend that you read the Learning Objectives for this section, explore each of the Concepts/Terms, and work through the Learning Activities.