PSYC 100 Lecture Notes - Lecture 17: Psych, Nucleus Accumbens, Limbic System
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Ratio schedules: based on a ratio of responses to reinforcements. Continuous reinforcement: every time the subject/organism responds appropriate- ly, they receive a reinforce o. Ex: a child receiving a sticker after they successfully use the toilet. Fixed-ratio reinforcement: reinforcement delivered after a specific number of re- sponses have been made o o. Practical example: a coffee card, ie: receive a free coffee after purchasing 9 others. Variable-ratio reinforcement: occurs when the delivery of reinforcement is based on particular average number of responses o. Practical example: casinos allot a jackpot or cash reward on an average of 100. These schedules are more effective than fixed-ratio reinforcement, and thus acquire higher rates of responding. The subject does not know when the reinforcer is coming (the re- ward is intermittent), so they keep on trying until they finally receive their reward o. This concept leads to partial reinforcement, where only some responses are fol- lowed by reinforcement o.
