B.F Skinner Theory of Operant Conditioning   

 He gave operant conditioning theory, which is also known as ‘R’ Type theory or ‘S-R Type theory”.

his experiment on rat and pigeons are famous.

the experiment is applicable to behaviour of people also.

rewards and punishments control the great majority of human behaviour.

Operant conditioning is the method of learning that occurs through rewards and punishment for behaviour.

Experiment:

BF Skinner has a special device called Skinner Box. When the hungry mouse pushes the lever, the feeding mechanism is activated, a constant light and sound are heard, and a small ball of food is set to be sent to the cup. The click was a sign that the rat would be rewarded for going out for food. The rat gets reward as food, on each proper response pressing to the lever, which makes the rat to repeat the same behaviour again and again. So, the mouse has learned to press the lever.

1) Positive reinforcement

This occurs when a stimulus is presented as a result of an action and the action is more likely to occur in a similar context.

The rats learned to go straight to the lever after some attempts. Here, getting food is positive reinforcement for rat.

Negative reinforcement

The removal of an unpleasant reinforce can also strengthen behaviour.

Applications

Results of a reaction are a wellspring of inspiration to additional event of that conduct. For E.g., prize, acclaim and so on The school can use the principles of operant conditioning to eliminate the elements of fear by using positive reinforcement.The most effective development this theory has worked on is the development of educational and learning machines. According to this theory, learning occurs when a textbook is designed to be less likely to fail and more likely to succeed. Teachers must provide immediate feedback on learning accuracy so that students can “learn at their own pace”.