Revised on 1/4/14
Malott's 2nd question on p. 6 (middle of 1st column) asks what reinforces the behavior of giving attention to Eric as he throws a tantrum. Watching something - Eric throwing a tantrum, a beautiful sunset, a good-looking person - is a behavior. And all behaviors require explanation.
Malott says that sometimes the sight of the thing we're looking at reinforces the behavior of looking at it. This is an example of a stimulus functioning as a reinforcer (remember the 4 kinds of reinforcers discussed on p. 3). The sight of something, the smell of something, the taste of something - these are all stimuli, & in the right circumstances, any of them might function as a reinforcer for a behavior that they immediately follow.
Anyway, Eric is throwing a tantrum & you watch him as he howls & flails about. Your watching is a behavior. Why do you do it? Because it's reinforced by the sight of the thing you're looking at.
Monday, August 23, 2010
When the sight of the thing reinforces looking at it
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Principles of Behavior: Ch. 01
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I teach courses in the principles and applications of Behavior Analysis, the science and technology of behavior, which is different from other approaches in psychology in that it takes behavior as a subject matter in its own right, rather than as a tool for studying something else, such as the mind. The main purpose of this blog is to be a supplementary means of communication with students who are taking my courses.
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