Developmental Psychology

Achieve Test Prep: Developmental Psychology

Schedule Continuous

Definition

Pros

Cons

Behavior is rewarded every time it is performed

Good for initial learning Rapid response of desired behavior

Difficult to maintain Difficult to maintain

Fixed Ratio Behavior is rewarded after it is performed a certain number of times

Fixed Interval

Behavior is rewarded after a specified number of minutes pass The desired behavior will occur a random number of times before it is rewarded

Low success rate

Variable Ratio

Easy to maintain, which produces a high and steady response rate Easy to maintain Low and steady response rate

Variable Interval

The desired behavior will be rewarded after a random timeframe has passed

Social Learning Theory : A different learning theory, which was postulated by Alfred Bandura, stated there was a difference between learning and behavior. Bandura believed learning can happen from observing others and reinforcement is not always necessary for learning to occur. His most famous study was the Bobo Doll study. A Bobo doll, an inflatable doll which is weighted on the bottom, was often used as a child’s toy during Bandura’s experiments. A group of children was allowed to view videos of other children beating up the Bobo doll. Some children were rewarded for their action, others were punished, and the rest were given no reaction. After viewing the video, the children were allowed to play with their own Bobo doll. The children who had seen violent behavior rewarded, were quick to mimic the violent behavior. The group of children that had seen the video of children being punished for beating up the doll were resistant to mimicking the punished behavior. The children who had seen the video of other children beating up the doll and receiving no reaction, were okay with mimicking the violent behavior. Bandura believed this experiment showed how children learn by observation. 3. Cognitive Theory Much like Erikson’s stages of development, Jean Piaget’s theory contained stages of cognitive development.

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