Question

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I have struggled with this question for more than 1 hour. Anyone, please help me understand it and answer this question properly for me. I do highly appreciate your help so much.

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For each of the following behaviors, identify the schedule of reinforcement: fixed ratio, variable ratio, fixed interval or variable interval. Explain why you chose the schedule you did.

a. Operant behavior: Rover's television watching

-The boy: Do you ever watch a lot of TV, Rover.
-Rover: What do you mean? There are maybe one or two dog food commercials I like to see.
-The boy: Yes. But, it's all the hours you put in waiting for those one or two commercials to come on.

b. Operant behavior: Your friend's game-playing.

Your friend is on their phone again playing their favorite game. The game has different levels, and sometimes it takes a number of tries to get through a level, but your friend eventually conquers that level and moves on to the next level. Your friend says, "I don't know why I can't put down this game!"

c. Operant behavior: Shopping at Safeway.

For every $100 you spend, you get 1 "reward." "Rewards" can be exchanged for discounts on purchases.

d. Operant behavior: Self-administering IV pain medication

After surgery, you are given pain medication through an IV line. You can press a button to give yourself another dose whenever you'd like. However, there is a catch. Your doctor has set the dosage so that the button does nothing until an hour after the last dose you gave yourself.

Answer 1

For solving this question, first of all you have to understand what does "Schedules of reinforcement" mean.

Schedules of reinforcement are some rules that are used to present reinforcers or to remove punishers after a specified operant behaviour.

Mainly, they are of 2 kinds-- Interval schedule and Ratio schedule.

1. Interval Schedule-- In this type, we need to have a minimum amount of time that must pass between successive
  reinforced responses.

-- If there is a fixed time between the responses, then that will be fixed interval schedule.

-- If there is a variable time between the responses, that will be called as variable interval schedule.

2. Ratio schedule-- In this type, we need to have certain number of operant responses in order to produce the next
  reinforcer.

-- If the required number of responses is fixed from one to next one, then it is called as fixed ratio
schedule.

-- If the required number of responses vary from one to the next one, then it is called as variable ratio
schedule.   

Now, let's move to the conditions given in the question.

a. In this part, Rover is watching TV just for dog food commercials but there is no fixed time for those to appear, so he spend
variable number of hours watching TV.  

So, the schedule here will be Variable interval schedule.

b. In this part, your friend is playing a game and sometimes, he is able to cross a level instantly while other times, it took him
  many tries to get through a particular level. So, the things are not fixed but he has to get through one particular level to get
to the next one.

So, the schedule here will be Variable ratio schedule.  

c. In this part, we are shopping at Safeway and for every $100 that we are spending, we are getting 1 reward. So, the
  spending is fixed (i.e. $100) and only after spending that , we will get reward otherwise nothing.

So, the schedule here will be Fixed ratio schedule.

d. In this part, the dosage button is set for 1 hour, you can't give yourself another dose before completion of 1 hour after the
  1st one.

So, the schedule here is Fixed interval schedule.

Answer 2

how casino uses rewards program to track everything you do- is this an example of reinforment or punishment?