Research Paper – Operant Conditioning: Applying Animal Research to Human Behavior

I need an A on this assignment. I will provide Instructor main points that he want to see you write on in a few days. Please read over carefully the instructions in detail. I already got a F done by another tutor on this hw and the instructor is allowing redo on my term paper counted as my final exam.

Minimum of 6 pages – 7 pages max, APA format 12 point font Times New Roman Double space – not including the cover page and reference page. Do not number cover page, number 1 start on the first page of essay and 1″ margin on all four side. Do not use right-justified (even-right hands) margin. No plagiarism cannot quote or paraphrase from summarized articles or other sources. Need to be your own words throughout, if the summary is better than the interpretation, than it is evidence you are copying. This is counted 50 percent of my grade and is like a final exam. Work must be provided with a no plagiarism report. Please see the attached for full instructions. Below is a brief summary of what you need to write on and you must follow the instructions listed below on how to right this research paper. I need an A and I do not want to get an F. The professor state you must follow his direct instructions, THERE MAY OCCASIONALLY BE DIFFERENCES BETWEEN THE TEXT’S VERSIONS OF CONCEPTS AND THE VERSIONS THAT I PRESENT IN CLASS, IN 302notes , OR IN DOCUMENTS LISTED IN 302schedule . WHEREVER THERE IS A DIFFERENCE, THE VERSION THAT I PROVIDE IS THE ONE THAT YOU SHOULD PRESENT IN YOUR PAPER.

The paper is divided into two parts (you do not need to include the headings listed below).

Part 1: Basic Concepts and Principles The first part of the paper discusses the fundamentals of operant conditioning based on animal research. First Two Paragraphs on Page 1: Begin with a definition of operant conditioning as an approach to analyzing behavior that focuses on the ways in which behavior is influenced by its consequences in the environment. You can illustrate the process of operant conditioning by using the prototypical experiment of a rat that presses a bar, receives food, and then presses the bar at a higher rate. NOTE: It would be useful to define reinforcement and punishment here in the first paragraph when you discuss the consequences of behavior. However, DO NOT start defining positive and negative reinforcement, and positive and negative punishment, in the first paragraph because these are technical distinctions that would distract from the basic point of the paragraph. For contrast, in the next paragraph (not later in the paper), present a short paragraph (half page maximum) that discusses classical conditioning as a process in which learning occurs even though the learned behavior has no consequences in the environment. You can illustrate this process with the experiment in which the ringing of a bell is paired with food and a dog learns to salivate when the bell is rung even though the food is given regardless of the animal’s behavior. (You don’t have to use the terms US, UR, CS, CR.) Starting with the Third Paragraph and Continuing for 2 or 3 pages: Define and give your own examples of the terms listed below (Part 1 is not a literature review). A common problem with students’ papers is that they leave out required terms or do not provide the requested information. It is suggested that you check off each of the following terms and related information as you complete it. Do not simply the list the terms. They should be conceptually related to each other with logical transitions between terms. SEE CHECKLIST ON NEXT PAGE

Key Points on Terms … 1. Be sure to define a technical term before you use it to explain something else. 2. Do not use the term that you’re defining in the definition of that term.

Part 2: Human Operant Research The second part of the paper summarizes two or more experiments (from different research articles, not from the same article) on human operant behavior that illustrate concepts from Part 1. The articles you use must involve human participants in either a laboratory or applied setting. No credit will be given for a summary in which the subjects were animals. IN AT LEAST ONE OF YOUR ARTICLES, THE PARTICIPANTS MUST BE NORMAL ADULTS OR NORMAL TEENAGERS (i.e. not children, not psychotics, not mental patients, not autistic persons, and not mentally retarded persons). The main purpose of the research must have been to study a process in operant conditioning (they can’t just use an operant concept to explain results from a study in a different field). Do not use an article that assesses ways of teaching operant conditioning. The articles must be from a primary source in a printed journal (not a website or web page) describing the full original experiment and not from a secondary source, such as Psychological Bulletin, that presents summaries. Each of the experiments you summarize must come from a different research article. If a research article includes more than one experiment, you do not have to summarize all of the experiments in that article. One is enough if your summary of it is detailed and substantial. Each article must be summarized separately. Do not combine two 9 articles into a single summary that makes blanket statements about what the two studies had in common. Begin each summary by stating what concept or concepts from Part 1 it illustrates. In at least 1 page per article (preferably more than 1 page), describe the rationale, procedure, and specific findings of the study. In other words, you should compare findings (e.g., response rates) in different conditions or groups and not just state a general conclusion that the researchers drew from their findings. The summary is in past tense. For an article on shaping, describe in detail the successive approximations that were used to establish the target response. Whatever topic you select, your description of the research must be thorough enough to demonstrate that you have carefully read and understood the research. Use your own words and avoid paraphrasing and jargon. Before summarizing your first study, present a paragraph to relate Part 1 to Part 2. You should indicate which concepts from Part 1 will be illustrated. Also, point out the key role of instructions in human operant research. A significant way in which human operant research differs from research with nonhuman species is that with human participants instructions are usually included to speed up the conditioning process. Typically, instructions are used to describe the response that will be reinforced. After the response occurs, it produces reinforcement and then the frequency of the response is increased. Instructions may also be used to describe the reinforcers (or punishers) involved and the schedules under which they will be administered (e.g., the complex reinforcement systems used in token economies). You can point out that even though the use of instructions may seem to make human operant research fundamentally different from animal research, the instructions themselves may be conceptualized in basic operant conditioning terms. Instructions can be a type of discriminative stimulus in that they precede the response and signal that if the response is performed it may be reinforced. In this sense, instructions are just a more complex form of the visual and auditory stimuli used as discriminative stimuli in animal research. Referring to an article. When you introduce an article in Part 2, give the authors’ last names and the year of publication, like: “A study by Renee and Creer (1976) used shaping to …” Do not give the authors’ first names, their institutional affiliation, or the title of the article. SUGGESTED READINGS As a general suggestion, you could look through issues of the Journal of Applied Behavior Analysis. This journal specializes in the study of human operant behavior in socially significant settings. In addition to the paper copies available in the library, all issues (except those from the most recent 6 months) are available online for free in pdf format. Links to all of the issues and articles can be found in the following archive: In your summary of each article, highlight the ways in which the researcher used instructions to facilitate conditioning, for example, by describing the response that was required for reinforcement or by describing the possible outcomes of that response. see attachment for articles to read and research.

Psychology 302

Sections 02 and 03
Dr. D. J. Navarick
Spring 2018

Guidelines for the Paper

Operant Conditioning:
Applying Animal Research to Human Behavior

This paper is required of all students in the class. In accordance with University policy
requiring an opportunity to revise the paper before it receives a final grade, there will be two
deadlines: one for a draft and one for the final version. A grade (point value) will be assigned to
both versions, but only the one assigned to the final version will count toward the course grade.
Therefore, if you turn in the draft but not the final version, you will receive a 0. If you turn in
the final version but not the draft, there will be no penalty in terms of points, only the lost
opportunity to revise the paper (plus the negative impression this could create as to your degree
of commitment to improving your writing skills).

FORMAT AND BASIC REQUIREMENTS

The minimum number of pages is 6 (not including the cover page and reference section).
The maximum number of pages is 7. Material beyond the 7-page limit will not be read. If you
turn in less than 6 pages, there will be a penalty of 6 points for each page by which the paper
falls short. If a portion of your last page is unfilled, a proportionate number of points will be
deducted. For example, suppose you turned in 5 full pages. Your highest possible score would
then be 35 – 6 = 29.

A “full” page consists of 12-pt Times New Roman font, double-spaced, with a 1-inch margin
on the top, bottom, left and right sides, and no extra space (in addition to double spacing)
between paragraphs or between text and headings. Check to be sure the bottom margin is not
wider than 1 inch when the paper is printed. Each page must be printed on a separate sheet of
paper.

For the draft, you can turn in less than 6 pages. The number of points you receive is advisory
and does not count towards your grade; it lets you know what my assessment is of the quality of
the pages that you turned in. This number will not include a deduction for turning in less than 6
pages. However, if you turn in less than 6 pages for the final version of the paper, there will be a
deduction as described above.

You can use the following formula to interpret the points you receive on the draft:
(points received/number of pages you turned in) X 6. Suppose you turned in 3 pages and got
11 points. Then: (11/3) X 6 = 22. This means that if the final version you turn in is at the same
level of quality as the draft, you can expect to receive about 22 out of 35, which is a D (D = 21,
as shown in the chart in the course syllabus).

The paper must be printed (double-spaced throughout the manuscript) with very dark
(black, not gray), sharp, clear print. Each page must be printed on a separate sheet of
paper. Papers with light, fuzzy, wavy, or smeared print, or randomly changing font size,
slant, or darkness, will either not be accepted or will be accepted with a BIG penalty (e.g.,

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20% or higher). YOU are responsible for the quality of the print that you turn in, even if
you paid a company or campus facility to print it for you. Don’t assume it will come out
OK; it sometimes doesn’t. Leave yourself enough time to redo it in case it does not meet
the quality requirements. Turning in a paper with substandard print to save a little
money or time could result in your repeating the course. Only printed manuscripts will be
accepted, no email attachments or faxes.

A constant-size, 12-pt. Times New Roman font (only this size and style) must be used
throughout the paper, with 1-inch margins on all four sides of the page. Do not number the cover
page (so it’s clear that the cover page does not count toward the 6 pages). Each page after the
cover page must be numbered in the upper-right corner, with the first page of text as Page 1 (this
is to make clear that the cover page does not count toward the 6-page requirement). Do not use
right-justified (even right-hand) margins.

BE SURE TO INCLUDE A REFERENCE PAGE. THERE WILL BE AN AUTOMATIC
POINT DEDUCTION IF THERE IS NO REFERENCE PAGE. The reference page (like the
cover page) does not count toward the 6-page requirement.

The manuscript must be double-spaced between all lines, including between paragraphs
and between headings and text. Be sure to check your formatting on Word so that there
are no extra spaces between paragraphs or between headings and text. The extra spaces
serve to shorten the manuscript and may result in a point deduction.

Do not put the paper in any kind of folder. However, include a cover page with your name on
it and a title. The cover page and the reference page do not count toward the 6-page requirement.
Start the numbering from the first page of text, not the cover page (which is APA format), to
make clear that the cover page does not count toward the 6-page requirement. Staple the pages
in the upper left corner.

Points may be deducted if these format requirements are not met.

For the Final Version, paper clip a copy of the draft that you turned in for the March

deadline. Do not attach any other drafts that you brought in for feedback.

DEADLINES

FOR THE DRAFT:
Deadline…………. March 7, Start of Class
No late drafts will be accepted.

FOR THE FINAL VERSION:
Deadline……………………….. April 11, Start of Class*
Cut-off Date/Time for Late Papers……..April 13, 1:00 PM
No papers will be accepted after the cut-off date and time.
In addition, 2 points will be subtracted for each day
after April 13 that the paper is late. See Course Syllabus,
pp. 10 – 11, for details.
*See next page for bonus points.

*Bonus points are added for turning in the paper early. Penalty points are subtracted for
turning in the paper late. This is the schedule:

If the paper is turned in by… The following adjustment will be made…

Monday, April 9, 5:00 PM 4 points will be added
Tuesday, April 10, 5:00 PM 2 points will be added
Wednesday, April 11, Start of Class No adjustment will be made
Thursday, April 12, 5:00 PM 2 points will be subtracted
Friday, April 13, 1:00 PM 4 points will be subtracted;
NO PAPERS WILL BE ACCEPTED
AFTER 1:00 PM ON APRIL 13.

If you do not give the paper to me personally, then you must take it to the Psychology
Department office (H-830M) and stamp the date and time of receipt on the cover page. Only this
stamp is acceptable. If you get there after the office closes, do not slip your paper under the
office door or place it in any other receptacle.

To reduce the risk that your paper will be placed in the wrong mailbox, display my name
prominently on the cover page as well as including your own name. Ask the secretary to place
the paper in my mailbox. If you do not give the paper to me personally, you are accepting the
risk that your paper may be lost before it gets to me, and this could eventually result in your
getting a 0 on the paper. Even if you do everything right, your paper may still be placed in the
wrong mailbox.

DO NOT SLIP THE PAPER UNDER MY OFFICE DOOR. IT WILL NOT BE
ACCEPTED AND YOU MAY RECEIVE A 0 ON IT.

Whether you bring the paper to me or to the Psychology Department office, AS A BACKUP IN
CASE THE PAPER IS LOST, BE SURE TO KEEP A FILE OF THE COMPLETE PAPER
THAT YOU SUBMITTED AS EVIDENCE THAT YOU DID COMPLETE IT ON TIME.

OBJECTIVES OF THE PAPER

The paper discusses how processes discovered with rats, pigeons, and other nonhuman
species can be applied to human behavior. Such processes include reinforcement, punishment,
stimulus discrimination, schedules of reinforcement, and the establishment of secondary
(learned) reinforcers. The general approach of the paper is to define and give your own
examples of the concepts that are listed on Page 7, and then apply one or more of the concepts to
two (or more) published operant conditioning experiments (from different articles) with human
participants that you summarize in depth.

To organize your paper, you should follow the outline that starts on Page 6. If you want to
organize your paper in a different way, you should check with me first.

THERE MAY OCCASIONALLY BE DIFFERENCES BETWEEN THE TEXT’S
VERSIONS OF CONCEPTS AND THE VERSIONS THAT I PRESENT IN CLASS, IN
302notes , OR IN DOCUMENTS LISTED IN 302schedule . WHEREVER THERE
IS A DIFFERENCE, THE VERSION THAT I PROVIDE IS THE ONE THAT YOU
SHOULD PRESENT IN YOUR PAPER.

Additional factors that will contribute to your grade on this paper are as follows:

1. First and foremost, the paper must be written in your own words throughout. You cannot
quote or paraphrase from summarized articles or other sources. Do not think that changing a
few words here and there makes it OK. I look at the vocabulary and sentence structures you
use when summarizing articles and compare them to other parts of the paper where you give
your opinions. Writing style must be consistent throughout. If it’s clearly better on the
summaries than the interpretations, this is evidence of copying.

Paraphrasing also means following the original source line by line and changing some words as
you go along. As a result, the sequence of ideas within the paragraph is the original author’s
rather than your own. Do not write this way. Do not look at the original article while you write.

Use only operant conditioning concepts and principles in your discussion. Do
not use everyday terms such as “understands,” “feels that,” “knows,” “gets it,”,
“figures out,” “wants,” “needs,” “believes,” “thinks,” “expects,” “pleasure,”
“displeasure.” Your grade on this paper will depend significantly on how well
you avoid using such “reified” concepts when talking about human and animal
behavior. For additional information, review the Powerpoint on intervening
variables.

Suggestion for Improving Accuracy

Review concepts shortly before you write about them (like within an hour of
writing). Do not rely on memory for things you went over weeks earlier
because it’s easy to forget technical details that are important for defining
the concepts.

BUT …

Suggestion for Avoiding Copying and Paraphrasing

Do not look at other sources (such as PowerPoints and articles you’re
summarizing) while you are writing. Wait a few minutes, then write from
memory. Chances are you’ll remember the ideas and not the exact words.
Then check back to see if the ideas you wrote are accurate and
complete.

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2. The thoroughness of the summaries. I look for evidence that you really understood the
article. For example, did you describe results in detail by comparing different groups and saying
how they ranked on some dependent variable? Or did you just state a general conclusion? Can
you relate the results and conclusion to the rationale and hypotheses of the study?

3. Coherence and organization. This means that ideas that are conceptually related are
discussed in the same place and in a logical sequence. Each paragraph has a theme or makes a
point; it is not an arbitrarily selected set of sentences.

4. Development. When an idea is introduced, is it followed up with additional sentences to
clarify the meaning? Often, students start to make a good point and then just drop it and go on to
something else. One approach to avoid this is to let the first sentence of a paragraph state the
general idea that will be developed within the paragraph. A useful way to develop an idea is to
describe an example of the concept.

5. Grammar, spelling, and typos. The more errors, the lower your grade is likely to be.

6. Concise writing. Eliminate redundant and obvious phrases.

7. Content. The accuracy of statements, the insightfulness of interpretations, and the
originality of ideas are all considered. Avoid giving everyday, common sense interpretations of
behavior. I’m looking to see how well you can apply operant conditioning concepts. Avoid
redundancy, and do not attempt to fill space with rambling generalities or baseless speculations.

COMMON WRITING ERRORS

The two most common grammatical errors are sentence fragments (incomplete sentences)
and run-on sentences (a comma instead of a period). You should be particularly alert to these
easy-to-correct errors.

Additional things to look for:

(1) Be sure to use an apostrophe when indicating possession, for example, “participant’s
behavior” if participant is singular, or “participants’ behavior” if participant is plural. It is not
okay to leave out the apostrophe as a convenience. Leaving it out interferes with comprehension
and unnecessarily slows down reading.

(2) You can write in 1st person (I, we) or 3rd person (they, it, one), but do not write in 2nd
person (you, your). Second person is too informal and conversational. Third person is best
because it is most common in scientific writing. It conveys objectivity in the expression of ideas.
Objective means the idea is valid no matter who expresses it; subjective means the idea is valid
only as the personal expression of the writer.

(3) Use the pronoun “who” when referring to people and use the pronoun “that” when
referring to things, for example, “participants who”, not “participants that”.

(4) Logical writing: Define terms before you use them to explain something else (for
example, define reinforcement before you define discriminative stimulus because the latter term
includes reinforcement in the definition). When you define a term, do not use the term being
defined in the definition.

ORGANIZATION

The paper is divided into two parts (you do not need to include the headings listed below).

Part 1: Basic Concepts and Principles

The first part of the paper discusses the fundamentals of operant conditioning based on animal
research.

First Two Paragraphs on Page 1:

Begin with a definition of operant conditioning as an approach to analyzing behavior
that focuses on the ways in which behavior is influenced by its consequences in the
environment. You can illustrate the process of operant conditioning by using the
prototypical experiment of a rat that presses a bar, receives food, and then presses the bar
at a higher rate.

NOTE: It would be useful to define reinforcement and punishment here in the first
paragraph when you discuss the consequences of behavior. However, DO NOT start
defining positive and negative reinforcement, and positive and negative punishment, in the
first paragraph because these are technical distinctions that would distract from the basic
point of the paragraph.

For contrast, in the next paragraph (not later in the paper), present a short paragraph
(half page maximum) that discusses classical conditioning as a process in which learning
occurs even though the learned behavior has no consequences in the environment. You
can illustrate this process with the experiment in which the ringing of a bell is paired with
food and a dog learns to salivate when the bell is rung even though the food is given
regardless of the animal’s behavior. (You don’t have to use the terms US, UR, CS, CR.)

Starting with the Third Paragraph and Continuing for 2 or 3 pages:

Define and give your own examples of the terms listed below (Part 1 is not a literature
review). A common problem with students’ papers is that they leave out required terms or do
not provide the requested information. It is suggested that you check off each of the following
terms and related information as you complete it. Do not simply the list the terms. They should
be conceptually related to each other with logical transitions between terms.

SEE CHECKLIST ON NEXT PAGE

Key Points on Terms …

1. Be sure to define a technical term before you use it to explain something else.

2. Do not use the term that you’re defining in the definition of that term.

CHECKLIST OF TERMS FOR PART 1

Use the versions of these concepts that were presented in class (and that are also provided
online on PowerPoints and Word documents).
Typical Response Rate and Pattern
Concept Definition Example (for Schedules of Reinforcement)

positive reinforcement _______ _______

negative reinforcement _______ _______

positive punishment _______ _______

negative punishment _______ _______

primary reinforcer _______ _______
(Do not define it in terms of biological needs.)

secondary reinforcer _______ _______

schedule of reinforcement _______

continuous reinforcement _______ _______ _______

partial reinforcement _______ _______

fixed ratio _______ _______ _______

variable ratio _______ _______ _______

fixed interval _______ _______ _______

variable interval _______ _______ _______

(For FR, VR, FI, and VI you can illustrate the response rates and patterns using a rat pressing a
bar in an operant chamber.)

stimulus discrimination _______ *_______
(Do not define it in terms of distinguishing between similar stimuli.)

discriminative stimulus _______ *_______

delta stimulus _______ *_______

Include any additional specialized procedures that may play a role in the studies that you will
summarize in Part 2, such as shaping, differential reinforcement of other behavior (DRO),

For the terms,
continuous and partial
reinforcement, include
in your discussion a
definition of satiation
using the concepts
presented in class. In
general, how does
satiation affect the rate
of responding?
Explain why satiation
is faster on continuous
reinforcement
schedules than on
partial reinforcement
schedules.

*Define all three of these
terms and then give one
example that includes all
three terms so you can
show how the terms are
interrelated. Do not give a
separate example for each
term.

Each partial
schedule has its
own pattern…

Review 302notes , pages 4 and 5
before starting the section on schedules
of reinforcement.

http://images.google.com/url?q=http://www.clker.com/clipart-26936.html&sa=U&ei=txm_UsPUIcfIkAfvu4DoCQ&ved=0CC4Q9QEwAg&usg=AFQjCNHnwxGKv6tjFGGRa7BJ7GQx485dOw

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concurrent schedules, changeover delay (COD), and noncontingent reinforcement (fixed-time or
variable-time schedules).

Organizing the terms. Do not simply list the terms in Part 1. An effective approach to
organization is a hierarchical structure that divides broader concepts into narrower ones. For
example:

Consequences
Reinforcers Punishers
Positive Negative Positive Negative

The next paragraph further develops the theme of consequences by discussing the distinction
between primary and second reinforcers. Then the paper turns to a discussion of schedules of
reinforcement, again with a hierarchical structure:

Schedules of reinforcement
Continuous reinforcement Partial Reinforcement
FR VR FI VI

You may have additional concepts to discuss under the theme of consequences because they are
included in your summaries of the articles in Part 2, for example, shaping, COD, noncontingent
reinforcement.

Then the paper turns to the antecedents of behavior: discriminative stimulus and delta
stimulus, and the effects that these stimuli have on behavior: stimulus discrimination (responding
differently in the presence of different stimuli).

Part 2: Human Operant Research

The second part of the paper summarizes two or more experiments (from different research
articles, not from the same article) on human operant behavior that illustrate concepts from
Part 1.

The articles you use must involve human participants in either a laboratory or applied setting.
No credit will be given for a summary in which the subjects were animals. IN AT LEAST ONE
OF YOUR ARTICLES, THE PARTICIPANTS MUST BE NORMAL ADULTS OR NORMAL
TEENAGERS (i.e. not children, not psychotics, not mental patients, not autistic persons, and
not mentally retarded persons).

The main purpose of the research must have been to study a process in operant conditioning
(they can’t just use an operant concept to explain results from a study in a different field). Do
not use an article that assesses ways of teaching operant conditioning.

The articles must be from a primary source in a printed journal (not a website or web page)
describing the full original experiment and not from a secondary source, such as Psychological
Bulletin, that presents summaries. Each of the experiments you summarize must come from a
different research article. If a research article includes more than one experiment, you do not
have to summarize all of the experiments in that article. One is enough if your summary of it is
detailed and substantial. Each article must be summarized separately. Do not combine two

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articles into a single summary that makes blanket statements about what the two studies
had in common.

Begin each summary by stating what concept or concepts from Part 1 it illustrates. In at least
1 page per article (preferably more than 1 page), describe the rationale, procedure, and specific
findings of the study. In other words, you should compare findings (e.g., response rates) in
different conditions or groups and not just state a general conclusion that the researchers drew
from their findings. The summary is in past tense.

For an article on shaping, describe in detail the successive approximations that were used to
establish the target response.

Whatever topic you select, your description of the research must be thorough enough to
demonstrate that you have carefully read and understood the research. Use your own words
and avoid paraphrasing and jargon.

Before summarizing your first study, present a paragraph to relate Part 1 to Part 2. You
should indicate which concepts from Part 1 will be illustrated. Also, point out the
key role of instructions in human operant research. A significant way in which human
operant research differs from research with nonhuman species is that with human participants
instructions are usually included to speed up the conditioning process. Typically, instructions
are used to describe the response that will be reinforced. After the response occurs, it produces
reinforcement and then the frequency of the response is increased. Instructions may also be used
to describe the reinforcers (or punishers) involved and the schedules under which they will be
administered (e.g., the complex reinforcement systems used in token economies).

You can point out that even though the use of instructions may seem to make human operant
research fundamentally different from animal research, the instructions themselves may be
conceptualized in basic operant conditioning terms. Instructions can be a type of discriminative
stimulus in that they precede the response and signal that if the response is performed it may be
reinforced. In this sense, instructions are just a more complex form of the visual and auditory
stimuli used as discriminative stimuli in animal research.

Referring to an article. When you introduce an article in Part 2, give the authors’ last
names and the year of publication, like: “A study by Renee and Creer (1976) used shaping
to …” Do not give the authors’ first names, their institutional affiliation, or the title of the
article.