AP PSYCHOLOGY

LEARNING

OPERANT CONDITIONING

Question [CLICK ON ANY CHOICE TO KNOW THE RIGHT ANSWER]
Slot machines are an example of ____ schedule of reinforcement. (You don’t know how many attempts it will take)
A
fixed ratio
B
variable ratio
C
fixed interval
D
variable interval
Explanation: 

Detailed explanation-1: -Gambling at a slot machine is an example of a variable ratio reinforcement schedule5. What is this? Gambling or lottery game rewards unpredictably. Each winning requires a different number of lever pulls.

Detailed explanation-2: -variable ratio schedule. The variable ratio schedule occurs when a response is reinforced after an unpredictable number of responses. A slot machine is an example of this schedule because the players do not know how many times they have to play before they win something.

Detailed explanation-3: -In a variable ratio reinforcement schedule, the number of responses needed for a reward varies. This is the most powerful partial reinforcement schedule. An example of the variable ratio reinforcement schedule is gambling.

Detailed explanation-4: -For example, in a variable-ratio schedule with a VR 5 schedule, an animal might receive a reward for every five responses, on average. One time, the reward would come after three responses, then seven responses, then five responses, and so on.

There is 1 question to complete.