Operant conditioning is most closely associated with which theorist?

Operant conditioning is most closely associated with which theorist?

• A. Albert Ellis
• B. John Holland
• C. B.F. Skinner
• D. John Bowlby

Answer: (C)

Operant conditioning centers on how behavior is shaped by its consequences. The theorist most closely associated with this view is B.F. Skinner, who studied how voluntary actions are strengthened or weakened by reinforcement and punishment. He showed that when a behavior is followed by a reinforcing outcome, its likelihood of occurring again increases, while punishing outcomes can reduce it. He also introduced shaping, where rewards are given for closer and closer approximations to a desired behavior, and he explored different reinforcement schedules that affect how durable a behavior is over time. The idea that an organism’s actions operate on the environment to produce outcomes is the hallmark of this approach, which is why Skinner is the primary figure linked to operant conditioning.

Operant conditioning centers on how behavior is shaped by its consequences. The theorist most closely associated with this view is B.F. Skinner, who studied how voluntary actions are strengthened or weakened by reinforcement and punishment. He showed that when a behavior is followed by a reinforcing outcome, its likelihood of occurring again increases, while punishing outcomes can reduce it. He also introduced shaping, where rewards are given for closer and closer approximations to a desired behavior, and he explored different reinforcement schedules that affect how durable a behavior is over time. The idea that an organism’s actions operate on the environment to produce outcomes is the hallmark of this approach, which is why Skinner is the primary figure linked to operant conditioning.