B_F_Skinner

B F Skinner B. F, Skinner’s Operate Conditioning “In operant conditioning, people and animals learn to do certain things—and not to do others—because of the results of what they do” (Rathus, 135-136). Voluntary responses such as behaviors that people have control over are conditioned. A psychologist named B. F. Skinner devised a weapon called Project Pigeon. Pigeons had guided missiles to targets during the war. As the pigeons pecked at the targets on a screen, they were given food pellets. Once the learned how to acquire those skills, they were put in missiles. The principles of learning Skinner applied to the project are fine examples of operant conditioning. An animal or person learns to do something because of its effects or consequences that occur. Skinner realized that if the pigeons were rewarded with food, they would continue to do a good job by pecking at the targets. Also, Skinner devised a “Skinner skinner, conditioning, targets, project, pigeons, operant, occur, food, different, write, various, skinner’s, results, rat, people, missiles, given, experiments, devised, about, work, weapon, ways, war, voluntary, under, treated, took, thoughts, things—and, that’s, talk, stimulus, something