How Often Should You Reward? Finding the Right Schedule

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How Often Should You Reward? Finding the Right Schedule

Educational Psychology · Chapter 3: Behavior, Conditioning, and Classroom ManagementSection 3.5 · lesson 23 of 1009 min · free with a free account

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In this lesson

Continuous and partial schedules, and the behavioral signature of each.

  • Distinguish continuous from partial reinforcement
  • Compare the four partial schedules on rate and durability
  • Recognize the scallop effect and post-reinforcement pause
  • Thin a reinforcement schedule to make behavior durable

Transcript

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Behavior, Conditioning, and Classroom Management

How Often Should You Reward? Finding the Right Schedule

Two teachers praise the same behavior equally often. In one classroom the behavior survives the year. In the other it fades by October. The difference is not how much reinforcement was delivered. It is the pattern in which it arrived. This section covers schedules of reinforcement. Continuous and partial, and the four partial schedules Skinner identified. Each one produces a distinctive signature in behavior. We will learn to recognize those signatures in a classroom. And we will end with the transition that makes any of it durable. It is called thinning the schedule, and skipping it is a common mistake.

The Discovery

How Often, Not Just Whether

One of Skinner's most practically significant discoveries concerned timing. The pattern by which reinforcement is delivered has profound effects. It affects the rate of responding. And it affects the behavior's resistance to extinction. Two broad categories exist. Continuous reinforcement means every instance of the behavior is reinforced. Partial reinforcement means only some instances are. And each is better at a different job. Continuous reinforcement is ideal for initially establishing a new behavior. Partial reinforcement schedules produce more durable behavior over time. So the right answer changes as the behavior develops. Which means the schedule should change too.

Two Dimensions

Ratio or Interval, Fixed or Variable

Skinner identified four primary partial schedules. Each is defined by crossing two questions. The first question is ratio or interval. Is reinforcement delivered after a set number of responses? Or after a set amount of time has passed? The second question is fixed or variable. Is that number or time period predictable, or does it vary? Cross those and you get four schedules. Fixed ratio. Variable ratio. Fixed interval. Variable interval. These four produce distinctly different behavioral patterns. Which is the useful part for designing any classroom reward system.

Fixed Ratio

Reward After Every Nth Response

On a fixed ratio schedule, reinforcement follows every nth response. A fixed ratio of five delivers a reward after every fifth correct answer. The learner can count, at least approximately. Fixed ratio schedules produce high response rates. They also produce something characteristic called a post-reinforcement pause. That is a brief drop in responding immediately after a reward is received. It lasts until the next ratio cycle begins. You have seen this in a classroom without naming it. Students often disengage briefly after completing a large assignment. Then they re-engage when the next task begins. That pause is not laziness, and it is not a discipline problem. It is the schedule doing what schedules of that kind do.

Variable Ratio

The Most Persistent Schedule There Is

Variable ratio schedules deliver reinforcement unpredictably. After a varying number of responses, averaging some value. A variable ratio of five reinforces on average every fifth response. But the actual number varies randomly from one time to the next. This schedule produces the highest and most consistent response rates. The highest of all four. And it is the most resistant to extinction by a wide margin. There is a famous demonstration of this outside the laboratory. Slot machines operate on a variable ratio schedule. The unpredictability is precisely what maintains the behavior. In classrooms, surprise quizzes work the same way. So do random teacher check-ins.

Key Idea

Unpredictable Beats Systematic

Here is the key idea, and it is counter-intuitive. Variable ratio schedules produce the most persistent behavior. And the greatest resistance to extinction. Which means unpredictable rewards can beat systematic ones. An unexpected great job. A random spot-check of homework. Those can be more powerful than a carefully designed points system. The reason is worth understanding rather than memorizing. A predictable schedule tells a student when reinforcement is not coming. So responding has a reason to stop during those times. An unpredictable schedule never gives that information. So the behavior never has a moment where it is safe to lapse.

Fixed Interval

The Scallop Effect

Fixed interval schedules are timed rather than counted. Reinforcement follows the first response after a fixed period of time. The classic educational example is a scheduled exam. Watch the pattern of studying around it. Students study intensively as the exam date approaches. And they reduce studying immediately afterward. That pattern has a name. It is called the scallop effect. Responding increases toward the end of each interval. Then there is a post-reinforcement pause at the start of the next one. Note what this tells you about scheduled testing. The cramming pattern is not a character flaw in students. It is what a fixed interval schedule reliably produces, in any organism.

Variable Interval

Steady, Moderate, and Hard to Extinguish

Variable interval schedules are timed, but unpredictably. Reinforcement follows the first response after a variable amount of time. This produces steady, moderate response rates. There are few pauses, and strong resistance to extinction. Moderate but constant, rather than high and spiky. In education, several familiar practices are variable interval schedules. Pop quizzes. Random classroom observations. Unannounced homework checks. And the behavioral effect is exactly what you would predict. Students who know a quiz could come at any time tend to maintain more consistent study habits. They are not working harder overall. They are working more evenly.

Compared

Four Schedules, Four Signatures

Put the four side by side and each has a signature. Fixed ratio reinforces after every N responses. High response rate, with a pause after each reward. Moderate extinction resistance. Variable ratio reinforces after an average of N responses. Very high rate, no pause, and very high resistance to extinction. Fixed interval reinforces after a set time period. Low rate, with the scallop effect, and low resistance to extinction. Variable interval reinforces after a variable time period. Moderate and steady rate, with high resistance to extinction. Pay attention to that last column in particular. Resistance to extinction is how long a behavior lasts once rewards stop. Which is the only measure that matters after a student leaves your room.

Examples

What Each Looks Like in School

Each schedule has a natural classroom form. Fixed ratio is a prize after ten pages of reading. Variable ratio is random homework checks. Fixed interval is a scheduled weekly quiz. Variable interval is a pop quiz that could come on any day. A single teacher can run all four across one year. New vocabulary words are praised on a continuous schedule at first. Once students know the words, a random quiz format maintains retention. That is variable ratio. Long-term projects get reviewed on a fixed interval. And daily effort is monitored by variable interval clipboard walks. The teacher notes who is on task, on no predictable timetable.

Thinning

The Transition That Makes It Last

One transition matters more than choosing between schedules. Start with continuous reinforcement when introducing a new behavior. Every instance gets reinforced, which builds the connection quickly. Then, once the behavior is established, shift gradually to a partial schedule. That shift is called thinning the schedule. It is a critical step in creating lasting behavioral change. And it is the step most often skipped. Consider what happens when you skip it. You are left with a behavior that depends on reinforcement every single time. That dependence holds only while your attention is fully on it. The moment your attention moves elsewhere, the behavior stops. Thinning is what makes a behavior survive your inattention.

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FAQ

Questions students ask us

About How Often Should You Reward? Finding the Right Schedule

What is the difference between continuous and partial reinforcement?
Continuous reinforcement rewards every instance of a behavior, while partial reinforcement rewards only some instances. Continuous reinforcement is best for establishing a new behavior quickly, but partial schedules make behavior more durable and resistant to extinction. The recommended approach is to start continuous and then gradually shift to a partial schedule, a step called thinning the schedule.
What are the four schedules of reinforcement?
Skinner identified four partial schedules: fixed ratio, variable ratio, fixed interval and variable interval. Ratio schedules reinforce after a number of responses, while interval schedules reinforce the first response after a period of time; fixed means predictable and variable means unpredictable. A prize after ten pages read is fixed ratio, and a pop quiz that could come any day is variable interval.
Which schedule of reinforcement is most resistant to extinction?
The variable ratio schedule produces the highest, steadiest response rates and the greatest resistance to extinction. Reinforcement comes after an unpredictable number of responses, so there is no safe moment to stop responding. Slot machines are the classic example. In classrooms, random homework checks work similarly, which is why unpredictable recognition can sustain behavior better than a predictable points system.
What is the scallop effect in reinforcement?
The scallop effect is the pattern produced by a fixed interval schedule: responding is low just after reinforcement and rises sharply as the next scheduled reward approaches. Studying for a scheduled exam is the classic example, with students cramming as the date nears and easing off right afterward. The pause after each reward is called a post-reinforcement pause.

About the Educational Psychology course

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Educational Psychology (Psychology 120) carries a NCCRS credit recommendation for 3 semester credits. ACE and NCCRS have over 2,100 cooperating colleges that will consider accepting credits; the final decision is with the universities.
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