Katrina is trying to put a coin into a vending machine in her office. Sometimes the machine will take a coin on the first try, other times it can take up to five or six tries before the coin is finally accepted. On which type of schedule is inserting a coin into the vending machine reinforced, in this example?

Question

Quizplus · Accepted Answer

In this scenario, the reinforcement schedule for inserting a coin into the vending machine is intermittent because it is not reinforced every time the behavior occurs, but rather on a random or unpredictable basis. Sometimes the behavior is reinforced after the first attempt, while other times it takes several attempts before the behavior is reinforced. This type of intermittent reinforcement schedule is known to be very effective in maintaining behaviors because the person is not sure when the reinforcement will occur and therefore continues to engage in the behavior in the hopes of receiving a reinforcement.

Katrina Is Trying to Put a Coin into a Vending