Self-reinforcement.

Area of Science:

• Behavioral Psychology
• Operant Conditioning
• Self-Control

Background:

• Self-reinforcement involves subjects delivering consequences to themselves contingent on behavior.
• Existing definitions of reinforcement often overlook the agent defining the reinforcement criteria.
• This distinction is crucial for understanding operant situations and self-control.

Purpose of the Study:

• To clarify the definition of self-reinforcement in operant psychology.
• To differentiate self-reinforcement from externally-defined reinforcement contingencies.
• To explore the implications of this distinction for research and practice.

Main Methods:

• Conceptual analysis of reinforcement definitions.
• Comparison of self-reinforcement with machine-defined and teacher-defined reinforcement.
• Examination of the role of the defining agent in reinforcement contingencies.

Main Results:

• Self-reinforcement lacks the independent definition of the response requirement characteristic of other reinforcement types.
• The subject acts as the definer of the reinforcement contingency in self-reinforcement.
• This challenges traditional views of reinforcement contingencies.

Conclusions:

• The definition of self-reinforcement needs refinement to account for the subject's role as the definer.
• Alternative formulations are proposed to better capture the nuances of self-administered consequences.
• Understanding this distinction is vital for advancing research and clinical applications in behavioral psychology.