As described in your textbook, Twitmyer reported his revolutionary findings about conditioned responses to a less than enthusiastic response. He was discouraged and ultimately did not continue to study behaviorism. What makes the difference between people who persist and people who give up? Given what you have read about learning, how could you use principles in this chapter to help motivate someone in your life who is discouraged about their bad grades?

Question

What will be an ideal response?

Answer 1

Answer: One key difference between Twitmyer and his contemporary, Ivan Pavlov, is that Pavlov had his own laboratory, the Institute of Experimental Medicine in Leningrad. It could have been true that Pavlov, with his other research on digestion, had a more varied reinforcement schedule with wider potential for praise and other reinforcers. Perhaps this is one way in which to encourage others in your life. We know that consequences shape behavior. Too often we unintentionally reinforce bad behavior and fail to reinforce good behavior. In one example, we often make ourselves feel really bad when we get poor grades, even on a single test. However, good grades can get fleeting praise, rewarded only at the end of a semester, or perhaps no reward at all. If you are discouraged about your grades, set a baseline and shape your studying behavior. Reinforce small successes such as “better” grades, or good quiz grades. Be consistent and reach your goal. Tweaking the types of reinforcement and the reinforcement schedules can help people feel more encouraged and keep them motivated!