Productivity in Operant Conditioning, the Essay

The manager of a manufacturing organization could offer the rewards when the amount of items produced increases by a constant number. Say for instance a worker produces 5 parts a day; if he produces 6 during one day, he will not receive a rewards, but if he produces 6 parts every day, throughout a whole month, he would receive a reward. This way, the objective of increasing the productivity would be reached and the staff would not feel exploited as their efforts are being rewarded.

A b) Variable-ratio schedules - "a reinforcer is delivered after an average number of responses, but varies through session" (University of Toronto); this basically means that the reward is offered at various unpredictable times, through the analysis of the performances of the subject

The manager could offer incentives every now and then, but they would not be offered at specified times. This would ensure that the employees remain alert at all times; they know they are being observed and considered for a reward and they consequently work harder. The benefit of this schedule is that it has an increased response from the staff members, unlike the fixed-ratio schedule, where the responses tend to drop immediately after receiving the reward.

A c) Fixed-interval schedules - "the first response is rewarded only after a specified amount of time has elapsed" (Van Wagner, 2008)

The manager could offer incentives to his subordinates in various forms, but they would not be presented immediately after the favorable action - this time an increase in efforts, performances and consequently productivity - but some time after it. This ensures that the employee is still alert to requirements and puts in increased efforts in the hope of getting a better reward.The downside of it is however that after the reward is received, the employees are no longer responsive.

A d) Variable-interval schedules - the "reinforcer is delivered for the first response after an average time has elapsed (and it) differs between trials" (University of Toronto)

This basically means that the manager would reward actions during an interval at imprecise moments. As such, the employees would remain responsive for longer periods of time.

All in all, the reinforcement schedules are aimed to generate favorable responses, to the stimuli and rewards received. The above examples are generic ones, a proper schedule only being properly developed by considering various aspects of the micro and macro environments.

References

Van Wagner, K., 2008, Schedules of Reinforcement, About.com, last accessed on July 31, 2008

Reinforcement Schedules, University of Toronto, Department of Psychology, Retrieved at http://www.psych.utoronto.ca/~psy260/2006LecturesSlides/PSY260_Lecture10_notesBW.pdfon July 31, 2008

Reinforcement Schedule, High Beam Encyclopedia, http://www.encyclopedia.com/doc/1O87-reinforcementschedule.htmllast accessed on July 31, 2008

Schedules of Reinforcement, University of Iowa, Department of Psychology, http://www.psychology.uiowa.edu/Faculty/wasserman/Glossary/schedules.htmllast accessed on July 31, 2008

Schedules of Reinforcement, University of North Carolina Wilmington, Retrieved at http://people.uncw.edu/hurstr/psy350ppt/ch17-18-19schedofreinf.ppton July 31, 2008.....