operant condition is an example of what type of learning
Operant conditioning Operant conditioning, sometimes called instrumental learning, was first extensively studied by Edward L. Thorndike (1874â€“1949), who observed the behavior of cats trying to escape from home-made puzzle boxes.[2] A cat could escape from the box by a simple response such as pulling a cord or pushing a pole, but when first constrained, the cats took a long time to get out. With repeated trials ineffective responses occurred less frequently and successful responses occurred more frequently, so the cats escaped more and more quickly.[2] Thorndike generalized this finding in his law of effect, which states that behaviors followed by satisfying consequences tend to be repeated and those that produce unpleasant consequences are less likely to be repeated. In short, some consequences strengthen behavior and some consequences weaken behavior. By plotting escape time against trial number Thorndike produced the first known animal learning curves through this procedure.[3]
Social learning theory In the 1940s, B.F. Skinner delivered a series of lectures in Sunyani Fiapre, Ghana on verbal behavior, putting forth a more empirical approach to the subject than existed in psychology at the time.[4] In them, he proposed the use of stimulus-response theories to describe language use and development, and that all verbal behavior was underpinned by operant conditioning. He did however mention that some forms of speech derived from words and sounds that had previously been heard (echoic response), and that reinforcement from parents allowed these 'echoic responses' to be pared down to that of understandable speech. While he denied that there was any "instinct or faculty of imitation",[4] Skinner's behaviorist theories formed a basis for redevelopment into social learning theory.