"Shaping" or "method of successive approximation" is a procedure which may be applied to increase the frequency of a response which has a low operant level, or it may also be used to bring about responses which have not been previously emitted. In "shaping," the experimenter initially reinforces a response which is within the behavorial repertoire of the subject. Then, the experimenter reinforces only responses which approximate the behavior which is desired. The final behavior is then directly reinforced.
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"Shaping" or "method of successive approximation" is a procedure which may be applied to increase the frequency of a response which has a low operant level, or it may also be used to bring about responses which have not been previously emitted. In "shaping," the experimenter initially reinforces a response which is within the behavorial repertoire of the subject. Then, the experimenter reinforces only responses which approximate the behavior which is desired. The final behavior is then directly reinforced.
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