Operant Conditioning: How Consequences Shape Behavior and Its Limits
In 1930, B.F. Skinner placed a rat in a box with a lever. When the rat pressed the lever, a food pellet dropped. The rat pressed more.
January 2025
Self-Determination Theory: Why Rewards Can Destroy Motivation
In 1971, Edward Deci paid students to solve Soma puzzles they previously enjoyed — and found they spent less time on the puzzles during free time...
Learned Helplessness: Why People Stop Trying When Nothing Seems to Work
Martin Seligman and Steven Maier gave dogs inescapable electric shocks in 1967. When later placed in a box where escape was easy, the dogs did not...
November 2024
Intermittent Reinforcement: Why Unpredictable Rewards Create Strongest Habits
Intermittent reinforcement explains why slot machines, social media likes, and even toxic relationships can be impossible to quit.