Schedules of Reinforcement

Schedules of reinforcement are from Operant Conditioning theory, part of the Behaviourist Approach to explaining behaviour.  Behaviourism is a way of explaining human behaviour that ignores everything that is not observable.  Schedules of Reinforcement are different ways of delivering a reinforcer with the aim of maintaining a person’s present rate of response.  Continuous or full reinforcement ensures a rapid acquisition of behaviour, but once a rate of response is achieved, it is best to switch to partial reinforcement to maintain the response rate at the desired level, both fixed and variable interval and ratio.  There are many examples in real life, gamboling strategies being often cited in literature.  It is suggested that our behaviour is maintained over a much longer period if partial reinforcement schedules are used.  I might suggest there is a price to pay, a cognitive debt, if you like.

Technological Breakdown

Technology has been failing me over the last few months.  For the stereotypical woman that is a sort of a simpering statement as those sort of toys are definitely for boys.  Not for me, I love technology, love computers and gadgets and am the proud owner of an Iphone 4, a Nexus 7 and a Lenovo Ideapad laptop.  Those of you switched onto technology will note that none of these items is ’top of the range’, that is perhaps were the girl in me comes in. 

Softness: The New Strong

As August draws to a close, I find myself affected by the change that is all around us, and this year is no different.  I have never been a fan of autumn; it seems to me to be the season that most marks out the fleeting nature of our lives; underlines most clearly that ‘all things must pass’.  In years gone by it has signaled the start of the fight to survive winter, both psychologically and to some extent physically, but that too has changed.  I no longer dread the descent to depression that made the winter months a battle, alongside the struggle against physical illness.

Father's Day Blues

I've been battling with fury recently.  Deep burning, frustrated fury.  As a result I've been drinking too much wine and beating myself up for failing.  Then crying at small bits of sadness in deep and heavy gulps.  Why the dramatics?  My long suffering and relatively recently acquired boyfriend is bewildered by the madness I'm sure.  Which, of course, turns me back to the paranoia of 'when he finds out what I'm really like I won't see him for dust'.  A state of mind that insults his intelligence and belittles his affection for me, and could indeed set up a need for an escape on his part.  The one thing I haven't been able to do is write.  The muse has deserted me.  No pictures in my mind to form  into words, just pain and loneliness within.  A empty vessel making rather a lot of sound.

The Biscuit Question

Well, I've done it again, pulled into myself and stopped writing.  I could cite a number of reasons but I suppose the truth is I've run headlong into another relationship.  It was just a few weeks after the Professor sent his letter ending our time together.  The headlong dash was the sort of behaviour I had deplored in others in the past, but then if I've learnt anything from the years since the Absent Father departed, it's never to say 'never'.

Getting my Mojo back

It is odd isn't it?  All the time I was in my 'happy' relationship I found I couldn't write very much.  I haven't quite worked out why I found myself empty.  Part of my identity, post-marriage, has been bound up with my ability to express myself, so what was I doing, suddenly frozen?  It's terribly easy to be wise after the event, after the relationship went wrong, so suddenly and so unexpectedly.

Dear John

You know all those things you wish you'd said to his face? When you've been dumped via a stock letter that was something of a shock.  And you know you'll  never get the reaction you want.

This is my blog, after all, and this is what I said.  Quite what his reaction was, I'll never know.  Sad feeling really.