Behavioral Consequences and Stimulus Changes in Behavior Analysis

• IF you interview for a job,
• THEN you get the job (the "job" or the employment status is the new stimulus added to your life).

A medium shot of a professional setting, likely an office or interview room. On the left side of the frame is a woman in profile; on the right, a man in a blue dress shirt and tie is seated at a desk. They appear to be engaged in a formal interview.

Identifying a Positive Reinforcer ($SR+$)

Not every stimulus presentation is meaningful. For a stimulus presentation to be considered a positive reinforcer ($SR+$), it must meet a specific functional criterion: it must increase the future frequency of the behavior above its established baseline level.

Exam Tip: To determine if a consequence is a reinforcer, don't look at the stimulus itself; look at the behavior. If the behavior happens more often in the future because of that stimulus, it is a reinforcer.

The Role of Motivating Operations (MOs)

While consequences happen after a behavior, Motivating Operations (MOs) are antecedent variables. They exist before the behavior and influence how that behavior will unfold. MOs do not cause behavior directly, but they change the "landscape" of the environment in two distinct ways: through their effect on the value of the consequence and their effect on the immediate frequency of the behavior.

1. The Value-Altering Effect

The value-altering effect refers to how an MO changes the effectiveness of a consequence. It is vital to distinguish between the behavior and the consequence here: MOs do not make a behavior more reinforcing; they make a consequence more or less reinforcing.

In lay terms, this is how an MO makes an individual "want" or "not want" a consequence. This effect is divided into two categories:

• Reinforcer Establishing Effect: This occurs when an MO increases the reinforcing value of a consequence. (Example: Being deprived of food makes food much more reinforcing).
• Reinforcer Abolishing Effect: This occurs when an MO decreases the reinforcing value of a consequence. (Example: Having just eaten a large meal makes food much less reinforcing).

2. The Behavior-Altering Effect

While the value-altering effect deals with how much we "want" something, the behavior-altering effect deals with the immediate impact on our actions. This effect refers to the immediate increase or decrease in the frequency of behaviors that have produced that consequence in the past.

This is categorized into two types:

• Evocative Effect: An MO that immediately increases the likelihood or frequency of a response.
• Abative Effect: An MO that immediately decreases or suppresses the likelihood or frequency of a response.

Summary Table: MO Effects

To help distinguish these concepts, refer to the following summary of how Motivating Operations function:

By mastering these distinctions, you can move beyond simply describing what people do and begin understanding the complex interplay between the environment, the value of rewards, and the immediate triggers for action.