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The most common version of the behavioral perspective on motivation is the theory of operant conditioning associated with B. F. Skinner (1938, 1957). Behaviorism is a theory of learning, but the same operant model can be transformed into an account of motivation. In the operant model, a behavior being learned (the “operant”) increases in frequency or likelihood because performing it makes a reinforcement available. To understand this model in terms of motivation, think of the likelihood of response as the motivation and the reinforcement as the motivator. Imagine, for example, that a student learns by operant conditioning to answer questions during class discussions: each time the student answers a question (the operant), the teacher praises (reinforces) this behavior.
In addition to thinking of this situation as behavioral learning , however, you can also think of it in terms of motivation: the likelihood of the student answering questions (the motivation) is increasing because of the teacher’s praise (the motivator). Many concepts from operant conditioning, in fact, can be understood in motivational terms. Another one, for example, is the concept of extinction , a sort of “unlearning”, or at least a decrease in performance of previously learned. The decrease in performance frequency can be thought of as a loss of motivation, and removal of the reinforcement can be thought of as removal of the motivator. The following table summarizes this way of reframing operant conditioning in terms of motivation.
| Concept | Definition phrased in terms of learning | Definition phrased in terms of motivation | Classroom example |
| Operant | Behavior that becomes more likely because of reinforcement | Behavior that suggests an increase in motivation | Student listens to teacher’s comments during lecture or discussion |
| Reinforcement | Stimulus that increases likelihood of a behavior | Stimulus that motivates | Teacher praises student for listening |
| Positive reinforcement | Stimulus that increases likelihood of a behavior by being introduced or added to a situation | Stimulus that motivates by its presence ; an “incentive” | Teacher makes encouraging remarks about student’s homework |
| Negative reinforcement | Stimulus that increases the likelihood of a behavior by being removed or taken away from a situation | Stimulus that motivates by its absence or avoidance | Teacher cancels a quiz after students turn in homework every day this week |
| Punishment | Stimulus that decreases the likelihood of a behavior by being introduced or added to a situation | Stimulus that decreases motivation by its presence | Teacher deducts points for late homework |
| Extinction | Removal of reinforcement for a behavior | Removal of motivating stimulus that leads to decrease in motivation | Teacher stops commenting altogether about student’s homework |
| Shaping successive approximations | Reinforcements for behaviors that gradually resemble (approximate) a final goal behavior | Stimuli that gradually shift motivation toward a final goal motivation | Teacher praises student for returning homework a bit closer to the deadline; gradually she only praises for actually being on time |
| Continuous reinforcement | Reinforcement that occurs each time that an operant behavior occurs | Motivator that occurs each time that a behavioral sign of motivation occurs | Teacher praises highly active student for every time he works for five minutes without interruption |
| Intermittent reinforcement | Reinforcement that sometimes occurs following an operant behavior, but not on every occasion | Motivator that occurs sometimes when a behavioral sign of motivation occurs, but not on every occasion | Teacher praises highly active student sometimes when he works without interruption, but not every time |
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