Hello, My Dear Reader (MDR),
Welcome to another newsletter from ANEP! I hope you enjoy reading this piece as much as I enjoyed writing it.
Last week…
You and I concurred that experience may be the best or only teacher. We took a trip down memory lane to properly understand the rudiments of classical conditioning.
Let’s not linger in the past for too long...
Another form of learning originates from the consequences of our actions. It’s a principle called operant conditioning.
Operant conditioning occurs when we learn from the results of our actions, whether good or bad.
What’s more?
Psychological research has shown that the outcome of a behaviour determines if it is going to be repeated or not.
Rewards (as the name implies) are good outcomes of actions while punishments are the unsavoury aftermath.
It’s time for some examples…
My dear reader, operant conditioning is more common than we think. We eat to stop hunger, take vaccines to avoid diseases, wear clothes to protect ourselves from cold, and obey traffic rules to prevent accidents.
How about a quick case study?
Our hypothetical character is called Tunde. Right from childhood, he has always been told not to pick money from the ground. He has heard countless stories of people who have turned into yam because their curiosities could not be helped.
One evening, Tunde is strolling from work and sees a crisp 1000 naira note on the ground. His eyes scan the area and it appears that no one seems to be paying attention. He bends effortlessly and picks up the money like a pro.
Tunde spends ten minutes waiting for his supernatural transformation into yam but it doesn’t happen. He gets home, eats dinner and goes to bed, nothing happens. He gets up in the morning and notices that he’s not yet a yam tuber.
Tunde is out on the streets of Lagos again, he sees another shiny 1000 naira note. He grins widely. Tunde will do it again.
The takeaway from this story…
When we engage in behaviours that bring about positive consequences (rewards) we are more than likely to repeat that action in future times. On the other hand, behaviours that bring about bad experiences (punishments) are less likely to be repeated.
In conclusion,
MDR, I hope you enjoyed today’s newsletter. Please leave a comment, share with your network and subscribe if you haven’t. Registration for our official inauguration is still ongoing. Click on the button below to register.
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See you next week.
Cheers,
Ewoma Omoghene