Learning in Real Life Portfolio 

Operant conditioning is the theory by B.F. skinner that learning can change a person’s behavior based on positive and negative reinforcement. If we do something pleasurable we will continue to do it, if we do something that is not pleasant then we won’t continue the behavior. In Beth’s case, operant conditioning can hinder her from making friends if the students aren’t welcoming and don’t include her in the group or if she tries to make friends and it doesn’t work out, or if she doesn’t try to make friends because she is too shy.

Operant conditioning can hinder Beth from making friends if they isolate her from the group since she’s new and nobody knows her. Sometimes, teenagers have a hard time communicating and welcoming people in when they already have their group of friends. As teenagers, we tend to make judgments about a person before we even know them, and our assumptions can depict how we see and treat the person.

If Beth feels isolated and like an outsider, then that can make her feel uncomfortable and like she doesn’t belong.

If this occurs continuously then she wouldn’t want to return to the meetings and it would hinder her from making friends. Since the experience she had was unpleasant then she’s not going to repeat the behavior. If Beth tries to make friends and it’s not successful, then she’s not going to try it again. When you do something out of your comfort zone and then it doesn’t go well, you will begin to doubt yourself.

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This one experience can hinder her from making friends in general. She’s not going to want to try and make friends with other people with the impression that everyone is going to shut her down. Operant conditioning can hinder her from making friends because she’s not going to repeat this behavior for fear of rejection from people. So, her not trying to make friends is an example of a negative reinforcement to avoid getting rejected. The last way that operant conditioning can hinder Beth from making friends is if she’s too shy. When you’re shy you get anxious talking to people you don’t know.

So, this can trigger the fight or flight response and cause Beth to not talk or participate in the group. If this occurs then she can feel very uncomfortable because people around her are talking and having a good time, while she’s alone and quiet. Also, people can mistake her for being unapproachable because of how quiet she is. This can cause Beth to not want to come back because she may assume that they don’t like her. This will cause Beth to not come back. In conclusion, operant conditioning can hinder Beth from making friends in a lot of different ways. For example, isolation, rejection, and being shy can hinder making friends. All of these examples have the same negative reinforcement of avoidance. If Beth avoids trying to make friends, then she will not be rejected or isolated.