Continuous Reinforcement
The Basic Idea
Ask anyone with a dog and they’ll surely admit to using incentives, such as a treat, to teach their dog tricks. You raise your dog’s paw, say “shake,” and perform an overexaggerated shake motion, before showering your dog with over-the-top praise and a treat. After doing this repeatedly for a few months, you realize your dog will now shake your hand even if treats aren’t provided. Learning a new behavior in this way can be explained by continuous reinforcement.
Continuous reinforcement is the repeated reinforcement of a behavior every time it happens. This can involve positive (adding a stimulus) or negative (removing a stimulus) reinforcement, with the goal of encouraging certain actions.
Continuous reinforcement is one of two foundational types of reinforcement schedules. It is most effective when used in the initial stages of learning to implement a strong association between a certain behavior and its consequences.1 The second schedule, partial reinforcement, reinforces a desired behavior occasionally. This schedule can be predictable or unpredictable.
When reinforcement occurs every single time a desired behavior is displayed, associations can be easily made, enabling one to learn quickly. However, in some cases there is a limit to the benefits of continuous reinforcement. Your dog might be less likely to shake your hand when they’ve had too much to eat. Extinction of the learned behavior can materialize quickly when the reinforcement stops.2
The way positive reinforcement is carried out is more important than the amount.
–Burrhus Frederic Skinner, American psychologist
