of Clicker Training Terms
Behavior Enterprises (ABE) First business to commercially
apply the principles of Operant Conditioning to animal training. Founded
by Keller and Marian Breland, in the roughly 45 years of its existence,
ABE staff trained 15,000 animals in 140 different species.
Aversive Something the
animal is willing to work to avoid.
the last behavior in a chain first, then training the next-to-last behavior,
then the behavior before that, and so on. Back-chaining takes advantage
of the Premack Principle.
Bailey, Bob (Robert E.) A
chemist and zoologist who pioneered OC-based animal training methods
in free environment and production settings. Bob and his wife, Marian
Breland Bailey, taught the principles of Operant Conditioning to dog
trainers in their "chicken training" camps.
Bailey, Marian Breland B.F.
Skinner's second graduate student. Marian and her first husband, Keller
Breland, worked with Skinner on the "pigeon bombing project"
in World War II, and then left their graduate studies to found Animal
Behavior Enterprises. Marian got her Ph.D in 1978 and was a college
professor for twenty years. Although she retired in 1998, Marian and
her second husband, Bob Bailey, continued teaching the principles of
Operant Conditioning in their "chicken training" camps.
Balanced training A type
of training using all five principles of Operant Conditioning and an
event marker (clicker) to modify behavior. This type of training is
better known as "combined training." Balanced training implies
equal amounts of reinforcement and punishment. However, the fallout
associated with punishment makes such a "balance" a poor training
Behavior Anything an animal
Breland, Keller B.F. Skinner's
first graduate student. Keller and his wife, Marian Breland (Bailey),
worked with Skinner on the "pigeon bombing project" in World
War II, and then left their graduate studies to found Animal Behavior
Enterprises. Keller was the first to use an event marker, which he called
a bridging stimulus, as a bridge between the desired response and the
delivery of the primary reinforcer.
Bridging stimulus An event
marker that identifies the desired response and "bridges"
the time between the response and the delivery of the primary reinforcer.
The clicker is a bridging stimulus.
Calming signals Subtle
body signals used by dogs to indicate stress and to avoid or diffuse
confrontation and aggression.
Chaining The process of
combining multiple behaviors into one continuous behavior with a single
Classical Conditioning The
process of associating a neutral stimulus with an involuntary response
until the stimulus elicits the response.
Clicker A toy noisemaker.
Animal trainers make use of the clicker as an event marker to mark a
desired response. The clicker is an excellent marker because it is unique,
quick, and consistent.
Clicker training A term
coined by Karen Pryor and defined by her as a subset of Operant Conditioning
using positive reinforcement, extinction, negative punishment, and an
event marker to modify behavior.
Combined training A type
of training using all five principles of Operant Conditioning and a
marker signal (clicker) to modify behavior.
Compulsion training The
traditional style of dog training where the dog is modeled or otherwise
compelled to perform the behavior and physically corrected for non-compliance.
Conditioned reinforcer A
neutral stimulus paired with a primary reinforcer until the neutral
stimulus takes on the reinforcing properties of the primary. A clicker,
after being repeatedly associated with a food treat or other reinforcer,
becomes a conditioned reinforcer.
Consequence The result
of an action. Consequences frequently - but not always - affect future
behavior, making the behavior more or less likely to occur. The five
principles of Operant Conditioning describe the potential results.
Continuous reinforcement The
simplest schedule of reinforcement. Every desired response is reinforced.
stimuli that evoke one response with an opposite response, so that the
stimulus now evokes the new response. For example, a dog is afraid of
men wearing hats. When a man wearing a hat approaches, the dog is repeatedly
fed his favorite food. The goal is to replace the fear with the pleasure
elicited by the food. Counter-conditioning must be done gradually, however.
If the process were rushed, the favorite food could take on the fear
Criteria The specific,
trainer-defined response in a training session. The trainer clicks at
the instant the animal achieves the criteria. Criteria can include not
only the physical behavior but elements like latency, duration, and
Crossover dog A dog that
has previously been trained by a non-clicker method who is now being
Crossover trainer A trainer
who previously used non-clicker methods to train animals who is now
Cue A stimulus that elicits
a behavior. Cues may be verbal, physical (i.e., a hand signal), or environmental
(i.e., a curb may become a cue to sit if the dog is always cued to sit
before crossing a road).
Desensitization The process
of increasing a tolerance to a particular stimulus by gradually increasing
the presence of the stimulus.
Differential reinforcement Correct
responses are rewarded and incorrect ones are not, OR better responses
are given a more powerful reinforcer and lesser responses are given
a lower value reinforcer. Differential reinforcement is not a schedule
Event marker A signal used
to mark desired behavior at the instant it occurs. The clicker is an
Extinction The weakening
of behavior through non-reinforcement. "Ignoring" the behavior.
In extinction, nothing is added or removed from the environment. For
example, a treat lies on the other side of a fence. A dog reaches his
paw under, but cannot reach the treat. Because reaching for the treat
doesn't work - because it isn't reinforced through success - the dog
will eventually quit reaching for the treat.
Extinction burst A characteristic
of extinction. If a previously-reinforced behavior is not reinforced,
the animal will increase the intensity or frequency of the behavior
in attempt to earn the reinforcement again. After these bursts, the
offering of the behavior will diminish.
Fixed interval A schedule
of reinforcement in which the trainer reinforces the first correct response
after a specific period of time - for example, after a minute.
Fixed ratio A schedule of reinforcement in which the trainer
reinforces the first correct response after a specific number of responses.
Two-fers and three-fers are examples of fixed ratios.
"Four quadrants of Operant Conditioning"
An incorrect reference to the commonly-seen chart illustrating
the concepts of reinforcement and punishment. This description is misleading
in two ways. It neglects to mention extinction, and it implies that
the other principles of Operant Conditioning are of equal value in a
Head halter Similar to
a horse's halter, a dog's head halter gives the trainer control of the
dog's head, making it easier to manage a dog on leash until the dog
has been taught to walk at the handler's side.
Interval reinforcement The
trainer reinforces the dog according to a time schedule. In a fixed
interval, the trainer reinforces the first correct response after a
specific period of time - for example, every minute. In a variable interval,
the trainer reinforces the first correct response after varying periods
of time within a certain timeframe.
Jackpot A "mega-reward"
given after a particularly exceptional effort.
Keep Going Signal (KGS)
A signal - verbal or otherwise - given in the middle of a behavior to
tell the dog he is doing the behavior correctly and should keep doing
what he's doing. Keep Going Signals are an unnecessary level of complexity
Latency The time between
the cue and the response. Ideally, that time is zero - or as close to
immediate as possible.
Negative punishment (P-) Take
away something the animal will work for to suppress (lessen the frequency
of) a behavior. For example, a dog jumps on you to get attention. By
turning your back or leaving the room you apply P- by removing the attention
Negative reinforcement (R-) Remove
something the animal will work to avoid to strengthen (increase the
frequency of) a behavior. Heeling is traditionally taught through R-.
The dog receives a "correction" when he walks anywhere except
heel position. Walking in heel position increases because that is the
only "safe" place - because the threat of correction is removed
by walking there. The key to R- is an aversive must first be applied
or threatened in order for it to be removed.
No Reward Marker (NRM) Intended
to be a signal to say "No, that isn't what I want -- try again."
From the OC perspective, it's intended to add a verbal cue to extinction.
However, once something has been added to the situation, it is impossible
to know whether a change occurred through extinction or punishment.
No Reward Marks are usually an unnecessary level of complexity in a
Operant Conditioning The
process of changing an animal's response to a certain stimulus by manipulating
the consequences to the response. The five principles of Operant Conditioning
were developed by B.F. Skinner. Clicker training is a subset of Operant
Conditioning, using only positive reinforcement, extinction, and to
a lesser extent, negative punishment.
Permanent criteria Criteria
that are found in the final behavior. Permanent criteria should be trained
to a higher level of reliability than temporary criteria.
Positive punishment (P+) Add
something the animal will work to avoid to suppress (lessen the frequency
of) a behavior. For example, jerking on the lead to stop a dog from
jumping on someone is P+ used to suppress the behavior of jumping. Other
common examples of P+ include yelling, nose taps, spanking, electric
shock, and assorted "booby traps."
Positive reinforcement (R+) Add
something the animal will work for to strengthen (increase the frequency
of) a behavior. For example, give the dog a treat for sitting in order
to increases the probability the dog will sit again.
Premack Principle A theory
stating that a stronger response will reinforce a weaker response.
Primary reinforcer A reinforcer
that the animal is born needing. Food, water, and sex are primary reinforcers.
Pryor, Karen Author and
dolphin trainer credited with coining the term "clicker training"
and popularizing the method with dog trainers.
Punishment In Operant Conditioning,
a consequence to a behavior in which something added to or removed from
the situation makes the behavior less likely to occur in the future.
Rate of Reinforcement The
number of reinforcers given in a specific period of time. A high rate
of reinforcement is critical to training success.
Ratio A schedule of reinforcement
in which the trainer reinforces based on number of responses. In a fixed
ratio, the trainer reinforces the first correct response after a specific
number of correct responses. Two-fers and three-fers are examples of
fixed ratios. In a variable ratio, the trainer reinforces the first
correct response after varying numbers of correct responses.
Reinforcement In Operant
Conditioning, a consequence to a behavior in which something added to
or removed from the situation makes the behavior more likely to occur
in the future.
Reinforcer Anything dog
will work to obtain.
Secondary reinforcer A
conditioned reinforcer. A reinforcer the animal is not born needing.
Secondary reinforcers may be as or even more powerful than a primary
Skinner, BF Scientist who defined the principles of Operant
Spontaneous recovery A
characteristic of extinction in which a behavior that was thought to
be extinct unexpectedly reappears. If the trainer ensures the behavior
is not reinforced, it will disappear quickly.
Stimulus A change in the
environment. If the stimulus has no affect on the animal, it is a neutral
stimulus. A stimulus that stands out in the environment - that the animal
notices more than other environmental stimuli - is a salient stimulus.
A stimulus that causes a change of state in the animal - for example,
causes him to perform a specific behavior - is a discriminative stimulus.
Target Something the animal
is taught to touch with some part of his body. A target is generally
Target stick A mobile target
the animal is taught to follow. Target sticks are often used as lures.
Temporary criteria Criteria
that are stepping stones to a final behavior that won't, in their current
form, be present in the final behavior. Temporary criteria should be
trained only to about 80% reliability before "making it harder."
If a temporary criterion is reinforced for too long, the animal may
be reluctant to change its behavior.
Three-fer The animal has
to perform three correct behaviors in order to earn one click and one
Timing The timing of the
clicker. Ideally, the click should occur at exactly the same instant
the target criterion is achieved. Timing is a mechanical skill and requires
practice. The trainer must be able to recognize the behaviors that precede
the target behavior in order to click at the same moment the target
Traditional training Compulsion
training. Traditional training is characterized by modeling or luring
to get the behavior and the use of negative reinforcement and positive
punishment to "proof" it.
Training period A pre-set
period of time set aside for training. A training period may be composed
of multiple training sessions.
Training session Either
a pre-set period of time or per-set number of repetitions. Your criteria
should remain constant during a single session. At the end of a training
session, you evaluate your animal's progress and decide whether to make
the next session harder or stay at the same criteria.
Two-fer The animal has
to perform two correct behaviors in order to earn one click and one
Variable interval A schedule
of reinforcement in which the trainer reinforces the first correct response
after varying periods of time within a certain timeframe.
Variable ratio A schedule of reinforcement in which the trainer
reinforces the first correct response after varying numbers of correct
Variable schedule of reinforcement
(VSR) Technically, either a variable interval or variable
ratio. However, most trainers use VSR to mean a variable ratio.
mca @ clickersolutions.com
copyright 2001, CLICK FOR JOY, by Melissa C. Alexander (pub. date Feb.
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