What is Reinforcement?

Last post, I wrote about the ABCs of The Learning Loop.  This learning loop is one of the foundational understandings that I go back to when there is a behaviour I am trying to teach or change. You might think that the most logical place to start exploring this loop is with the ‘A’ or the Antecedent, but instead I am going to begin by exploring the ‘C’, the consequence, in more detail. This post will give a  brief overview of  consequences.

When I first began learning about becoming a dog trainer in 1996, I took a class with my new puppy where they used treats to train the puppies. At the time, I was of the belief that using treats was undesirable because I wanted my dog to “do the thing” because … well, I’m not sure actually… because I asked her to? Because she respected me? Because she loved me? I’m not sure I was clear on that part, but it definitely wasn’t because I used treats. What I didn’t know then is that you cannot install a new behaviour or increase the frequency of a behaviour without using some kind of reinforcement.

Susan Friedman is often quoted as saying “Reinforcement builds behaviour”. While a very simple statement, this idea is foundational to understanding our dogs’ behaviour and in successfully educating dogs and the people who love them how to create a life where they live in harmony with each other.

There are a lot of important things to know about reinforcement if you are going to use it effectively to teach dogs the behaviours you want them to do in so many different circumstances. You will need to know, for example, the types of reinforcement you are using, how the reinforcement is delivered and where the reward is delivered can all impact learning. For this post we will look at the types of reinforcement and then we will focus on the categories of rewards that are the most accessible and effective in dog training.

Rewards are also called “positive reinforcers”. The word “positive” here means that you are adding something into the situation, and the word reinforcer means something used to make something stronger, so you are adding something into the situation (a toy, a treat) and it makes the behaviour stronger or more likely. 

Positive reinforcers can be more than just toys and treats. Attention and activities your dog likes can also be positive reinforcers. Another positive reinforcer that often gets forgotten is called a “secondary reinforcer”. For example, attention and petting from a person, the chance to sniff, and the opportunity to approach and/or interact with other dogs are real world activities some dogs find reinforcing.

A secondary reinforcer is a cue that is paired so many times with a positive reinforcer that it becomes a reinforcer itself. An example might be when we reach for the leash. For dogs who love walks, their person reaching for and holding the leash in their hand, may cause their dog to show signs of happiness or excitement. If this happens in your house, the sight of the leash in your hand has become a secondary reinforcer. I bring this last one up because it is one of the least appreciated and understood reinforcers that we can use AND forgetting about it can often delay success in training. I will dig into this more in another post, but the sound of a clicker and the cues we use for our behaviours that were trained with positive reinforcement are also powerful secondary reinforcers.

Although positive reinforcement-based or rewards-based trainers like me choose training strategies using rewards whenever possible, it is still really important to understand all the various factors that impact whether a behaviour is increasing or decreasing.

The removal of something unpleasant is also reinforcing. A human example might be when a dog stops barking. The barking may be irritating and so the stopping of barking removes the noise and is reinforcing to us. Because, in this case, something is being removed from the situation this is referred to as negative reinforcement. When positive reinforcement-based dog training first became popular, trainers often avoided the use of negative reinforcement as there can be negative fallout from using this reinforcement type due to the initial introduction of the aversive stimulus you later remove, but a deeper understanding of this type of reinforcement is critical and when appropriate, utilizing it allows us to access its considerable power which, in certain circumstances, can be done without adding additional aversives to your dog’s life.

So, to sum up, if the frequency of a behaviour is increasing over time, it is under the influence of a type of reinforcement. A reward can be added to the situation (positive reinforcement) or an aversive can be removed from the situation (negative reinforcement) both of these situations will cause an increase in the likelihood that the behaviour that preceded the reinforcement will reoccur. 

In my next post I will explore more deeply the types of positive reinforcement and how you can help your dog find more joy by teaching them to have more rewards in their lives.

Until then,

Love that Dog.

Heather