125 Shaping

Training a target behavior by reinforcing successive approximations of that behavior.

• First studied by the psychologist B.F. Skinner, a pioneer in behavior modification.

• Shaping involves breaking down a complex behavior into a chain of simple behaviors, which are trained one by one until the complex behavior is achieved.

• Positive reinforcement is provided as an observed behavior increasingly approximates a target behavior.

• Shaping results in the development of superstitious behaviors when irrelevant behaviors are accidentally reinforced during training.

• Use shaping to train complex behaviors in games and learning environments, teach rote procedures, and refine complex motor tasks.

See Also Classical Conditioning • Operant Conditioning

During WWII, B.F. Skinner used shaping to train pigeons to peck at aerial photographs, creating pigeon-guided bombs.