Why Positive Reinforcement?
I suppose the first question to be answered here is “what does positive reinforcement mean?”. This refers to the whole frame known as the four quadrants of operant conditioning theory. Operant conditioning is a means of training outlined by B.F. Skinner. Positive and negative are utilized in the sense of adding something (+) or taking it away (-). Reinforcement is defined as anything the subject finds pleasant and makes that behavior more likely to occur in the future. Punishment is defined as something the subject finds unpleasant and makes that behavior less likely to occur in the future. This framework of learning literally applies to every living, sentient being (heck, it might even apply to plants…we just haven’t figured it out yet!)
Some people find this to be some complicated science-y jargon, so let’s try to break it down and provide examples of how this works:
Positive punishment: Something unpleasant is added to decrease the likelihood of the behavior occurring in the future. Example: Use of shock collars or collar “pops”/corrections.
Negative punishment: Something pleasant is removed to decrease the likelihood of a behavior occurring in the future. Example: Losing privileges or a time out. Removing a toy, etc.
Negative reinforcement: Something unpleasant is removed to increase the likelihood of a behavior occurring in the future. Example: Leash pressure is reduced for turning the right direction. Someone stops yelling at you or you avoid it.
Positive reinforcement: Something pleasant is added to increase the likelihood of the behavior occurring in the future. Example: Give the dog a treat for doing what was asked.
There are several things important to note about this framework: What is reinforcing or punishing is defined by the subject as we all have our different preferences/aversions. All of these different types of learning do occur naturally in our environment. You likely can find ways that these all have applied to your own life. Now think about those experiences. Are they good memories or not so good? Just because a way of learning occurs naturally does not mean that it is OK for us as intelligent, sentient beings to choose to do that to another being. Why choose to inflict pain or discomfort upon another being if you also have a choice to get the same result without doing so? This is precisely what science has shown us. Learning occurs better when it is done with positive reinforcement. There are no other negative behavioral consequences that arise such as fearfulness, anxiety, reactivity, etc. Over the past couple years, veterinary groups have also come to recognize this. While the American Veterinary Society of Animal Behavior has been ahead of the curve, recently the American Veterinary Medical Association has also joined in the statement that there is no need to use aversive styles of training. Since Europe was also ahead of the curve on this, there is now not a single western veterinary group that still endorses the use of shock collars or any other type of aversive training. (Links to statements below)
Why do we choose to use R+ methods? Personally, we’ve both been exposed to this style of training, and we’ve both seen serious fall out from it. The dog training course I took in college required everyone to use a prong collar. The dog I was working with was a Jack Russel. Let that sink in. When we were working on loose leash walking, our AKC certified instructor told us to yank on the leash really hard when they got in front of, or behind you so that they would be back where they were supposed to be. While I can’t remember perfectly, I don’t feel like there was any mention of using treats on the walks. We also were told to teach them a “down” behavior by stepping on the leash so their heads were being pulled down. When they went down, the pressure automatically was gone and then we could also give them a treat. Through all this, my very sweet little gal (“Tipper”) became incredibly fearful and I began to have problems in class with her. The instructor did recognize that she was fearful of me, but offered little guidance on how to rectify that or that her training methods were the problem here. Do I hate that I’ve done this to another creature—yes; however, now I know better, and I do better.
See that body language??!! I’m not proud of it!
Once I got to working with exotics in a zoo setting, the fact is that there are situations where punishment just isn’t going to be a thing, unless you are really going out of your way to be cruel. Tigers in their holding that you don’t have direct contact with, or marine mammals in a pool of water where they are much more agile than a human—what would you do?? I learned that through simple R+ work, they were more than willing participants. They looked forward to the sessions. They were not otherwise starved. All these animals got their normal diets (generally provided in some type of enrichment—but that’s for another blog post!) and still chose to participate in these training sessions with their keepers. They learned astonishing things from how to present parts of themselves for inspection, to larger “tricks” for fun/enrichment (jumps, turns, vocalizations, etc), all the way to tolerating veterinary procedures to get injections/blood draws, or ultrasounds. All these behaviors greatly improved their quality of life, as well as life span. They were useful from a veterinary perspective, as well as mental health, and allow visitors to note some of their very cool adaptations when used in demos.
Zoos use this training on other species besides mammals and birds. I have seen fish/sharks, spiders, butterflies, turtles and so much more trained using these same methods. The bonds built with their caretakers are undeniable. I’ve also learned this the hard way a few times as a parent! I ask you—what is holding you back?? If you want to get started with r+ methods and have a great relationship with your animals, reach out to us today!
-Liz
Position Statement links:
https://avsab.org/wp-content/uploads/2021/08/AVSAB-Humane-Dog-Training-Position-Statement-2021.pdf
https://avsab.ftlbcdn.net/wp-content/uploads/2021/08/AVSAB-Humane-Dog-Training-Position-Statement-2021.pdf
https://apdt.com/about/position-statements/
