A Glossary of Terms - Dog Training

4 stages of Learning
Acquisition: The dog understands that the cue
is a request for a behavior, understands what
that behavior is, and is able to produce the behavior.
Fluency: The dog produces the cued behavior
regularly and quickly. He no longer has to
struggle to think through what to do when he is
asked.
Generalization: The dog learns that the cue
and the behavior remain the same in a variety
of locations, for a variety of people, and in spite
of a variety of imprecise cues (for example, the
handler may wear different clothes, give the
cue from a sitting instead of a standing position,
speak the cue loudly or softly).
Maintenance: The behavior is practiced frequently
enough to prevent a decrease in proficiency
or potential extinction. (If the cue isn’t
practiced, the dog will forget what behavior is
expected from the cue.)
Operant conditioning/learning: The process
by which behavior changes occur related to the
outcome of chosen behaviors. Behaviors that
result in positive outcomes are likely to increase
or remain the same. Behaviors that produce
negative or unproductive outcomes are likely to
decrease. There are four categories of outcomes
that can affect learning: positive reinforcement,
negative reinforcement, positive punishment,
and negative punishment. Positive and negative
reinforcement support or strengthen the behavior.
Positive and negative punishment discourage
or weaken the behavior.
Classical conditioning: Associations formed
between paired events that are not dependent
upon choice. In Pavlov’s famous example, the
natural salivation that occurs when dogs are
presented with food became associated with the
sound of a bell that was rung when food was
being served. The result of this pairing was that
the sound of the bell produced salivation even
when no food was present.
Reinforcement
Reinforcement: In training, reinforcement can
be positive or negative. Reinforcement always
supports or strengthens a behavior and increases
the likelihood of it occurring.
Positive reinforcement: In training, “positive”
means “added to.” If you give a dog a treat
when he sits, you have added something reinforcing
(the treat) to the outcome of the behavior.
Negative reinforcement: In training, “negative”
means “removed from” or “taken away.”
A human example would be if you discovered
that pushing a button on your phone stopped
the Muzak when you were on hold. Pushing the
button would be negative reinforcement because
something unpleasant was removed from the
situation.
Premack Principle: In behavioral psychology,
the Premack Principle states that a desirable behavior
can be used to reinforce a less desirable
one. This is commonly referred to as Grandma’s
rule: “After you eat your vegetables, you can
have ice cream.”
Unconditioned reinforcer: Also called a primary
or natural reinforcer, these are things that
are valuable or desired in themselves (e.g., food,
water, play, affection). These are not the same
for all individuals or even the same individual
at all times. Examples: A shy dog may experience
an affectionate pat as punishment. After a
Thanksgiving meal, we may find the thought of
more food unpleasant