Law of Effect and Operant Conditioning

Edward Thorndike:

1. Explain Thorndike's puzzle-box experiment.
He put hungry cats on a puzzle box, and a plate of fish on the outside, and the cat by trial-and-error achieved to open the box and get the food.
2. Explain Thorndike's "Law of Effect".
An organism will relate a behavior with its reward, and the closer they are it is most likely that they are connected.
3. Explain Thorndike's "Law of Exercise".
That if a behavoir is used, it will continue and it will reinforce, but if it is not used, it will disapear.
B.F. Skinner:

1. Explain Skinner's concept of Operant Conditioning He said that it is sinmpler to break a complicated procedure into small steps, to achieve a greater goal.
2. What does  reinforcement always do?
It makes a behavoir continue. 
3. What does a punishment alsways do?
It makes a behavoir to disapear.
4. Explain the difference between "postive" and "negative" as they are used in opernat conditioning.
Positive means to give something, and negative means to take something.



Source:

http://psychology.about.com/od/lindex/g/lawofeffect.htm