Relay-Version: version B 2.10 5/3/83; site utzoo.UUCP Posting-Version: version B 2.10.1 6/24/83; site pucc-k Path: utzoo!watmath!clyde!burl!ulysses!mhuxj!cbosgd!ihnp4!inuxc!pur-ee!CS-Mordred!Pucc-H:Pucc-I:Pucc-K:afo From: afo@pucc-k (Laurie Sefton) Newsgroups: net.comics Subject: OC Message-ID: <353@pucc-k> Date: Sat, 29-Sep-84 14:28:59 EDT Article-I.D.: pucc-k.353 Posted: Sat Sep 29 14:28:59 1984 Date-Received: Mon, 1-Oct-84 03:49:57 EDT Organization: Inside a linked list Lines: 23 (sorry, no reviews) OC stands for operant conditioning, one of two connective learning theories. B.F. Skinner is the one who first proposed OC as a learning/training method. The whole idea is this: if behave in a certain way, and the behaviour is reinforced, then you will keep doing that behaviour. If it is not reinforced, either by punishment or by extinction (no goodies for the behaviour at all), the behaviour will go away. Now, why the psych lecture? Because some comic book writers have OC on the brain. They have heard it is a nasty, evil, manipulative thing, and therefore use it in all their 'hero(ine) gets brain fried by baddies' story lines. Re: the story line in K/W: Kitty is basically re-programmed using OC concepts;when she does something that which is what her captors want (elicits the correct behaviour), she is rewarded (the behaviour is reinforced);when she doesn't her captors 'punish' her (remember the laughing when she fell over?, that is an example of punishing non-wanted behaviour). Anyway, the comic book writers seem to think that OC is the only method of changing behaviours, and I'm gettin a little peeved at being exposed to their interpretations of it... Laurie {allegra, ihnp4, harpo, decvax,}pur-ee!pucc-k!afo