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  Schedules of Reinforcement

Continuous reinforcement - System of behavior modification in which certain behaviors are always rewarded or punished, leading to rapid learning of desired responses. Used in the initial stages of operant conditioning.

Partial reinforcement schedules (effective in maintaining behavior over the long run):

Fixed-ratio schedules are when the organism receives reinforcement at a fixed rate, according to the number of responses emitted.
 
Fixed-interval schedules are when the organism receives rewards for its responses only after a fixed amount of time. For example, reinforcement may be introduced every 3 minutes, regardless of the number of responses
 
A variable-ratio schedule of reinforcement is when an organism receives a reward for a certain percentage of behaviors that are emitted, but this percentage is not fixed
 
A variable-interval schedule of reinforcement is an operant conditioning procedure in which an organism receives a reward for its responses after an amount of time that is not constant."