Operant conditioningis based on the belief that all human behavior is motivated by the desire to receive a reward or to avoid a punishment. Operant conditioning is a method for training individuals to behave in the ways that their parents, teachers, bosses or others in authority want them to behave. Some people may also use operant conditioning as a means for motivating themselves to take difficult, but necessary steps toward setting and achieving life goals.

There are two basic kinds of operant conditioning schedules:ratio schedules and interval schedules. Ratio schedules focus on the number of times the desired behavior must be performed before it's rewarded. Interval schedules are focused on how much time must elapse before the subject gets rewarded for performing the desired behavior. Operant conditioning deals heavily in positive and negative stimuli.

In addition to a reward-schedule, there may also be a negative-stimulus schedule for addressing any failures to perform the desired behavior, and also to address any performance of undesired behavior. Negative stimuli may involve negative reinforcement through removing the reward or punishment through adding an unpleasant effect. With continuous reinforcement, the stimulus is provided after each and every performance of the desired behavior.

With partial reinforcement, the stimulus is not provided after every single performance. If partial reinforcement is provided through a ratio schedule, it will either be fixed ratio, meaning that the stimulus is provided after a set number of performances, or variable ratio, meaning that the subject will have no way of knowing how many times the behavior must be performed in order to get the stimulus.

Variable ratio schedules are exciting and attractive to many individuals, because of the continuous possibility that, even if they were just rewarded last night or five minutes ago, it's never too soon to think that they might be in-line for another big win. People with steady jobs are rewarded according to a fixed ratio schedule. If they go to work every day and fulfill their employer's expectations, they can count on receiving their wages at predictable times.

They may also receive performance-perks such as bonuses on a fixed ratio schedule. Bestowal of perks may also be tied to fixed interval schedules. With fixed interval schedules, positive behaviors are rewarded after a set amount of time has elapsed, whereas with variable interval schedules, good behavior may sometimes be rewarded frequently or infrequently.

People who know that their behavior will be evaluated at certain intervals, and rewarded accordingly, tend to slack off just after they've completed an evaluation period, but then pick up the pace as they draw closer to the next evaluation. In contrast, people who never know at what point in time they're getting evaluated for a possible reward tend to be more consistent in their performance. This type of management style can positively or negatively influence the productivity of workers.