Reinforcement Intervals

"Findout why our change management model suggests that sometimes, doing nothing can accelerate your culture change"
Read on and discover just how often a behavior should be reinforced to ensure the success of your culture change programs

Tips for managing change in the workplace

By now you will have a basic overview of the reinforcement motivation theory, if not please return to our change management home page and follow the links.

Your next and final piece of learning in this influential change management model is the five reinforcement shedules, or the frequency that you should reinforce specific behaviors.(How often should you praise a person, how should you manage undesirable behaviors)

What's on this page

o The Culture Change Adoption Pattern

o The 5 Reinforcement Schedules

o Using this Change Management Model 

The Culture Change Adoption Pattern

When you set out to change specific employee behaviors you will find that some people adapt quickly, whilst others seem to resist the change. This is true in almost all work environments.

In an environment of change, you will find that your people will fit into the following generic groups

• Early Adopters, generally 10-20% of your people
  
  
• Middle Many, generally 60-80% of your people
  
  
• Laggard (Late adopters or Active Resistors), generally 10-20% of your people

You, as a leader, have the ability to minimise the percentage of laggards and maximise the number of early adopters in your business, you do this by carefully selecting how often you will reinforce a specific desirable or undesirable behavior.

The next section will describe the 5 reinforcement schedules that you have to choose from

5 Reinforcement Schedules

The term reinforcement schedule is used to describe the pattern of reinforcement that you are using to influence or drive your culture change.

Or simply, put how often are you praising your people for adopting a changed bahavior or what are you doing about any undesirable behaviors in your business.

There are five commonly used reinforcement schedules, and they are

• Continuous Reinforcement , you give positive reinforcement after each correct behavior.

Example: Sales commisions - where the sales person gets a bonus after every sale.

• Fixed Interval Reinforcement , the reinforcement occurs after a set amount of time has elapsed.

Example: Annual performance reviews

• Fixed Ratio Reinforcement , the reinforcement occurs after a set number of occurrences of the correct behavior

Example: On the job assessments where competency is assessed after a set number of completed activities

• Variable Interval Reinforcement , the reinforcement occurs after a variable or random time period

Example:

• Variable Ratio Reinforcement, the reinforcement is given after a variable or random number of correct responses, this is the most influential reinforcement schedule

Example: Poker or slot machines, these machines reward you with a win after a randome number of plays.

Using this Change Managment Model

Lets assume you are trying to get your people to stop comming to you with a problem unless they also have a proposed solution.

So you have two behaviors to change

• Start comming to you with proposed solutions
• Stop comming to you with just problems

For each behavior lets create a reinforcement plan

• For start comming to you with proposed solutions

The first time someone comes to you with a proposed solution you will need to give them strong positive reinforement

For the next few times use a continuous reinformcent schedule and reinforce each time they come to you with a proposed solution

Then after three to five times shift to variable ratio and reinforce at random intervals

Leadership tip: Also give public recognition to the early adopters as this will help entice the middle many and reduce the number of laggards

• For stop comming to you with just probelms

You would not like to use punishment to stop people comming to you with a problem as this is likely to stop them comming to you altogether.

Sending the person away until they think of a proposed solution could be seen by some to be punishment

The ideal thing to adopt here would be extinction, no positive and no negative.

Leadership tip: Also try the following

• Ask the person to come back in 40 minutes or when your free with a proposed solution, let them know if they cannot think of a solution you will help them

• Ask the person to discuss with their team and come back with a proposed solution, again if they are stuck come back in 40 minutes or when you are free and you will help them then.

We hope that you have personally benefited from the content on this page. To become a stronger change leader learn more about this motivation technique, click through right now to access our how to guide.

Have you visisted all five pages on the reinforcement change management model  

• What is Behavior?
• Overview of Reinforcement Theory
• Reinforcement Types
• Reinforcement Intervals
• Bringing it all together

 Return from change management model to our site home Page

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