operant

adjective

1. operating; producing effects.

noun

2. a person or thing that operates.

adjective

1. producing effects; operating

noun

2. a person or thing that operates
3. psychol any response by an organism that is not directly caused by a stimulus

adj.“that works,” early 15c., from Latin operantem (nominative operans), present participle of operari “to work” (see operation). Psychological sense of “involving behavior modification” coined 1937 by U.S. psychologist B.F. Skinner (e.g. operant conditioning, 1938, Skinner). adj.

1. Operating to produce effects; effective.
2. Of, relating to, or being a response that occurs spontaneously and is identified by its reinforcing or inhibiting effects.

n.

1. In operant conditioning, a behavior or specific response chosen by the experimenter or therapist.target response