Description of the Strategy

A generalized conditioned reinforcer is a stimulus that exerts a reinforcing effect because it has been associated with reinforcing stimuli. In contrast with unconditioned reinforcement, in which the stimulus is in itself reinforcing, conditioned reinforcers are stimuli that have come to have value to an individual as a result of learning. Furthermore, generalized conditioned reinforcers are associated with many other reinforcers; their effectiveness does not depend upon a specific reinforcer, as the stimulus represents different reinforcers. There are thus three conditions that [Page 867]define generalized conditioned reinforcers: (1) the event must increase the likelihood that a behavior will occur again (reinforcement), (2) the event must not be reinforcing in and of itself, but it must provide reinforcement through learning ...