Which principle best describes shaping by gradually increasing the criteria and rewarding closer and closer approximations?

• A. Raise criteria in increments
• B. Use multiple trainers at once
• C. Reward all behaviors immediately
• D. Focus on multiple aspects at once

Answer: (A)

Shaping relies on reinforcing successive approximations toward a target behavior, with the criteria raised in small, achievable steps. By incrementally increasing what earns reinforcement, you guide the dog toward the final behavior while keeping each step within reach, which sustains motivation and reduces frustration. For example, teaching a dog to fetch and drop a ball can proceed from reinforcing looking at the ball, to nudging it with the nose, to picking it up, to bringing it toward you, and finally to dropping it in your hand. Each step requires a higher standard than the last, so progress is built gradually toward the full action. The other ideas don’t describe this gradual tightening of the criterion: using multiple trainers at once focuses on who delivers the training rather than how the dog learns; rewarding all behaviors immediately can reinforce undesired actions and blur the target; focusing on multiple aspects at once spreads attention and makes it harder to shape a single skill.