Once behavior has been shaped, it can be maintained by various patterns ofreinforcement. Depending on the particular schedule, one may respond slowly orrapidly, slow long pauses between responses, persistently respond despite thefact that the behavior has not been reinforced in a long time, or display othervariations (Nye,1992).

Schedules can be described as the procedures for initiating and terminatingstimuli in relation to temporal and/or response requirements (Thompson, 1972).

The two broad categories of schedules arecontinuous andintermittent.