What is Shaping in Positive Reinforcement (clicker) training?
“Shaping consists of taking a very small tendency in the right direction and shifting it, one small step at a time, toward an ultimate goal. The laboratory jargon for the process is “successive approximation”.”
(Karen Pryor, Don’t Shoot the Dog)
Karen Pryor developed 10 tips/guidelines for shaping, called The Ten Laws of Shaping. The original ‘laws’ are explained in her book, Don’t Shoot the Dog and she later revised and altered these guidelines to reflect a more up to date understanding of the science and principles of Shaping, including removing varying reinforcement.
Shaping is a a complex skill and takes a great deal of practice, good timing, mechanical skills, excellent observation skills and GENEROSITY, which I’ve mentioned before. The more generous you are are marking and reinforcing the smallest approximation or behaviour the horse offers, the faster the learning and movement towards the goal behaviour. Hold out for bigger and better behaviour and the horse will get confused and frustrated and stop trying or will try other things that they have been reinforced for in the past (reinforcement history)
Following is the 10 principles, paraphrased by Ken Ramirez:-
PRYOR’S MODERN PRINCIPLES OF SHAPING
1. Be prepared before you start
2. Raise criteria in small increments
3. Train one criteria at a time
4. Keep training sessions continuous
5. If it doesn’t work, change the plan
6. Relax old criteria when introducing new criteria
7. Plan ahead
8. Don’t stop a session gratuitously
9. Regress when behaviour deteriorates
10. End on a positive note
Karen Pryor’s updated Modern Principles of Shaping:-
If you’re not sure what Shaping looks like, this is a video example of Shaping featuring myself and Grace, this was her first time interacting with a ball:-