Differences between Operant Conditioning and Classical Conditioning:

Classical conditioning is where one thing is "programmed" into the brain, and is associated with another. See Pavlov's dog experiment for a nice example. This can be anything relating to anything, and is thought to have a lot to do with irrational phobias.

Operant conditioning, or operant learning, is where something is learned by the consequences, and if more of a trial-and-error type of learning. For example, a child does something bad, and is scolded by it's mother. the child learns that doing that behaviour will result in a scolding.
Operant conditioning research has shown that rewards are better responded to than punishments.

Why is Punishment Wrong?

Punishment is wrong for many reasons:
1. Punishment is often wrong because it does not teach a person what to do.
2. Punishment is also wrong because it only teaches a person what behavior to stop doing.
3. Punishment often fails to stop, and can even increase the occurrence of, the undesired response.
4. Punishment arouses strong emotional response that may generalize.


http://www.oklahoma.net/~jnichols/PunishmentProblems.html

What Is Operant Conditioning?

Operant conditioning is the use of consequences to modify the occurrence and form of behavior. Operant conditioning is distinguished from classical conditioning (also called respondent conditioning, or Pavlovian conditioning) in that operant conditioning deals with the modification of "voluntary behavior" or operant behavior.

Operant behavior "operates" on the environment and is maintained by its consequences, while classical conditioning deals with the conditioning of respondent behaviors which are elicited by antecedent conditions. Behaviors conditioned via a classical conditioning procedure are not maintained by consequences. The main dependent variable is the rate of response that is developed over a period of time. New operant responses can be further developed and shaped by reinforcing close approximations of the desired response.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Operant_conditioning

B.F Skinner

He discovered and advanced the rate of response as a dependent variable in psychological research. He invented the cumulative recorder to measure rate of responding as part of his highly influential work on schedules of reinforcement. In a recent survey, Skinner was listed as the most influential psychologist of the 20th century. He was a prolific author who published 21 books and 180 articles.

Theory:
Radical behaviorism seeks to understand behavior as a function of environmental histories of reinforcing consequences.


http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/B.F_Skinner

Addiction

The meaning of the word addiction in the english lexicon varies according to context. A positive addiction is a beneficial habit--where the benefits outweigh the costs. A negative addiction is a detrimental habit--where the benefits are not worth the negative financial, physical and mental costs. A neutral addiction is a habit in which it is not clear if the organism (or species) benefits from the activity. There can be negative addictions, and also postive addictions but there are more negative ones.
Examples of "negative addictions" are: drug addiction (e.g. alcoholism, nicotine addiction), problem gambling, ergomania, compulsive overeating, shopping addiction, computer addiction, pornography addiction, television addiction, etc
Examples of "positive addictions" are: exercise, eating healthy and volunteering.An example of a "neutral addiction" is mowing the lawn.


http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Addiction

John Watson

John Broadus Watson (January 9, 1878 – September 25, 1958) was an American psychologist who established the psychological school of behaviorism, after doing research on animal behavior. He also conducted the controversial "Little Albert" experiment. Later he went on from psychology to become a popular author on child-rearing, and an acclaimed contributor to the advertising industry.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/John_B._Watson

Ivan Pavlov

Ivan Petrovich Pavlov (Russian: Иван Петрович Павлов, September 14, 1849 – February 27, 1936) was a Russian, and later Soviet, physiologist, psychologist, and physician. He was awarded the Nobel Prize in Physiology or Medicine in 1904 for research pertaining to the digestive system. Pavlov is widely known for first describing the phenomenon of classical conditioning.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ivan_Pavlov