--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: The consequences of an act affect the…" description: "\"The consequences of an act affect the probability of its occurring again.\" — B. F. Skinner" image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/35e/b-f-skinner-4812_consequences_the-consequences-of-an-act-affect-the-pr_2319640.png" --- # The consequences of an act affect the probability of its… ![“The consequences of an act affect the probability of its occurring again.” quote by B. F. Skinner](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/35e/b-f-skinner-4812_consequences_the-consequences-of-an-act-affect-the-pr_2319640.png) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/35e/b-f-skinner-4812_consequences_the-consequences-of-an-act-affect-the-pr_2319640.png) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/35e/b-f-skinner-4812_consequences_the-consequences-of-an-act-affect-the-pr_2319640.png) > “The consequences of an act affect the probability of its occurring again.” [B. F. Skinner](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/b-f-skinner/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. Past actions influence future likelihood; behavior patterns are reinforced or diminished by their consequences. **In simple terms:** Actions affect future chances. Key Takeaway Consider consequences before acting. Themes behavior reinforcement probability habit learning Mood analytical practical Type theoretical educational When to use this quote - parenting - workplace incentives - addiction recovery - educational feedback Key Concepts behaviorism operant conditioning causal inference Questions to Reflect On - What consequence shaped a recent habit? - How can you change an unwanted pattern? A Different Perspective Complex human behavior isn’t solely driven by simple reinforcement. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Consequences](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/consequences/) [Probability](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/probability/) ## Related quotes > [The consequences of an act affect the probability of it's occurring again.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/the-consequences-of-an-act-affect-the-probability-of-it-s-occurring/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [There are great and terrible consequences to any act of violence, and they reverberate beyond the act itself.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/paul-g-tremblay/there-are-great-and-terrible-consequences-to-any-act-of-violence-and/) [Paul G. Tremblay](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/paul-g-tremblay/) > [The consequences of every act are included in the act itself.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/george-orwell/the-consequences-of-every-act-are-included-in-the-act-itself/) [George Orwell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/george-orwell/) > [Behavior is shaped and maintained by its consequences](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/b-f-skinner/behavior-is-shaped-and-maintained-by-its-consequences/) [B. F. Skinner](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/b-f-skinner/) > [You must maximize the probability that someone shows up at front door of your store or website and ends up with a solved problem.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/drew-houston/you-must-maximize-the-probability-that-someone-shows-up-at-front-door/) [Drew Houston](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/drew-houston/) > [If WE claim only reasonable probability, it will be as much as men who love the truth can ever at any given moment hope…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-james/if-we-claim-only-reasonable-probability-it-will-be-as-much-as-men-who/) [William James](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-james/) > [I believe that we do not know anything for certain, but everything probably.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/christiaan-huygens/i-believe-that-we-do-not-know-anything-for-certain-but-everything/) [Christiaan Huygens](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/christiaan-huygens/) > [The probability of failure doesn't matter to me.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/vinod-khosla/the-probability-of-failure-doesn-t-matter-to-me/) [Vinod Khosla](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/vinod-khosla/) > [I also, as I think most people do, have a healthy instinct that if we upset the balance of nature, we are in all…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tony-blair/i-also-as-i-think-most-people-do-have-a-healthy-instinct-that-if-we/) [Tony Blair](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tony-blair/) > [The lower the family income, the higher the probability that the mother must work. Today, 1 out of 5 of these working mothers has…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-f-kennedy/the-lower-the-family-income-the-higher-the-probability-that-the/) [John F. Kennedy](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-f-kennedy/) > [It has been pointed out already that no knowledge of probabilities, less in degree than certainty, helps us to know what conclusions are true,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-maynard-keynes/it-has-been-pointed-out-already-that-no-knowledge-of-probabilities/) [John Maynard Keynes](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-maynard-keynes/) > [We can say with certainty - or 90% probability - that the new industries that are about to be born will have nothing to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/peter-drucker/we-can-say-with-certainty-or-90-probability-that-the-new-industries/) [Peter Drucker](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/peter-drucker/) > [“I don't simply create probabilities, I guide them.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lionel-suggs/i-don-t-simply-create-probabilities-i-guide-them/) [Lionel Suggs](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lionel-suggs/) > [Some people are under the impression that all that is required to make a good fisherman is the ability to tell lies easily and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jerome-k-jerome/some-people-are-under-the-impression-that-all-that-is-required-to/) [Jerome K. Jerome](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jerome-k-jerome/) > [Everything is allowable in literature, but what is not allowable in criticism is objection on the grounds of probability.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/howard-jacobson/everything-is-allowable-in-literature-but-what-is-not-allowable-in/) [Howard Jacobson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/howard-jacobson/) ## More by B. F. Skinner > [To require a citizen to sign a loyalty oath is to destroy some of the loyalty he could otherwise claim, since any subsequent loyal…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/b-f-skinner/to-require-a-citizen-to-sign-a-loyalty-oath-is-to-destroy-some-of-the/) [B. F. Skinner](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/b-f-skinner/) > [A first principle not formally recognized by scientific methodologists: when you run into something interesting, drop everything else and study it.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/b-f-skinner/a-first-principle-not-formally-recognized-by-scientific/) [B. F. Skinner](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/b-f-skinner/) > [The problem of far greater importance remains to be solved. Rather than build a world in which we shall all live well, we must…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/b-f-skinner/the-problem-of-far-greater-importance-remains-to-be-solved-rather/) [B. F. Skinner](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/b-f-skinner/) > [I remember when I was a freshman in college, I was still somewhat bothered by... worried... about religion. I remember going to this professor…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/b-f-skinner/i-remember-when-i-was-a-freshman-in-college-i-was-still-somewhat/) [B. F. Skinner](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/b-f-skinner/) > [Those who have had anything useful to say have said it far too often, and those who have had nothing to say have been…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/b-f-skinner/those-who-have-had-anything-useful-to-say-have-said-it-far-too-often/) [B. F. Skinner](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/b-f-skinner/) > [I would be opposed to any kind of totalitarian control.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/b-f-skinner/i-would-be-opposed-to-any-kind-of-totalitarian-control/) [B. F. Skinner](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/b-f-skinner/) > [A disappointment is not generally an oversight. It might just be the best one can do the situation being what it is. The genuine…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/b-f-skinner/a-disappointment-is-not-generally-an-oversight-it-might-just-be-the/) [B. F. Skinner](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/b-f-skinner/) > [The simplest and most satisfactory view is that thought is simply behavior - verbal or nonverbal, covert or overt. It is not some mysterious…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/b-f-skinner/the-simplest-and-most-satisfactory-view-is-that-thought-is-simply/) [B. F. Skinner](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/b-f-skinner/) > [Behavior is shaped and maintained by its consequences](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/b-f-skinner/behavior-is-shaped-and-maintained-by-its-consequences/) [B. F. Skinner](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/b-f-skinner/) > [The alphabet was a great invention, which enabled men to store and to learn with little effort what others had learned the hard way-that…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/b-f-skinner/the-alphabet-was-a-great-invention-which-enabled-men-to-store-and-to/) [B. F. Skinner](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/b-f-skinner/) > [The people who control the condition in which we live have no reason to think beyond more than the next five or 10 years.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/b-f-skinner/the-people-who-control-the-condition-in-which-we-live-have-no-reason/) [B. F. Skinner](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/b-f-skinner/) > [I am opposed to the military use of animals. I am also opposed to the military use of men.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/b-f-skinner/i-am-opposed-to-the-military-use-of-animals-i-am-also-opposed-to-the/) [B. F. Skinner](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/b-f-skinner/) > [A person's genetic endowment, a product of the evolution of the species, is said to explain part of the workings of his mind and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/b-f-skinner/a-person-s-genetic-endowment-a-product-of-the-evolution-of-the/) [B. F. Skinner](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/b-f-skinner/) > [Reinforcement is being right.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/b-f-skinner/reinforcement-is-being-right/) [B. F. Skinner](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/b-f-skinner/) > [If you're old, don't try to change yourself, change your environment.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/b-f-skinner/if-you-re-old-don-t-try-to-change-yourself-change-your-environment/) [B. F. Skinner](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/b-f-skinner/) [Explore all 105 B. F. Skinner quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/b-f-skinner/) ## More Consequences quotes > [It's easy to make mistakes. It's living with the consequences of them that's the hardest.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sherrilyn-kenyon/it-s-easy-to-make-mistakes-it-s-living-with-the-consequences-of-them/) [Sherrilyn Kenyon](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sherrilyn-kenyon/) > [Actions have consequences... first rule of life. And the second rule is this - you are the only one responsible for your own actions.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/actions-have-consequences-first-rule-of-life-and-the-second-rule-is/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [There is no silver bullet. There are always options and the options have consequences.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ben-horowitz/there-is-no-silver-bullet-there-are-always-options-and-the-options/) [Ben Horowitz](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ben-horowitz/) > [Always being on the move has strange consequences. I meet so many amazing people, for a night, or sometimes just a few days. And…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gaspar-claus/always-being-on-the-move-has-strange-consequences-i-meet-so-many/) [Gaspar Claus](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gaspar-claus/) > [As a teenager, my dad taught me about the idea of unintended consequences, and I've had the experience, and how to deal with it,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/brad-feld/as-a-teenager-my-dad-taught-me-about-the-idea-of-unintended/) [Brad Feld](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/brad-feld/) > [“You do not need commandments to tell you what is right and wrong, you need reason. YOU NEED TO THINK. What are the consequences…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kassandra-dick/you-do-not-need-commandments-to-tell-you-what-is-right-and-wrong-you/) Kassandra Dick > [There is a down side to everything if you don't understand what the consequences of what you are saying in your music you could…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/assata-shakur/there-is-a-down-side-to-everything-if-you-don-t-understand-what-the/) [Assata Shakur](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/assata-shakur/) > [Start to not give a fuck and stop feraing the consequences.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tamika-leeigh/start-to-not-give-a-fuck-and-stop-feraing-the-consequences/) [Tamika-leeigh](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tamika-leeigh/) > [“There are always consequences for our actions, and sometimes we pay dearly if we fail to make good choices with our lives.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/h-h-fowler/there-are-always-consequences-for-our-actions-and-sometimes-we-pay/) [H.H. Fowler](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/h-h-fowler/) > [I spend a lot of time bathing in a glow of consensus but you also have to be willing to say something to people…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/nish-kumar/i-spend-a-lot-of-time-bathing-in-a-glow-of-consensus-but-you-also/) [Nish Kumar](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/nish-kumar/) > [Without being forgiven, released from the consequences of what we have done, our capacity to act would, as it were, be confined to one…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/hannah-arendt/without-being-forgiven-released-from-the-consequences-of-what-we-have/) [Hannah Arendt](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/hannah-arendt/) > [In fine, a life of good or evil, the hope of Heaven or the despair of Hell, Faustus stands as a reminder that the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/in-fine-a-life-of-good-or-evil-the-hope-of-heaven-or-the-despair-of/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [Imperialist enterprise draws political consequences.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/c-l-r-james/imperialist-enterprise-draws-political-consequences/) [C. L. R. James](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/c-l-r-james/) > [We, as individuals, are defined by the choices we make. Some of our decisions can have very significant consequences and totally change the courses…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/david-cage/we-as-individuals-are-defined-by-the-choices-we-make-some-of-our/) [David Cage](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/david-cage/) > [So obviously, any religion embodies some form of rules and expectations for behavior, and even sometimes consequences, and they don't want to hear any…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/pat-boone/so-obviously-any-religion-embodies-some-form-of-rules-and/) [Pat Boone](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/pat-boone/) [Browse all 1,532 Consequences quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/consequences/) ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "The consequences of an act affect the probability of its occurring again.", "creator": { "@type": "Person", "name": "B. 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