noun, Psychology. 1. Also called operant conditioning, instrumental conditioning. a process of changing behavior by rewarding or punishing a subject each time an action is performed until the subject associates the action with pleasure or distress.
Pertussis is caused by the bacterium Bordetella pertussis. It is an airborne disease which spreads easily through the coughs and sneezes of an infected person. People are infectious to others from the start of symptoms until about three weeks into the coughing fits.
Pertussis. by Melissa Clyburn. Pertussis, a highly contagious disease also known as whooping cough, causes uncontrollable, violent coughing (1). causes the disease, and is not found in any animal or environmental reservoirs, but resides in the mouth, nose, and throat of humans (1).y Melissa Clyburn. Pertussis, a highly contagious disease also known as whooping cough, causes uncontrollable, violent coughing (1). causes the disease, and is not found in any animal or environmental reservoirs, but resides in the mouth, nose, and throat of humans (1).