PSYC 2210 Chapter 8: PSYC2210 Chapter 8 Avoidance and Punishment.doc
29 Mar 2012
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Negative reinforcement: a behavior strengthening procedure in which an aversive stimulus is removed or omitted if the behavior occurs. For example, an individual takes a tylenol, and this is followed by the termination of a headache. In this case, the individual escapes from the pain of the headache by performing some behavior. As a result, this behavior should be strengthened in the future: the next time the person has a headache, he is likely to take a tylenol again. The term negative reinforcement also includes instances of avoidance in which a response prevents an unpleasant stimulus (aversive stimulus) from occurring in the first place. For example, paying your income tax avoids the unpleasant consequences of failing to do so. The term positive indicates that a stimulus is presented if a behavior occurs; the term negative indicates that stimulus is removed or avoided entirely if a behavior occurs. Punishment is a behavior reduction procedure which followed by an unpleasant stimulus.
