PUNISHMENT

PUNISHMENT Reinforcement increases a behavior;

punishment does the opposite. A punisher is any consequence that decreases the frequency of a preceding behavior.

PUNISHMENT IS NOT NEGATIVE REINFORCEMT

Negative reinforcement encourages behavior. When something unpleasant ceases, the behavior that caused it to stop is reinforced.

Punishment discourages behavior. Behavior that is unwanted is punished, making it less likely for that behavior to continue.

Hot Topic: Punishment and Child Abuse

4 Drawbacks of Physically Punishing Children:1) Punished behavior is suppressed not forgotten.

2) Punishment teaches discrimination: does the kid learn not to swear or just not swear at home?

More…

3) Punishment can teach fear: the child may associate fear not only with the undesirable behavior but also with the person that delivered the punishment or the place where it occurred.

4) Physical punishment may increase aggressiveness by modeling aggressiveness as a way to cope with problems.

Quick Practicum: SpankingWere you spanked as a child?Why or why not?

What reasons might parents have for NOT spanking their children?

Where is the line between spanking and child abuse?

Is spanking successful? Why or why not?

Quick Practicum: Operant Conditioning in Youth

Recall an early childhood memory of learning how to do something, like riding a bike. How did you learn? What operant conditioning techniques were used with you?

Is there a connection between operant

conditioning and cognition? Shortly before he died, Skinner spoke

about his resistance to “cognitive science--thoughts, perceptions, expectations, were not linked to the world of behvorialism in his eyes.

However…

There is evidence that there are some cognitive processes at work with operant conditioning.

Latent Learning: learning that occurs but is not apparent until there is an incentive to demonstrate it.

More Definitions… Intrinsic Motivation: a desire to

perform a behavior effectively for its own sake.

Extrinsic Motivation: a desire to perform a behavior to receive promised rewards or avoid threatened punishment.

Insight: a sudden and often novel realization of the solution to a problem.