Classical+Conditioning+and+Learning

These secondary reinforcers, and their attempt to strengthen behavior, can be shaped through positive and negative reinforcements. Positive reinforcement occurs when the desired behavior is reached and then presented with an additional stimuli such as handing a students candy or stickers for good behavior.The basic premise of the idea is that students would continue their good behavior in effort to receive more rewards. The only way that positive reinforcement can be effective is if "rewards are tied to the behavior you are trying to increase" (Wade; Tavis 254)

On the contrary, negative reinforcement refers to "the removal of a stimulus to increase behavior" (Feist; Rosenberg 304). "Pleasurable consequences are called reinforcers; unpleasant consequences are called punishers" (Slavin 132). An example of a negative reinforcer would be nagging a student to do their classwork, if the student does their claswork to get away from the nagging, they have become the victim of negative reinforcement. Negative reinforcement is often confused with punishment, stimuli that produces a decrease in the frequency of a behavior.

Punishment can be further broken down into two categories: Positive and negative punishment. When a stimulus is added that decreases behavior that punishment is referred to as positive punishment. An example of this is a good old fashioned spanking. A negative punishment removes a desirable stimulus to decrease an undesirable behavior (Feist; Rosenberg 305). The classic example of this is a time-out. The most common problem when administering it is that "it focuses on decreasing or eliminating behaviors, doesn't tell kids what they should be doing, only what they shouldn't be doing" (Feist; Rosenberg 306).

Using punishment as a behavior modification should be used in instances where "children will injure themselves," and not be used as a primary tool for promoting proper behavior (Wade; Tavris 249). Application of punishment for students in the classroom can come in two different ways. The first is presentation punishment where a student is assertively scolded for undesirable behavior. The second, removal punishment, is the withdraw of a pleasant situation (Slavin 136). In order for punishments, or reinforcers, to be successful they should be delivered immediately after the behavior (Slavin 137-8).

When Punishment fails is can likely be attributed to six different reason (Wade; Tavris 252-3):
 * 1) The punishment has been administered inappropriately.
 * 2) The recipient of the punishment responds with fear.
 * 3) The punishment is heavily dependent on the presence of the punishing person
 * 4) The misbehavior was not immediate.
 * 5) The punishment does not tell the recipient what they should do.
 * 6) The punishment brings wanted attention to the individual misbehaving.

Refresh my memory: What is this box again?

How will this be used in the 21st century?

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