Unit 4 · Learning Theory · Reading 7 of 13

Reinforcement vs. Punishment: The 2×2

Read before: Day 3Time: about 9 minutesTextbook: Ch. 6, negative reinforcement through the outcome rule

Before you read

Quick: is "negative reinforcement" a good thing or a bad thing? Write your gut answer down. Most students get it wrong before this reading.

Words you'll own by the end

Reinforcement: any consequence that increases a behavior.
Punishment: any consequence that decreases a behavior.
Positive (+): something is added.
Negative (−): something is removed.
Escape / avoidance learning: behaviors that remove an unpleasant stimulus already present / prevent it before it starts.

1. Think math, not mood

In operant conditioning, positive does not mean good and negative does not mean bad. Think like a math class:

+ Positive = something is added.
− Negative = something is removed.

And remember the other half: reinforcement always increases behavior. Punishment always decreases it. If the behavior doesn't go up, it wasn't reinforcement. If it doesn't go down, it wasn't punishment.

The 2×2 you need to know cold

+ Positive (add)

− Negative (remove)

Reinforcement

Positive reinforcementAdd something wanted. Behavior goes up.
Treat for sitting.

Negative reinforcementRemove something unwanted. Behavior goes up.
Seatbelt stops the buzzer.

Punishment

Positive punishmentAdd something unwanted. Behavior goes down.
Extra chores for breaking curfew.

Negative punishmentRemove something wanted. Behavior goes down.
Car keys taken for breaking curfew.

2. Negative reinforcement: the confusing one

Negative reinforcement makes a behavior more frequent by removing something unpleasant. Taking aspirin removes a headache, so you're more likely to take aspirin next time. Your alarm blares, and to stop the noise you have to get out of bed and turn it off. Removing the noise makes getting up more likely.

The easy way to spot it: in negative reinforcement, the unpleasant thing is already there before the behavior. The car buzzer is going before you buckle up. Buckling up makes it stop. In positive punishment, the unpleasant thing comes after the behavior.

3. Escape vs. avoidance

Two kinds of learning grow out of negative reinforcement:

Escape learning: getting away from an unpleasant stimulus that's already present. Someone with intense social anxiety feels panic at a party and leaves, which relieves the anxiety.
Avoidance learning: acting before the unpleasant stimulus shows up so it never happens. A rat that learned pressing a lever triggers a loud noise stops pressing it. A brother who knows bothering his sister while she studies leads to five minutes of screaming stops bothering her.

4. The two punishments

Positive punishment adds something unpleasant after a behavior. If Brad comes home two hours past curfew, his parents add extra chores. Negative punishment removes something wanted. If you break curfew and your parents take your car for a week, that's negative punishment.

Try it: Which quadrant?

Ask two questions: Was something added or removed? Did the behavior go up or down?

A student gets a sticker for turning in homework, and turns it in more often.

You put aloe on your sunburn to stop the sting, and now you reach for aloe faster.

A teen loses phone privileges for swearing, and swears less.

A driver gets a speeding ticket and drives slower after that.

Deborah's anxiety drops every time she washes her hands, so she washes more and more.

A dog gets a tap on the snout for biting and stops biting.

5. The outcome decides, not the intention

A teacher gives extra credit for every correct answer, meaning it as positive reinforcement. If students don't answer more questions, it wasn't reinforcement. If parents add chores for breaking curfew and you still come home late, it wasn't punishment. Judge by what happened to the behavior.

Check-in: A parent takes away a child's tablet for hitting, but the hitting continues at the same rate. What is this?

Am I ready for a pop quiz?

Check a box only if you can say the answer out loud without scrolling up.

I can explain what positive and negative mean in operant conditioning. I can fill in all four boxes of the 2×2 from memory, with an example for each. I can tell negative reinforcement from positive punishment using the before/after test. I can tell escape from avoidance learning. I can explain why the outcome, not the intention, decides the label.

Come back to your "before you read" question

Was your gut answer "bad"? Negative reinforcement increases behavior by taking something unpleasant away. If you can explain that to someone else, you've beaten the most common mistake in this unit.