negative reinforcement
Subtracting unpleasant stimuli
Negative reinforcement is a concept from behavioral psychology in which a behavior increases because an unpleasant stimulus is removed or avoided when that behavior occurs.
A rat learns to press a lever because doing so stops an annoying noise; a student studies to avoid the anxiety of being unprepared.
The term is widely misunderstood as punishment, but reinforcement always strengthens behavior—the "negative" refers to taking something away, not to anything bad.
Fastening your seatbelt to silence the beeping is negative reinforcement.
Learning via reinforcement
- SkinnerBehaviorism's leading theorist
- behavior modificationAltering conduct through reinforcement
- extinctionComplete vanishing of a species
- shapingGiving something its form
consequences · antecedent · behavioral analysis · punishment · generalization · habituation · desensitization · counterconditioning
Flight from captivity
- avoidanceDeliberate keeping away
- reliefEasing of distress
- removalAct of taking away
- withdrawalAct of taking away
incentive · compliance · deterrent · pressure · compulsion · aversion · tension release · anxiety relief
operant conditioning
Learning via reinforcement
- SkinnerBehaviorism's leading theorist
- behavior modificationAltering conduct through reinforcement
- extinctionComplete vanishing of a species
shaping · consequences · antecedent · behavioral analysis · punishment · generalization · habituation · desensitization · counterconditioning
escape
Flight from captivity
withdrawal · incentive · compliance · deterrent · pressure · compulsion · aversion · tension release · anxiety relief · unpleasantness
- psychologypsychology, psychologist, therapist, psychiatrist, clinical psychology
- self-controlself-control, restraint, willpower, composure, moderation
- behavior changeconditioning, reward, consequence, behavior plan, behavior chart
- classroom managementrules, routines, routine, procedures, procedure
- Conditioningconditioning, classical conditioning, operant, stimulus, conditioned response
- psychological phrasesinner child, defense mechanism, cognitive dissonance, id, ego
negative reinforcementpunishment
Penalty for an offense
positive reinforcement · extinction · penalty · deterrence · time-out
negative reinforcementpositive reinforcement
Strengthening behavior through rewards
negative reinforcementpositive reinforcement
Strengthening behavior through rewards
negative, negatively, negativity, negate, negation, negating, negated, reinforce, reinforcement