according to b. f. skinner, what is not a good way for parent to change childs behavior

Did you know that parents could railroad train their children to act defiant? "Who in their right minds would do that?" you may wonder. Well, many of u.s.a. actually do. Find out how a lot of parents unknowingly railroad train their children in rebellion using negative reinforcement.

Behavioral psychologist, B.F. Skinner, believed that one's beliefs could be increased or decreased in frequency using a stimulus through a process called operant conditioning ^ane .

In operant learning, the specific behaviors are controlled by its consequences ² .

There are two types of operant conditioning – reinforcement and punishment. The deviation between reinforcement and penalty is that the reinforcement encourages a behavior to repeat, while penalization discourages it.

At that place are besides two forms of reinforcement – positive / negative. Both positive and negative reinforcement tin can increase a target behavior.

Positive and negative depict how the stimulus is used to enhance the specific behavior. When a reinforcing stimulus is added to reinforce a certain behavior, positive reinforcement results. When an unpleasant stimulus is subtracted to reinforce the beliefs, negative reinforcement results.

Therefore, the word, positive or negative, does not represent the nature or quality of the reinforcement. Instead, they simply describe whether a stimulus is added (positive) or subtracted (negative) to reinforce the detail beliefs.

What Is Negative Reinforcement

Negative reinforcement is encouraging a desired behavior to repeat in the hereafter by removing or avoiding an aversive stimulus.

People sometimes associate positive reinforcement meaning with rewards and naturally assume negative reinforcement is the opposite of awards, which is punishment. But it is non. Negative reinforcement does not mean it is bad or punishing in nature. Negative reinforcement is not the aforementioned every bit positive punishment or negative punishment.

Reinforcement encourages certain behaviors to repeat and raises the future frequency of an action. On the other mitt, positive / negative penalisation discourage behaviors.

"Negative" in Negative Reinforcement

To remember the meaning of negative in negative reinforcement is to call back of information technology every bit taking away something or something being subtracted to provide a favorable consequence as the event.

In negative reinforcement, that favorable outcome is the removal of something already nowadays or avoidance of an inevitable aversive event. The person wants to repeat the target action because they want the effect to repeat.

Removal and reduction of ongoing stimulation typically produce beliefs that is called escape. Postponement and prevention of aversive stimulus produce beliefs that is called avoidance ³ .

Boy takes a shower smiling. Taking a shower is negative reinforcement examples. The boy won't smell in class in front of the teacher.

Examples of Negative Reinforcement

Taking a shower or a bathroom is a good instance of how negative reinforcement works. Later on being out and almost all day, y'all come up domicile in a sweaty shirt. You and then accept a shower to get rid of the bad odour and the yucky sweat on your bodies.

Yous similar the feeling of freshness and cleanliness after the shower, and therefore, you will probable echo this action later on you lot come home side by side time.

Hither, the bad smell and yucky feeling are the aversive stimuli. The behavior results in the removal of the aversive stimuli.

Example In Everyday Life: Putting on a coat in common cold conditions

Existence able to stay good for you is a very applied motivator. So someday yous can do something to have sickness already present removed (taking something away) or prevented, you will likely repeat information technology in the future.

Here's ane example. When information technology is cold exterior, wearing a coat can help you prevent the negative issue of getting sick from occurring.

Context: A chilly mean solar day at low temperature
Beliefs: Wearing a glaze when you become outside
Stimulus: Getting a cold
Negative Reinforcement: Wearing a glaze on a chilly mean solar day can preclude you from catching a cold. Your action to avert sickness is then reinforced to avert negative consequences.

Example For Child: Picking up toys

Here's another case of negative reinforcement. Little kids ofttimes spread their toys such every bit blimp animals effectually the room when they play and then neglect to put them away. Some parents come up up with "cleanup songs", "cleanup rituals" or other artistic ways to entice children to selection up toys after playing. This is a positive reinforcement tactic.

The behavior of putting toys away can actually be negatively reinforced. One negative consequence of leaving toys scattered effectually the business firm is that they volition likely be lost or difficult to discover when the child wants to play with them over again the next fourth dimension.

Past teaching the kid this natural consequence, they volition probable pick up toys more frequently in the future. The aversive stimulus of toy loss is and so avoided.

Context: Toys scattered around the house
Beliefs: Putting away toys subsequently playing
Stimulus: Favorite toy lost or misplaced
Negative Reinforcement: If the kid puts away their toys after playing with them, they won't lose the toys or forget where they are. Avoiding the aversive outcome is the end upshot.

Girl picks up toy ball, puts it away into the toy box. Child cleans floor of toys. She is doing it with a smile, examples of negative reinforcement. Sometimes a child is given food as a reward.

Case At Home: Taking a Shower

Context: You lot come abode smelly and covered by sweat
Beliefs: Taking a shower
Stimulus: Bad smell and yucky feeling
Negative Reinforcement: Taking a shower gets rid of the bad odor and glutinous feeling. Information technology allows you to escape from the aversive stimuli already present.

Notice that whether a certain stimulus is aversive is subjective. An aversive stimulus to one person may exist a favorable one to another.

For instance, not anybody likes or cares for the fresh and clean feeling after a bath. Children beliefs, for example, falls into this category. Kids don't mind being smelly or yucky. (That is why it can be a chore for some of us parents to go our little ones to take a bathroom.)

Case In The Classroom: Studying difficult to avoid failing

Reinforcement in the classroom is commonly used. In that location are many reasons students want to report hard for exams. Some students genuinely enjoy learning or like the subject area. These students are intrinsically motivated to study hard.

Only other students may exercise it considering they want to avoid existence reprimanded by their parents for getting a declining grade. This type of studying is negatively reinforced because studying hard allows the student to escape beingness scolded past their parents.

Context: Taking an exam
Behavior: Studying difficult for the examination
Stimulus: Scolded or reprimanded by their parents
Negative Reinforcement: Studying hard to earn a good course allows the educatee to avoid beingness punished when they bring dwelling the report card.

Example In Daily Life: Using sunscreen before going out

Applying sunscreen is also a wellness-related action you lot want to reinforce. When the dominicus is scorching outside, y'all know from experience that if yous go outside without sunscreen, yous will go a sunburn. Getting frequent sunburn is not but painful, merely information technology tin too lead to skin cancer.

Context: Going out in the sun
Beliefs: Putting on sunscreen
Stimulus: Painful and potentially dangerous sunburn
Negative Reinforcement: Applying sunscreen can help keep you from getting a sunburn. Therefore, you have avoided the aversive stimulus.

Misconception About Negative Reinforcement

Equally seen in the examples, negative reinforcement occurs a lot more than we know in our daily life although we don't hear this term often.

A mutual misconception about the use of negative reinforcement is that it is less effective or desirable than positive reinforcement.

Even so, we've already seen that putting abroad toys so you won't lose them, wearing a jacket to avoid getting a cold, and using sunscreen to preclude sunburn are all "good behavior" that can be effectively increased through negative reinforcement. Therefore, this type of reinforcement is not less desirable than positive reinforcement. (In fact, non all positive reinforcement are practiced either.)

Whether a specific negative reinforcement is good/effective or not depends on the particular situation and context. General statements such equally "negative reinforcement is not as good as positive reinforcement on someone" is simply incorrect.

Drug Addiction

Addictive substance such every bit opiates can produce a concrete dependence afterward just a minor number of uses (or fifty-fifty after a unmarried use in some cases).

The outcome of drug corruption is very significant, to the addict and to the community. It can bear upon health, economic, and functioning of the society deeply. Unfortunately, substance abuse is a behavior that is very hard to curb because it is persistently encouraged through negative reinforcement.

A falling level of drug in the fond person'south body can create a severe withdrawal syndrome. Drugs such as benzodiazepines, a blazon of tranquilizers, tin cause anxiety and seizures during drug withdrawal. Cocaine can cause depression and restlessness and booze tin cause tremors and seizures that last for days.

These withdrawal symptoms can only be rapidly alleviated by taking the drug again. Drug use, an undesired behavior, is therefore reinforced negatively when the aversive symptoms are taken away by taking another dose of the drug ^iv , causing relapses likely to occur.

Mom points her finger and yells at girl. The girl is sitting on bed and crying. Scolding is an aversive stimulus.

Negative Reinforcement Trap In Parenting

Here is a less obvious but more pervasive example of how parents apply negative reinforcement unintentionally.

Mom tells a toddler to go to bed, which the toddler hates. The toddler and so protests, whines, and throws a tantrum. Mom gives in and allows a later on bedtime to stop the tantrum. The child stops crying and whining.

In this case, going to bed is an aversive stimulus for the child. By throwing a tantrum, the aversive stimulus is avoided, reinforcing the tantrum-throwing beliefs.

At the aforementioned time, a toddler'south whining and crying is an aversive stimulus for Mom. When Mom gives in, the aversive stimulus is taken away, reinforcing Mom's giving-in behavior.

In other words, the child has learned that tantrum and defiance can remove a parent's demands. The parent has learned that giving up tin remove a child'due south tantrum. Reinforcement has occurred for both of them without them knowing information technology. This is escape learning as they both learn to escape the unpleasant situation.

The interaction is called the Negative Reinforcement Trap ⁵ .

A Negative Reinforcement Trap is created when parents practice not follow through on their commands or discipline, unintentionally reinforcing non-compliance in their children.

Both parent's and children's behavior are mutually shaped through these negative reinforcement conditioning processes ⁶ . The parent has been trained to give up when the child behaves aversively, and the child has been trained to human activity aversive every fourth dimension the parent disciplines.

Mom tries to pull son up by his arms. The boy is crying and protesting on the floor resisting. Coercive cycle is predicted by the coercive theory class.

Inconsistent Parenting and Conduct Problems

The strength of the child's non-compliant response is affected by the iv unlike types of schedules of reinforcement, i.e., when and how often the parent gives in.

A parent'south giving in sometimes merely not all the fourth dimension actually strengthens the child'due south aversive behaviors the most.

Inconsistent parenting amounts to a variable ratio reinforcement schedule, which is the same blazon of schedule that causes some people to become securely addicted to gambling. When applied in parenting, inconsistency makes the child'south defiant behavior to become increasingly hard to change.

Back to the previous example. Over time, Mom becomes more and more frustrated. She gets tough by yelling, threatening, or interim physically aggressive.

One of three things can at present happen:
1) The toddler stops whining and throwing tantrums out of fear, which negatively reinforces Mom's harsh behavior,
ii) The toddler escalates the protest, which frustrates Mom more than and she gets even tougher in response, or
3) ane or two above takes place intermittently depending on who "wins" on different occasions, and the inconsistency strengthens both participants' aggressive behavior.

Equally the dynamic continues, the parent-child interactions become more than difficult to manage, leading to a destructive coercive cycle ^seven .

This is how some children develop conduct bug, such as Oppositional Defiant Disorder, according to Coercion Theory ^viii .

Concluding Thoughts

To intermission or forbid a negative reinforcement coercive cycle, parents should use not-aggressive and non-punitive disciplinary methods, such as Positive Discipline, to deal with their children'due south aversive behavior. It'southward besides a practiced idea to set boundaries and be consequent in enforcing rules. Cheque out these ten parenting tips on how to be a good parent.

References

1.

Skinner B. Operant beliefs. American psychologist. 1963;18(8):503.
iii.

Iwata BA. NEGATIVE REINFORCEMENT IN Practical BEHAVIOR Analysis: AN EMERGING Technology. Journal of Applied Behavior Analysis. December 1987:361-378. doi:10.1901/jaba.1987.xx-361
iv.

Bakery TB, Piper ME, McCarthy DE, Majeskie MR, Fiore MC. Habit Motivation Reformulated: An Melancholia Processing Model of Negative Reinforcement. Psychological Review. 2004:33-51. doi:x.1037/0033-295x.111.1.33
5.

Wierson Thousand, Forehand R. Parent Behavioral Training for Child Noncompliance: Rationale, Concepts, and Effectiveness. Curr Dir Psychol Sci. October 1994:146-150. doi:10.1111/1467-8721.ep10770643
vi.

Lunkenheimer E, Lichtwarck-Aschoff A, Hollenstein T, Kemp CJ, Granic I. Breaking Downwards the Coercive Bike: How Parent and Kid Risk Factors Influence Real-Time Variability in Parental Responses to Kid Misbehavior. Parenting. August 2016:237-256. doi:ten.1080/15295192.2016.1184925
seven.

Patterson GR. The aggressive child: Victim and architect of a coercive system. Beliefs modification and families. 1976;1:267-316.
eight.

Gardner FEM. Inconsistent parenting: Is there evidence for a link with children's conduct problems? J Abnorm Kid Psychol. April 1989:223-233. doi:10.1007/bf00913796

carterwharyince.blogspot.com

Source: https://www.parentingforbrain.com/negative-reinforcement/