Operant conditioning is the fundamental process of learning; it is when a connection, …show more content…
Negative reinforcement is not to be confused with punishment, as negative reinforcement increases a behavior and punishment decreases a behavior. Punishment can be positive punishment or negative punishment, just as with reinforcement. Punishment can decrease a behavior by using an adverse stimuli (positive punishment), or by removing a desired stimuli (negative punishment).Positive reinforcement is the addition of something desirable following a behavior-something that is a rewarding stimuli, (such as things that activate pleasure centers). These stimuli can range from praise and social attention to access to tangible rewards. Negative reinforcement can increase a behavior as well, by removing an adverse stimuli following a behavior; that is the removal of something unwanted to increase behavior. Some factors that influence the effectiveness of reinforcement are immediacy, contingency, motivating operations, individual differences, and magnitude (Miltenberger, …show more content…
The greater the length of time between the behavior and consequence, the lower the effectiveness of the reinforcement. If there is too much delay, the consequence will have no impact on the behavior. The need for immediacy plays an important role in reinforcement on social behavior. Social reinforcers dictate what is appropriate and valued in social interactions, and strengthen social behavior as a result (Miltenberger,