Compare and Contrast Positive Reinforcement and Negative Reinforcement, and Provide

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The Answer is The answer should include the following information: In positive reinforcement, an operant behavior is strengthened because it has been followed by a reinforcing stimulus. The textbook gives several examples. In sales, if a person achieves a particular sales quota (the operant), they receive a bonus check (the reinforcing stimulus). Another example is that a child is told to clean up their room (the operant) and they receive an ice cream (the reinforcing stimulus). In these examples, the addition of the reinforcing stimulus has an effect of making the person more likely to repeat the operant in similar situations in the future, we say that positive reinforcement has occurred. However, what is considered a reinforcing stimulus can vary from person to person, species to species, and situation to situation. On the other hand, negative reinforcement involves an operant behavior that is followed by the removal of an aversive stimulus. In this case, a response increases because it produces a change that is positive. For example, a child is crying, and the parent changes her diaper. Your roommate is playing loud music, and you put ear plugs in. In these cases, an aversive stimuli, some physical or psychological discomfort is present and the person would like to escape or avoid these circumstances. Behavior is negatively reinforced when they let the person escape the aversive stimulus that presents or completely avoid it before it occurs.

Compare and Contrast Positive Reinforcement and Negative Reinforcement, and Provide

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