In operant conditioning, which statement best characterizes positive punishment and negative reinforcement?

In operant conditioning, which statement best characterizes positive punishment and negative reinforcement?

• A. P+ adds an aversive; R- removes an aversive.
• B. P+ removes an aversive; R- adds an aversive.
• C. P+ adds a reward; R- removes a reward.
• D. P+ removes a reward; R- adds a reward.

Answer: (A)

The idea being tested is how adding or removing something after a behavior changes how likely that behavior is to occur. Positive punishment means you add an aversive stimulus after the behavior to make it less likely the behavior will happen again. Negative reinforcement means you remove an aversive stimulus after the behavior to make it more likely the behavior will happen again. So the correct statement is that positive punishment adds an aversive, and negative reinforcement removes an aversive. The other options would misstate either what gets added or what gets removed.

The idea being tested is how adding or removing something after a behavior changes how likely that behavior is to occur. Positive punishment means you add an aversive stimulus after the behavior to make it less likely the behavior will happen again. Negative reinforcement means you remove an aversive stimulus after the behavior to make it more likely the behavior will happen again. So the correct statement is that positive punishment adds an aversive, and negative reinforcement removes an aversive. The other options would misstate either what gets added or what gets removed.