Educational Psychology / Unit 13 EDP 1233 worked example, 60 to 90 seconds
Naming the Quadrant
The idea
Naming the operant quadrant takes two questions in order. Did the behavior afterward become more or less frequent? More means reinforcement; less means punishment. Was something added or taken away? Added means positive; taken away means negative. The labels describe what happened to the behavior and the stimulus, not whether the consequence felt pleasant or was meant kindly.
In practice
Worked example: a student who calls out is scolded, and calling out increases: something was added and the behavior rose, so the scolding was positive reinforcement, because attention is what the student wanted. A student who finishes early is excused from homework, and early finishing increases: something aversive was removed, negative reinforcement. A student loses recess for pushing, and pushing decreases: negative punishment.
Where people slip
Negative does not mean bad, and a consequence meant as punishment is reinforcement if the behavior it follows increases.
Your place on the trail
Every lesson rests on earlier ones and opens later ones. Tap any to jump.
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