positive reinforcement psychology definition

Most studies would have only looked at children vs. One of the interesting aspects of this study is the three-way divide. Pre-supplementary motor area/anterior cingulate cortex, in contrast, was more active after negative feedback in both 11- to 13-year-olds and adults, but not 8- to 9-year-olds. For 11- to 13-year-olds, these regions did not show differential feedback sensitivity, suggesting that the transition occurs around this age. Dorsolateral prefrontal cortex and superior parietal cortex were more active after negative feedback for adults, but after positive feedback for children (8–9 years of age). There were also differences in brain activity. For them, negative feedback improved performance more than positive feedback. The opposite proved true in the case of older children and young adults. In younger children, performance improved substantially more when the feedback was positive. The MRI scans showed which parts of the brain were activated, and improvements in perormance were measured across trials. If they did the task correctly, a tick appeared on the screen. In the study, researchers gave participants from the 8-9, 11-12, and 18-25 year-old age groups a computer task while they lay in the MRI scanner. Meanwhile, the brains of adults, as well as children age 11-12, respond better to negative feedback. Eveline Crone and colleagues, which was published in the Journal of Neuroscience(2008), children age 8-9 respond better to positive reinforcement ('Good job!' 'Well done!'), and disproportionately more inaccurately to negative feedback (i.e., positive punishment). But new research is shedding some interesting light.įor example, according to a study by Dr. Psychologists have been debating this very topic for over 100 years, with differing results. So now you understand the terminology - and you’re probably wondering, Do any of these methods work better than the others? What most people mean when they say “negative reinforcement” is actually “positive punishment,” or adding (“positive”) something bad (“punishment”) to disincentivize an undesirable behavior.įor example, a teacher uses positive punishment when she tells her class, “If you don’t stop fooling around, I'll give you a detention.”īut sometimes, when people say “negative reinforcement,” they actually mean “negative punishment” - or taking away (“negative”) something good (“punishment”) to discourage a certain behavior.įor example, the teacher telling her class, “If you don’t stop fooling around, you don’t get to go to recess.”

For example, the teacher tells her class, “If you pass the spelling test, you don’t have to clean the chalkboards after school.” Negative reinforcement happens when you reinforce a desired behavior by removing something undesirable.

An example of this would be a teacher telling her class, “If you pass the spelling test, you get an extra five minutes of recess!” Positive reinforcement means you reinforce a desired behavior by adding a reward. Which means that when you use the terms “positive reinforcement” and “negative reinforcement,” there’s a decent chance you’re using them incorrectly - and I cringe just a little on the inside. Instead, “positive” means you add something, and “negative” means you take something away.

Positive reinforcement psychology definition