Negative punishment is one form of punishment that can be used tomodify behavior.
It involves removing a reinforcer to decrease the likelihood of a behavior.
An example of this would be taking away a child’s favorite toy after they throw a tantrum.
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Negative punishment is an important concept in B. F. Skinner’s theory ofoperant conditioning.
In behavioral psychology, the goal ofpunishmentis to decrease unwanted behavior.
For this reason, negative punishment is often referred to as “punishment by removal.”
Losing access to a toy, being grounded, and losing reward tokens are all examples of negative punishment.
In each case, something good is being taken away as a result of the individual’s undesirable behavior.
There are a few different types of negative punishment.
Ignoring:
This involves withholding attention after an undesirable behavior.
Negative Punishment vs.
Positive Punishment
Negative punishment should also be distinguished frompositive punishment.
Positive punishment is when something undesirable is added after an unwanted behavior has occurred.
For instance, when a child throws atemper tantrum, they are given extra chores.
The difference lies in whether something is added or removed.
Consistency
If negative punishment only happens occasionally, it’s likely to be effective.
Driving over the speed limit is another common example.
Contingency
The use of negative punishment must be contingent on the behavior.
However, she drives at night several times a week without facing consequences.
One evening while driving a friend home, she is pulled over and issued a ticket.
As you might have guessed, losing her license is a negative punishment in this example.
So why would she continue to engage in the behavior even though it led to punishment?
Skinneralso noted that once the punishment is withdrawn, the behavior is very likely to return.
When used too often, negative punishment can have unwanted effects.
It might also contribute to learned helplessness.
Rather than use negative punishment on its own, it can be more effective to pair it withpositive reinforcement.
This allows the individual to be rewarded for making desired changes in behavior.
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