Positive Reinforcement
The Basic Idea
Have you ever witnessed a show-down between a toddler begging for a toy and their parent? The rugrat can employ dozens of ruthless tactics, even unleashing the ultimate humiliation – a mid-mall tantrum. As a bystander, you think, “Just buy him the toy, anything to make this stop!” However, as experienced parents know, this surrender will signal to the child that bad behavior gets them what they want. In other words, the toy will act as a positive reinforcer for bad behavior. In behavioral psychology, positive reinforcement is a key concept in operant conditioning, a powerful form of learning in which behavioral consequences determine the likelihood of future behavior.1
What is love except another name for the use of positive reinforcement? Or vice versa.
–American psychologist, B. F. Skinner in Walden Two
About the Author
Maria Fomina
Maria is a Summer Associate at The Decision Lab whose main interests lie at the intersections of health and behavioral science. She has recently completed an undergraduate degree at the University of Toronto, majoring in global health and psychology, and minoring in immunology. Before joining TDL, Maria helped start Doctrina, the educational program of Pendance film festival. In her free time, she does translations for the Rylkov Foundation for Health and Social Justice, an NGO promoting a humane drug policy in Russia.
