Negative Punishments

Definition

Negative punishment is a behavior modification technique that involves the removal of a desirable stimulus to decrease the likelihood of a particular behavior.

Analogy

Think of negative punishment like taking away your phone because you've been using it too much. The removal of the phone (desirable stimulus) is meant to decrease your excessive phone usage (behavior).

Related terms

Operant Conditioning: A type of learning where behavior is controlled by consequences. Key concepts in operant conditioning are positive reinforcement, negative reinforcement, positive punishment, and negative punishment.

Extinction: In psychology, extinction refers to the gradual weakening of a conditioned response that results in the behavior decreasing or disappearing.

Aversive Stimulus: An unpleasant event that is intended to decrease the probability of a behavior when it is presented as a consequence (e.g., scolding, spanking).