Final answer:
Harsh punishment is believed to teach and reinforce violent behaviors rather than deterring them, as demonstrated by the tendency for physical punishment to increase aggression and programs like 'Scared Straight' to result in higher crime rates among participants.
Step-by-step explanation:
The notion that harsh punishment teaches violent reactions and may not deter violence refers to the concept that punishment, particularly physical punishment like spanking, can lead to increases in aggression and does not necessarily prevent future undesirable behavior. Research has shown that spanking, for instance, has a tendency to increase aggressive behavior in the individual who is spanked, pointing to the ineffectiveness of such a punitive approach. Moreover, viewing violent media such as television shows, movies, and video games might also contribute to aggressive behavior, further underscoring the complex relationship between exposure to violence and subsequent actions.
There is also evidence indicating that punitive measures like the 'Scared Straight' program, which aims to deter criminal behavior in at-risk youth by exposing them to prison environments, can actually have the opposite effect, resulting in higher rates of crime among participants. Thus, while punishment is traditionally thought to reduce undesirable behavior, it can potentially teach and reinforce violent reactions instead of deterring them.