Question

160. What is the goal of both positive and negative reinforcement?

(A) To decrease the likelihood that a negative reinforcer will follow a
behavior
(B) To increase the likelihood that the preceding behavior will be
repeated
(C) To decrease the likelihood that the preceding behavior will be
repeated
(D) To ensure there are no negative consequences following the behavior
(E) To add a primary reinforcer after someone does a proper behavior

Answer 1

The objective of both positive and negative reinforcement is to encourage the repetition of a behavior, by adding a pleasant stimulus or removing an unpleasant one, respectively. Option B

Step-by-step explanation:

The goal of both positive reinforcement and negative reinforcement in operant conditioning is to increase the likelihood of a given behavior being repeated. With positive reinforcement, a desirable stimulus is added to encourage the repetition of the behavior.

An example would be giving a dog a treat for sitting on command. Conversely, negative reinforcement involves the removal of an undesirable stimulus to promote the behavior's recurrence. For instance, the beeping of a seatbelt alarm stopping once the seatbelt is fastened encourages the use of seatbelts.

Punishment, on the other hand, aims to decrease the likelihood that a behavior will occur again. It can be positive, such as adding an unpleasant stimulus like scolding, or negative, such as taking away a toy when a child misbehaves. While reinforcement encourages behaviors to be repeated, punishment is designed to dissuade behaviors from occurring.

Therefore, the correct answer to the student's question is (B) To increase the likelihood that the preceding behavior will be repeated.