Giving an unpleasant stimulus, such as spanking a child for coloring on the wall, illustrates which concept?

• A. Negative Reinforcement
• B. Positive Punishment
• C. Positive Reinforcement
• D. Negative Punishment

Answer: (B)

Introducing an aversive consequence after a behavior to reduce how often that behavior occurs is a classic example of positive punishment. Spanking after coloring on the wall adds an unpleasant stimulus contingent on the act, which tends to make the behavior less likely to happen again. This contrasts with positive reinforcement (adding something pleasant to increase a behavior), negative reinforcement (removing an unpleasant thing to increase a behavior), and negative punishment (taking away something desirable to decrease a behavior). Here the aim is to decrease the unwanted coloring, so the aversive consequence is added, fitting positive punishment.