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Skinner's Reinforcement and Punishment Name: Institution: Date: Skinner's Reinforcement and Punishment Reinforcement and punishment are doctrines applied in “operant conditioning.” These terms were coined by a classical psychologist commonly referred to as B.F Skinner. Under this approach, Skinner believed that classical conditioning lacked the capacity to explain the complex human behavior. He suggested that we should delve into the triggers of behavior and its impact. In the process, he introduced the terms ‘punishment’ and ‘reinforcement.' According to Ferster (1964), reinforcement refers to a way of enhancing a behavior. It is also any outcome or result that increases the chances of a given behavioral response hence ‘reinforcing’ the habit. The strengthening impact on the habit may occur in many ways such as higher rate, increased duration and low latency of response. On the other hand, ‘punishment’ implies a decline in behavior. In this respect, in is an outcome that lowers the chances of a particular behavioral response. In my personal life, I have seen these principles manifest in various ways. Being the eldest in a family of three children I often find myself applying these principles on my younger siblings. For instance, I like praising my younger brother who is in elementary school whenever he completes a task or homework. Sometimes I take both of them out for a movie on a weekend when their behavior has been exemplary in that week so as to motivate them to continue doing so. I believe this is in line with the reinforcement principle. I also apply the punishment principle whenever any of them portrays a bad habit such as
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