'Negative Reinforcement' means -

Learning can be defined as the process by which any relatively permanent change in behavior occurs as a result of practice and /or experience. Reinforcement as a term refers to the psychological process of motivating a person.

• Reinforcement is something that enhances the strength of the response and prompts repetitions of the behavior that preceded reinforcement.
• Reinforcement, punishment, and extinction play a key role in the learning process. Reinforcement is used to enhance desirable behavior while punishment and extinction are employed to minimize undesirable behavior.

Key Points

Reinforcement is the attempt to develop or strengthen desirable behavior. There are two types of reinforcement - positive and negative reinforcement.

• Negative reinforcement involves the removal of an unpleasant stimulus to increase the likelihood of a behavior being repeated.
• This is different from punishment, which involves presenting or removing a stimulus to decrease the likelihood of a behavior.
• Negative reinforcement strengthens behavior by taking away an aversive condition.

Thus, it is concluded that 'Negative Reinforcement' means terminating an unpleasant stimulus.

Additional Information

• Positive reinforcement: Positive reinforcement strengthens and enhances behavior by the presence of positive reinforcers.