Behavior-Change Procedures

Positive reinforcement is the contingent presentation of a stimulus immediately following a behavior that increases the future frequency of that behavior. The defining feature is the effect on behavior (increase), not the pleasantness of the stimulus.

Negative reinforcement is the contingent removal (or postponement) of an aversive stimulus immediately following a behavior, which increases the future frequency of that behavior. It includes escape and avoidance contingencies.

Contingent reinforcement delivers the reinforcer only when the target response occurs, creating a dependency between response and consequence. Noncontingent reinforcement (NCR) delivers it on a time schedule independent of behavior.

Unconditioned (primary) reinforcers function without prior learning history (e.g., food, water, warmth). Conditioned (secondary) reinforcers acquire their function through pairing with other reinforcers (e.g., money, tokens, praise).

On continuous reinforcement (CRF), every occurrence of the target response is reinforced. It is preferred during the acquisition phase of learning a new behavior because it produces rapid initial learning.

Intermittent reinforcement reinforces only some occurrences of the response. Its key advantage is producing behavior that is more resistant to extinction than behavior maintained on CRF.