What is punishment?   Is punishment bad? 

By definition, punishment decreases the future likelihood of behavior.  That’s it, that’s all.  

Punishment does not have to be a bad thing.  In behavioral terms, if we reduce hitting behavior, we would say that we have “punished” the behavior.  

(Note: we have not punished the individual, we have only punished the behavior from occurring) 

The 4th Contingency: Motivation

Think back to the 3-term contingency.  Now, let’s add a 4th contingency at the beginning of the equation.  

That 4th contingency is motivation:

       MO              Antecedent          Behavior      Consequence

   (Motivation)     (Sd)                                           (Reinforcement)

MO  ——————-  A   ——————-   B  ——————–  C

Technically, you can’t have reinforcement without motivation.

For instance, you may think I like chocolate, but I may not want it because I’ve just eaten a big lunch.  That’s the motivation.  

Or, I am more likely to want to work for a favorite youtube video when I have not seen it in a while.  

Also, what motivates me, does not necessarily motivate you.  You may love bubble baths, I hate them.  They drive me crazy.  

I really love salty chips and could devour an entire bag, but the salty flavor may make you want to run the other way. 

Therefore, when you are presenting what you presume to be a reinforcer, really make sure that your child likes it and wants it at that particular moment in time.

You can test this by seeing if your child will reach for it when you hold it up.  If your child is verbal, he/she can tell you if he wants it when you offer.