Question

Operant conditioning is often applied to "real world" situations. A classic example is using reinforcers and punishment to discipline children. Skinner and his followers demonstrated that reinforcement is more effective than punishment in shaping children’s behavior. Yet there still exists a wide variety of opinion over the best way to raise and discipline children, especially with regard to raising children within different cultures. For example, what is acceptable in one culture as discipline is considered abuse in another. To demonstrate what you've learned during the last modules, you'll write a paper that correctly and comprehensively addresses the questions asked about raising children.

Answer 1

Operant conditioning is the method of learning. It takes place through rewards and punishments. Through this learning mechanism we can understand that an individual makes an association between a behaviour and its consequences. Suppose there is a child. If he gets chocolate on finishing his school homework then it will be like a reward for him.

It will motivate and inspire him to timely finish his homework. He will become habitual of finishing his task and it will come in his behaviour. We must try that punishment's form should be in productive form. Suppose a kid is there. If he makes mistakes in his home work then he may be punished in other form.

He may be asked to write his mistakes multiple times. This will be a punishment for him but it will act as a reward for him in longer term. He will be more and more perfect. He chances of repetition of that mistake will reduce to zero.

If we would have given physical punishment to him then it would have been haunted him. In case of such physical torture; he will start avoiding the encounter with teacher. His areas of mistake will be more susceptible for him.

It will create a mental trauma for him. Some children fear of mathematical problem. This is the example for negative punishment. We should try to convert punishment with a positive flavour. We should aim that child should learn something even from the mistakes. We should have a positive and constrictive thought in upbringing of children.