Reward vs Punishment, Essay Example

Reward is more effective than punishment in learning

We all learn from our experience; these experiences can be manipulated to change our behaviors. On the most basic level, human behaviors can be conditioned positively or negatively through rewards and punishments, respectively. The question is; between reward and punishment, which one is more effective?

In theory, punishment helps to discourage unwanted behaviors. On the other hand, reward reinforces good behavior. However, reward is more effective in changing behavior. Harvard University revealed that most people tend to function in a positive environment that acts as a reward. B.F Skinner was the first to attempt to proof that reward is better than punishment. In his research, Skinner attempted to understand the relationship between behavior conditioning and modification (Skinner 102). Skinner also came up with a new physiological thought known as experimental analysis of behavior that study the effect of punishment and reward on human psychology.

After the skinners study, numerous scientific researches have provided more information to support the theory. Such study includes the study on IQ, of children in UK. The study revealed that the IQ of children who were not sparked was five time higher than those who were sparked. In the older groups, the different was three time. Another study by Dr. Rogers found that school physical environment is important to encourage student attendance. One common finding of all this research is that a person is motivated to learn new a behavior if an opportunity to gain is presented. According to an article, when to Reward Good Behavior in Future vision, reward represent a positive way of appreciating the effort of another person and are better than punishment. However, for reward to be effective, there are three crucial conditions that must be fulfilled. First, the subject must be interested in the reward. Secondly, the reward must be given after the accomplishment of the action and thirdly the rewarded performance must be above a normal standard. One important thing to note is that reward not only causes behavior modification but also creates values that must be maintained in future. In other word, the effect of reward last longer. Reward is thus the way to increase good behavior rather than punishment to discourage bad behavior (George 120). This is so because any attention to a behavior is likely to increase its frequency.

On the other hand, punishment only helps to decrease the incidence of an action by imposing a negative stimulus. The ineffectiveness of punishment can be deduced from findings of the study by Tulane University. The study found that children who were spanked at the age of three years were more aggressive two years later. The study revealed that imposing punishment such as spanking to children below twelve years age was an ineffective method of behavior modification. In fact, such punishment stimulates bad behaviors in future. Despite all the positive outcomes, using rewards to modify behavior can also have a negative effect (Kiyonari and Pat 833). This is so when reward is used to reward a negative activity, and is known as negative reinforcement.

In conclusion, favorable behaviors change outcomes are achieved when reward are used. This is because most people are inclined to learn from a positive experience than a negative one. In addition, the discipline instilled by punishment does not last for long. Human try to resist any form of control imposed on them (Schaffner 1380). Punishment brings negative feelings. Any behavior change resulting from punishment will mostly backfire with time, especially with children below twelve years. Other research has also shown that that punishment may hamper mental development. In all measure, reward is a superior technique of behavior modification.

Works Cited

George, Daniels. American Academy of Child and Adolescent Psychiatry: Physical Punishment. San Francisco: Jossey-Bass, 2009.

Kiyonari, Toko, and Pat Barclay. “Cooperation In Social Dilemmas: Free Riding May Be Thwarted By Second-Order Reward Rather Than By Punishment.” Journal Of Personality And Social Psychology 95.4 (2008): 826-842.

Schaffner P. Specious learning about reward and punishment. Journal Of Personality And Social Psychology [serial on the Internet]. (1985, June), [cited March 3, 2015]; 48(6): 1377-1386.

Skinner, Francis. Empowering Parents: Tired of Yelling at Your Child? Stop Screaming and Start Parenting EffectivelySan Francisco: Jossey-Bass, 2008.