A baby will not stop crying,and he is driving his parents crazy.As a last resort,the father puts the baby in a laundry basket and sets the basket on top of the running dryer.The vibrations of the dryer soothe the baby and he falls asleep.The father congratulates himself on discovering this solution,which he most definitely will employ the next time the baby cannot be consoled.The father's behavior of implementing the "dryer trick" has thus been:
A)positively reinforced.
B)negatively reinforced.
C)positively punished.
D)negatively punished.

Question

Quizplus · Accepted Answer

The father's behavior of putting the baby in the laundry basket and on top of the running dryer was negatively reinforced because it removed the aversive stimulus of the baby's crying (something he wanted to escape) by providing a comforting vibration. The likelihood of the father using this method again in the future is guided by the principle of negative reinforcement.

A Baby Will Not Stop Crying,and He Is Driving His