Negative Punishment

Negative Punishment refers to the removal of a reinforcer (a desirable stimulus or opportunity) in response to an unwanted behavior, in order to decrease the probability of that behavior occurring again. Putting a misbehaving child in “time out” is one example of negative punishment. The parent, teacher, or guardian takes away control, toys, free time, and other privileges from the child when he or she misbehaves so that the child will stop the bad or unwanted behavior. Another example would be fines for speeding, in which money is taken from someone to get them to slow down in the future.

See also: Punishment