scholarly journals Negative Reinforcer

2020 ◽  
Author(s):  
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Author(s):  
Alexander Blaszczynski ◽  
Fiona Maccallum

This paper describes a single case study of analgesia induced by gambling. The subject is a 48-year-old male diagnosed with pathological gambling problems, suffering chronic back pain resulting from a road trauma. The reported intensity of arousal associated with slot machines and roulette produced a state of dissociation or distraction that temporarily reduced levels of pain. Consistent with an operant conditioning model, this reduction in pain was a negative reinforcer that acted to elicit further gambling whenever the pain reached a certain level of discomfort. In the absence of any effective analgesic medication, he used gambling as his predominant strategy to manage pain. He began to enjoy gambling, and within a relatively short period, lost more than he intended and commenced chasing losses. Pain levels decreased following chiropractic interventions, but his gambling continued. The additional, positive reinforcing effects of the excitement generated by the slot machines and roulette gaming became sufficient to maintain persistence in gambling independent of pain experienced. This case highlights the possibility that psychological factors involved in establishing a gambling habit may differ from those involved in maintaining persistence.



1976 ◽  
Vol 7 (5) ◽  
pp. 455-457
Author(s):  
Richard H. Gracely ◽  
Russell M. Church
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1981 ◽  
Vol 6 (4) ◽  
pp. 247-256 ◽  
Author(s):  
Donald E. P. Smith

The commonly held assumption that time-out intervention, as represented by use of an isolation room, constitutes a punisher is disputed on empirical and theoretical ground. Consistent, unemotional use of T-O, without ancillary punishers, is shown to result in typical extinction curves (rather than the steeper gradient of punishment curves) for both autistic and mentally impaired children with widely different abrasive behaviors. Such curves ordinarily result from withdrawal of either a positive or a negative reinforcer. But “maladaptive” classroom behaviors are thought to be maintained by negative reinforcement, the reduction of stress (an aversive stimulus) following agression. Thus, extinction of “maladaptive” behavior will result from withdrawal of the aversive stimulus, (i.e., escape from classroom-induced stress). The danger of using punishers and the therapeutic value of reduced environmental stimulation (RES) are pointed out.





1966 ◽  
Vol 18 (2) ◽  
pp. 591-599 ◽  
Author(s):  
Stewart L. Wiggins ◽  
Herman C. Salzberg

An attempt was made to condition the number and duration of silences and the number of therapist-directed responses in group psychotherapy, using an auditory stimulus as a negative reinforcer. Two experimental and one control group of newly admitted neuropsychiatric Veterans Administration inpatients were Ss. Both silences and therapist-directed responses were reduced during the negative reinforcement procedure in the experimental groups. There were no significant changes in the control group which received no negative reinforcement. Therapist-directed responses recovered but silences remained at a low level during extinction, especially for the experimental group receiving the greater number of conditioning sessions. This finding suggests the possibility of permanently eliminating certain responses if conditioning is carried out long enough and more adaptive responses have an opportunity to emerge and become established. Proposals and speculations for future research were discussed.





Author(s):  
Marcus Bentes de Carvalho Neto ◽  
Thrissy Collares Maestri ◽  
Maria Helena Leite Hunziker

To increase the number of aversive stimuli that are available for laboratory research, the hot air blast (HAB) was tested as a negative reinforcer in two escape contingencies. Sixteen naïve rats were exposed to 30 or 60 HAB presentations. For half of the subjects, the escape response was jumping in a shuttle box; for the others, the HAB was interrupted after a nose poke response. The results showed that seven of eight subjects (87.5%) in each group learned the required escape response. These data confirm the negative reinforcing function of the HAB, which may be an alternative aversive stimulus to be adopted in research with nonhumans subjects.Keywords: escape; negative reinforcement; hot air blast; aversive control.



1969 ◽  
Vol 25 (3) ◽  
pp. 879-882
Author(s):  
Merle E. Meyer

Response contingencies of dim or bright light onset or offset were investigated using 160 24- to 36-hr.-old chicks. Results substantiated that dim light onset is an effective sensory reinforcer for chicks and that both bright light onset and offset are aversive stimuli. Results were discussed with reference to the reinforcing and activating function of the sensory stimulus.



2018 ◽  
Vol 32 (8) ◽  
pp. 855-866 ◽  
Author(s):  
Elisabeth Obst ◽  
Daniel J Schad ◽  
Quentin JM Huys ◽  
Miriam Sebold ◽  
Stephan Nebe ◽  
...  

Background: Studies in humans and animals suggest a shift from goal-directed to habitual decision-making in addiction. We therefore tested whether acute alcohol administration reduces goal-directed and promotes habitual decision-making, and whether these effects are moderated by self-reported drinking problems. Methods: Fifty-three socially drinking males completed the two-step task in a randomised crossover design while receiving an intravenous infusion of ethanol (blood alcohol level=80 mg%), or placebo. To minimise potential bias by long-standing heavy drinking and subsequent neuropsychological impairment, we tested 18- to 19-year-old adolescents. Results: Alcohol administration consistently reduced habitual, model-free decisions, while its effects on goal-directed, model-based behaviour varied as a function of drinking problems measured with the Alcohol Use Disorders Identification Test. While adolescents with low risk for drinking problems (scoring <8) exhibited an alcohol-induced numerical reduction in goal-directed choices, intermediate-risk drinkers showed a shift away from habitual towards goal-directed decision-making, such that alcohol possibly even improved their performance. Conclusions: We assume that alcohol disrupted basic cognitive functions underlying habitual and goal-directed decisions in low-risk drinkers, thereby enhancing hasty choices. Further, we speculate that intermediate-risk drinkers benefited from alcohol as a negative reinforcer that reduced unpleasant emotional states, possibly displaying a novel risk factor for drinking in adolescence.



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