Which term best matches the description: Removal of a specific amount of an already earned reinforcer after a behavior?

Which term best matches the description: Removal of a specific amount of an already earned reinforcer after a behavior?

• A. Skill assessment
• B. Response cost
• C. Conditional discrimination
• D. Zone of modifiability

Answer: (B)

Response cost is a negative punishment: after a behavior occurs, a portion of an earned reinforcer is taken away. This creates a consequence that makes the undesired behavior less likely to occur again because the learner loses something valuable for behaving that way. A classic example is a token system in which tokens are earned for good behavior, but a misstep leads to losing a fixed number of tokens. The idea is that the anticipation of losing something earned reduces the chance of repeating the behavior. This differs from negative reinforcement, which would remove an aversive condition to increase a desired behavior, and from other terms that describe different processes like assessing abilities or discriminating between stimuli based on rules.

Response cost is a negative punishment: after a behavior occurs, a portion of an earned reinforcer is taken away. This creates a consequence that makes the undesired behavior less likely to occur again because the learner loses something valuable for behaving that way. A classic example is a token system in which tokens are earned for good behavior, but a misstep leads to losing a fixed number of tokens. The idea is that the anticipation of losing something earned reduces the chance of repeating the behavior.

This differs from negative reinforcement, which would remove an aversive condition to increase a desired behavior, and from other terms that describe different processes like assessing abilities or discriminating between stimuli based on rules.