Reinforcement is defined as “the action of strengthening or encouraging something.” Many people think reinforcement means providing rewards, especially for good behavior. While this is true, ...

Another one of my pet peeves is the fact that many people – civilians and scientists alike – use the phrase “negative reinforcement” to mean “punishment.” The two are not at all the same; in fact, ...

Some of the most common tools parents and teachers use for managing children’s behaviors are rewards and punishments. While these methods tend to lose effectiveness as a child ages, there are times ...

An owner's instinctual response to a dog's aggressive behavior might be to act aggressively toward the dog, but a new study shows that this could actually exacerbate that behavior. Meghan Herron, lead ...

When you need to get some tasks done and are short on attention, it’s hard to beat a timer. But whenever you do, it feels pretty darn good. The problem is that when you don’t finish in time, what’s ...

As the concept of positive reinforcement gains popularity, researchers are trying to confirm its effectiveness at a more baseline level. According to a group of Midwestern equitation scientists, ...

If we train our horses correctly, we should sense that they get “lighter” as training progresses. In other words, we should be able to execute cues with less force and get the same result. But until ...

COLORADO SPRINGS, Colo. (CBS4)- It seems the negative reinforcement measures that Colorado Parks and Wildlife officers used to keep a bear away from a popular restaurant's dumpsters-- is working. The ...

The ante has been upped in the struggle to co-habitate with a population of hungry bears in Aspen. City Council on Monday approved methods for teaching bruins that Dumpster diving doesn't pay. Except ...

The University’s persistence on instituting a dubious rule to increase six-year graduation rates is ill conceived and will end up harming students. After all, the school’s proposed policies are mainly ...