A teacher praises students in her third grade classroom for raising their hands before speaking. Which type of reinforcement is the teacher using?

A teacher praises students in her third grade classroom for raising their hands before speaking. Which type of reinforcement is the teacher using?

• A. Positive reinforcement of teacher praise.
• B. Negative reinforcement of avoidance.
• C. Punishment by scolding.
• D. Intrinsic reinforcement.

Answer: (A)

This item tests how reinforcement strengthens a behavior. When students raise their hands before speaking and the teacher responds with praise, the praise acts as a positive, reinforcing consequence. That means the behavior (raising hands) is more likely to happen again because something pleasant is added after it. This isn’t negative reinforcement, which would involve removing an unpleasant stimulus to encourage the behavior. It isn’t punishment, which would add something undesirable to decrease the behavior. And it isn’t intrinsic reinforcement, which comes from internal satisfaction rather than an external reward.

This item tests how reinforcement strengthens a behavior. When students raise their hands before speaking and the teacher responds with praise, the praise acts as a positive, reinforcing consequence. That means the behavior (raising hands) is more likely to happen again because something pleasant is added after it.

This isn’t negative reinforcement, which would involve removing an unpleasant stimulus to encourage the behavior. It isn’t punishment, which would add something undesirable to decrease the behavior. And it isn’t intrinsic reinforcement, which comes from internal satisfaction rather than an external reward.