What is the crucial difference between penalty and extinction?
A) In extinction, a separate reinforcer from the one maintaining the response is taken away. In negative punishment (penalty), the same reinforcer that is maintaining the response is withheld.
B) In extinction, the response frequency decreases. In negative punishment (penalty), the response frequency increase.
C) In negative punishment (penalty), a separate reinforcer from the one maintaining the response is taken away. In extinction, the same reinforcer that is maintaining the response is withheld.

Question

Quizplus · Accepted Answer

The crucial difference between negative punishment (penalty) and extinction is that in negative punishment, a separate reinforcer from the one maintaining the response is taken away, while in extinction, the same reinforcer that is maintaining the response is withheld. This means that in negative punishment, a punishment is applied to reduce the likelihood of behavior, whereas in extinction, the reinforcement is withheld to remove the behavior. Option A has the right idea, but the explanations are mixed up. Option B is incorrect as both extinction and negative punishment involve a decrease in behavior frequency.

What Is the Crucial Difference Between Penalty and Extinction