Discussion 3: Rewards

The use of rewards is not always a one-size-fits-all solution. Rewards are often seen as a "good thing" in life with no consequences, but that is not always the case. Most of the time, we see parents reward their children for desirable behavior, trying new things, and much more. You might often hear the words reinforcers and rewards together, but they both mean different things. According to the PowerPoint on rewards, reinforcers are "described in terms of their effect on behavior" and they also have the tendency to increase the likelihood of different behaviors. Reinforcers also set the foundation for predictability which are essential for a science. Reading through this presentation on rewards had me thinking of how much they are used in both my daily life and everyone else's lives. The most common way that I reward myself is through shopping. I work two jobs and I work hard to be able to save money, but when I work a lot of hours in a row, I tend to feel the need to reward myself. Positive reinforcements are part of the cons of the reward system in life. They are the start of a timeline of desirable or pleasant encouragement after a certain behavior. The goal of positive reinforcement is for this behavior to continue or for a new behavior to be learned. Due to the brain connecting the action to the reward, there is hope that the target action will be shown again in the future.