What is the effect of positive punishment?

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Positive punishment involves the introduction of an aversive stimulus following a behavior, which serves to decrease the likelihood of that behavior occurring again in the future. By adding an unpleasant consequence after the undesirable behavior, positive punishment creates a stronger association between the behavior and its unfavorable outcome, thus discouraging the behavior.

For instance, if a student receives a detention (an added stimulus) for not completing homework, the unpleasant experience makes it less likely that they will neglect their homework in the future. Here, the addition of a negative outcome effectively serves to modify the behavior, reinforcing the idea that certain actions will lead to consequences.

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