Reward and Punishment
Most training revolves around giving the dog consequences for his behavior,
in the hope of influencing the behavior the dog will exhibit in the future.
Operant conditioning defines four types of consequences:
Positive reinforcement adds something to the situation to increase the
chance of the behavior being exhibited again (for example, giving a dog a treat
when he sits).
Negative reinforcement removes something from the situation to increase
the chance of the behavior being exhibited again (for example, releasing the
tension on an uncomfortable training collar when the dog stops pulling on the
leash).
Positive punishment adds something to the situation to decrease the
chance of the behavior being exhibited again (for example, hitting a dog to make
it stop barking).
Negative punishment removes something from the situation to decrease the
chance of the behavior being exhibited again (for example, walking away from a
dog who jumps up).
Modern trainers say that they use "positive training methods", which is a
different meaning of the word "positive" from that in operant conditioning.
"Positive training methods" means preferring the use of reward-based training to
increase good behavior over that of physical punishment to decrease bad
behavior. However, a good trainer understands all four methods, whether or not
she can put operant-conditioning terminology to them, and applies them as
appropriate for the dog, the breed, the handler, and the situation.
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