Developmental psychology.pdf

276 Learning and Information Processing
was found that most subjects preferred to work for the reward, although this preference
diminished in the older group (Tarte, 1981). Such differences among individuals
may reflect differences in the socialization process, which certainly can influence how
things are perceived (Wilson, 1982; Tzuriel & Heywood, 1984).
"The parents of a nigh school
friend used punishment in an
attempt to influence their son's
actions. For example, it was not
uncommon for them to spend a
night at home drinking or to drink
when they went out, but when
Steve began to drink with his
friends, they became very upset
and immediately put him on at least
one month's restriction.
Steve learned to dislike his
parents extremely for their
punishment, which was often
severe, especially when he saw
them doing the same thing. His
drinking stopped for a month, but
as soon as the month was over, he
was back at it again. Soon he had
to get drunk every weekend, and
when he tried marijuana he had to
be stoned every day. Me became
very distant from his parents and
no longer told them his feelings on
anything. As he began to take more
drugs, the slightest reprimand from
them would send him running from
the house, sometimes not to return
for days or weeks.
Now they say that Steve is
severely disturbed. I don't know
. . . but I believe that his parents"
form of punishment was one of the
influencing factors in his problems
today.
Contrast Effect The importance of perception or expectation has been demonstrated
even in animals. Suppose, for example, that two groups of rats learn to solve a maze
for rewards of different magnitudes. One group receives a small amount of food; the
other receives a large meal. The significance of these rewards will be readily evident,
for the large-reward subjects will learn faster than the others.
But what happens when the size of the reward is shifted? After almost two
dozen trials in one early experiment, the rats receiving the large reward were given a
lesser amount, equal to the amount received by the other group. With this change these
rats immediately altered their performance markedly. Their speed of mazerunning
became significantly lower than that of the other group, even though the two
sets of subjects were now receiving the same reward (Crespi, 1942).
Toads behaved differently when a water reward was used. The large-reward
group performed best initially, as anticipated, and after 50 or 80 trials this group was
given the same amount of water as the small-reward group. Their performance then
declined to just the same level as the other group. Contrary to expectations, there was
no further decrement below the small-reward group (Schmajuk, Segura, & Ruidiaz,
1981).
In other words, no contrast effect appeared. A contrast effect means that the
value of an incentive changes according to the incentive with which it is compared.
After a large reward, a small reward seems much smaller than it would otherwise.
Similarly, after a small reward, a large reward appears much larger than is normally
the case.
This phenomenon is widespread among human beings, who are always thinking
things over, ruminating on the past, and anticipating the future. If a man wins a
million pesetas playing the Spanish lottery, subsequent attempts that yield 200 pesetas
seem hardly worth the effort. Expectations can influence our reactions to any incentive,
even though the ways in which they vary with different rewards and different species
are not yet fully understood.
Negative Effects of Punishment Regardless of expectations, there is one clear
difference between reward and punishment. Reward, if improperly used, generally
produces no more than disinterest or apathy. The incentive looks like a bribe or seems
too small, and the subject does not respond. But when punishment is used improperly,
it can lead to diverse negative outcomes.
In general, the punished person learns to dislike the punitive agent and also
the activity with which the punishment is associated. Such negative attitudes are highly
undesirable, yet they can remain for long periods, even through the individual's lifetime.*
Punishment, especially when coupled with conflict, also can produce diverse
forms of mental disturbance, including anxiety, lethargy, hyperactivity, and uselessly
repetitive behavior. Animals have shown these reactions following punishment in experimental
situations, and clinical observations of severely punished children provide
further evidence (Hill, 1973).
Punishment may even sustain the very behavior against which it is used, for
the effectiveness of punishment depends partly on whether the undesired behavior was
established under punitive or rewarding conditions. If a person's poor performance at
the bank is punished by a salary decrement and loss of vacation, she will develop a
negative attitude toward that institution. This attitude will result in still poorer performance,
for which there is further punishment. Punishment then serves to reinforce
the negative attitude toward the bank, and an escalating negative attitude has been
established (Tarpy, 1975).