The paper examines the role of the reinforcement theory of motivation in shaping the behavior of a person.
According to proponents of this principle, an individual learns to make decisions depending on the outcome of previous actions. Therefore, a person is likely to repeat an activity that produced positive results while foregoing the one that had negative repercussions. To understand the role reinforcement theory of motivation, the paper highlights the basic concepts which make this ideology and how each help in developing one’s character. There are many reasons why studying reinforcement theory is important. First, a significant number of children struggle with various conditions that limit their learning process. One of the major learning conditions children face is Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder (ADHD). A person with this ailment will experience increased impulsive behavior and hyperactivity. Having such a disorder can prevent an individual from concentrating on a particular issue and thus unable to memorize certain information. Understanding this theory will help teachers develop the right strategies that can lead to better knowledge uptake by learners. Reinforcement theory of motivation plays a critical role in encouraging certain behaviors among children with ADHD.
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Main Question -The question which the paper intends to answer is how teachers can use the reinforcement theory of motivation to increase information uptake by children with ADHD. To get the answer to this query, one needs to understand how reinforcement theory occurs and the procedures one follows to achieve the desired results.
Background Information
BF Skinner is credited as the first proponent of the reinforcement theory of motivation. Skinner and his associates carried out research observing how human beings and animals behave when consequences are introduced (Faraone et al., 2015) . The group discovered that when one is rewarded with a positive gesture, he/she tends to repeat the action with a view of getting the reward. However, if an individual got a negative outcome like pain, the person was likely to avoid the action in the future and thus stop the occurrence of an undesirable result. Skinner and his team claimed that an individual’s character relies heavily on external factors thus overlooking the internal state or motive one may have in undertaking certain actions (Dayan & Daw, 2008) . Therefore, the group proposed that the external environment a person operates in must be condition well to encourage the uptake of a particular type of information while discouraging the absorption of the undesirable.
One of the major applications of reinforcement theory of motivation occurs in a classroom setting. A teacher may encounter learners who have difficulty in absorbing knowledge due to various factors. One of the contributors to this problem is ADHD which makes a pupil unable to grasp certain concepts taught. A child with this disorder may struggle to undertake or focusing on various tasks, get easily distracted, forgetting events, and unable to sit in one place for long. To counter this problem, the teacher may apply the reinforcement theory of motivation by introducing positive and negative stimuli (Corr, 2008) . When a child does a desirable action, the tutor can reward him/her as a way of encouraging the repeat of the action. On the other hand, the teacher can punish the pupil, for instance by inflicting little pain to discourage the repeat of a particular action.
Hypothesis
Reinforcement theory of motivation plays a significant role in the uptake of knowledge by pupils and thus a good learning method for students struggling with ADHD. The theory reveals that a person’s environment significantly influences how the individual behaves. Outcomes of each action determine its continuity or stoppage thus the need to introduce positive and negative reinforcement. The findings in the study support views reinforcement theory of motivation describe in an individual’s learning process.
Positive reinforcement -it is a desirable outcome a person gets from engaging in good behavior. Examples of positive reinforcement include praising a worker for arriving early and giving a book to a student who scores better marks.
Negative reinforcement -it involves removing an undesirable outcome from an individual to discourage the repeat of a particular action.
Punishment- it is an act of removing a desirable outcome to discourage a person from engaging in a certain activity. Another way of punishing a person is through the introduction of undesirable consequences which will evoke bad memory whenever a person remembers a particular action.
Literature Review
Theoretical Literature
The reinforcement theory of motivation significantly contributes to a person’s behavior. According to Skinner and his associates, an individual selects or leaves a particular action based on the consequence of each.
The reinforcement theory of motivation also contributes to the acquisition of knowledge by learners. Various researches have proved this to be an effective mode of behavior molding (Wang et al., 2018) .
A teacher can use this method to help pupils with ADHD increased concentration while reducing distraction. Previous studies have proved that a child struggling with this condition has low memory retention and thus inability to learn well. However, the condition can be improved by the introduction of reinforcement methods that encourage the adoption of particular behavior and information. First, the tutor needs to give a child with ADHD small tasks with a promise of offering a reward should the latter finish it. This reward act as an encouragement to the pupil on the benefits of a particular action. The promise for a better outcome will make the child concentrate on one task thus creating a memory. After the completion of the task, the teacher needs to offer the reward immediately to the child. It may include sweets, books, or class recognition. Many children including those with ADHD will associate the prize with a particular activity once they see the item. The teacher can continue with the rewarding strategy whenever the child repeats the desirable action (Littman, 2015) . Continuation of this procedure creates a lasting impression on the child’s brain leading to the formation of long-term memory. A pupil with ADHD will also learn to concentrate on a particular activity and thus boosting memory retention level. Secondly, the teacher needs to include punishment in reinforcing a certain behavior. This process involves removing a desirable outcome from a child as a way of discouraging certain behavior. Some of the punishments a teacher can introduce include denying the child playtime, access to toys, and extending stay in school. A pupil undergoing such agony may connect a particular activity with that experience and regret his/her actions.
Applied Literature
The study focused on 50 children from various institutions with ADHD.
Having this number could guarantee better results as compared to previous figures which concentrated on few respondents.
The study found that children with ADHD responded better to reinforcement than those with normal growth.
Those results showed that the reinforcement theory of motivation plays a critical in behavior formation to children with ADHD.
a) The study incorporated the use of grouping participants into two main categories. This strategy ensures easier compilation of the appropriate data.
b) The study would have included many participants to increase the accuracy.
c) The findings will bring wider understanding on how reinforcement influence learning to children with ADHD
Social Learning Theory
Social learning theory involves or imitating another person’s behavior. A child with ADHD can acquire a certain knowledge by looking at teacher’s or parents’ actions.
Discussion
Summary
The study found the 60% of the respondents showed a significant improvement in learning various contents and behaviors. In terms of the introduction of reward for a particular behavior, children tend to repeat the action to receive the token. This provided a good learning experience to children thus encouraging good behavior among them. Another observation made was that a punishment towards a particular action significantly prevented pupils from repeating a certain activity. The withdrawal of certain benefits had an undesirable experience on the child and thus creating a bad memory about a particular action.
Recommendations
The findings in this study revealed various strategies teachers can use in shaping the behavior of a child suffering from ADHD. First, it was important for a tutor to encourage a pupil suffering from this condition to adopt certain behaviors by introducing various rewards. Those rewards can range from sweets and delicacies, offering extra playtime and recognition in front of the class.
The teacher needs to make considerations on various factors before deciding on the appropriate reward. Those factors include the child’s interest, the effect a particular reward has on the pupil, and the individual’s internal state. Secondly, the teacher needs to introduce a punishment to discourage undesirable behavior. This strategy includes withdrawing certain benefits and creating an undesirable condition for the child. A pupil experiencing this deprivation might create bad memory over a particular action thus avoiding it in the future. However, the teacher needs to consider the effectiveness of the punishment to produce the desired outcomes. First, the consequence must be created to be accurate enough to influence a child to make a bad memory about a specific action. The pupil must have little exposure to the punishment to increase its relevance. The teacher should also avoid the punishment which inflicts long-term pain thus limiting the child’s future learning process.
The research helps many stakeholders in handling children with ADHD. First, teachers can use this information in increasing knowledge uptake among learners with this condition. Lack of concentration is common among children with ADHD thus the need to use certain reinforcements. Teachers can also assess the extent of ADHD among learners thus identifying those requiring special attention. It is from this observation that the tutor can formulate various learning interventions for different students. Secondly, the information this study provides can help a parent on methods to use when instilling certain behaviors in a child. Children with ADHD have a poor concentration on one activity and thus becoming hard to control at home. However, the parent may identify different motivations to the child and thus encouraging the adoption of particular behaviors.
Future Research
The study should also involve a wider scope to produce accurate data. Increasing the number of respondents will lead to the increased information on the ADHD prevalence and how various reinforcements can lead to increased learning. By selecting 50 children as a source of information, the research lacked enough figure to classify the data on other factors that affect learning. Lastly, there was a need to involve internal factors as significant determinants in the learning process among children with ADHD. The study focused on the importance of reinforcement in knowledge acquisition among pupils struggling with this condition but failed to look into the underlying factors they might be having while showing certain behavior. This assumption can lead to the collection of inaccurate data among the respondents.
Conclusion
Reinforcement encourages a child to continue undertaking certain actions thus creating a memory for a particular behavior. On the other hand, negative reinforcement creates bad memory for a certain action leading to the character change.
Reinforcement theory of motivation plays a critical role in encouraging certain behaviors among children with ADHD. This strategy involves the introduction of positive and negative rewards for particular behaviors.
Teachers and parents must carefully assess the effectiveness of each reinforcement to enable the success of the child’s behavior change.
Assessment of Research Paper Writing
The paper started with the definition and analysis of ADHD and the role reinforcement played in helping children with such conditions acquire certain behaviors and knowledge. This writing strategy gives the reader the major problem being addressed in the whole paper. Problem analysis was also critical helping the writer concentrate on the main issue while developing possible solutions.
The experience gained can increase a person’s information gathering strategies while concentrating on the main issue. This method leads to increased data collection on a particular subject.
References
Corr, P. J. (2008). The reinforcement sensitivity theory of personality. In The Reinforcement Sensitivity Theory of Personality . https://doi.org/10.1017/CBO9780511819384
Dayan, P., & Daw, N. D. (2008). Decision theory, reinforcement learning, and the brain. Cognitive, Affective and Behavioral Neuroscience . https://doi.org/10.3758/CABN.8.4.429
Faraone et al., (2015). Attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder. Nature Reviews Disease Primers . https://doi.org/10.1038/nrdp.2015.20
Littman, M. L. (2015). Reinforcement learning improves behavior from evaluative feedback. Nature . https://doi.org/10.1038/nature14540
Wang et al., (2018). Prefrontal cortex as a meta-reinforcement learning system. Nature Neuroscience . https://doi.org/10.1038/s41593-018-0147-8
