Are Children Better Motivated By Rewards Or Punishment? (Essay Sample)

Sample Essay
Course
07/05/2021
Are Children Better Motivated By Rewards Or Punishment?
At a glance, rewards and punishments seem like two entirely different concepts, but they are similar in many ways. First, both are external impulses that focus on the external behavior of a child. Second, they tend to have an immediate effect which most parents assume to be the major result. Not all parents focus on the long-term negative or positive impact on children's personality development derived from their approach. However, rewarding a positive behavior or an act that demonstrates positivity is far more potent than punishing a wrong deed. While reward seeks to motivate and encourage good behavior, a punishment as used in operant conditioning psychology focuses on reducing or eliminating unwanted behavior. In most cases, punishment focuses on short-term effects on a character. While both rewards and punishments serve to shape children to be responsible citizens, rewards approach serves as incentives, increasing extrinsic and intrinsic drive while also encouraging positive behavior.
A child is inspired to learn new conduct if there is a chance to gain incentives. A reward is an excellent method of recognizing great deeds and expressing appreciation towards encouraging the behavior. Kohn (2016) explains that it must fulfill these conditions for a reward to be effective; the child should be keen on the reward. The parent must give the reward after the anticipated behavior, and implementation should surpass ordinary parameters. Rewards presented cause behavior modification and create values that set the precedent for rewards that must give in the future for positive reinforcement.
The opportunity to reward can instill values that leave a lasting imprint on a child's behavior. Consistent use of this approach can ensure advantages of rewarding are not restricted to a short period. According to Deutchman et al. (2020), parents work to understand the cause of deviant behavior because it sometimes leads to a deeper issue that requires attention instead of punishment. On the contrary, punishment has some outstanding drawbacks. First, any behavioral change resulting from punishment is often temporary. Punished behaviors are likely to reappear after punitive consequences are withdrawn. In keeping with Marisavljevic et al. (2018), punishment does not offer any more desired behavior. A child might learn what not to do, but they are not taught what they to be doing. For children to completely change from undesired conduct, they must adopt the desired behavior.
To conclude, if used appropriately, rewards serve as motivations, increasing extrinsic and intrinsic