Which is an example of negative punishment?

• A. Giving a sticker for good performance
• B. Taking away an assignment for good performance
• C. A speeding ticket
• D. Grounding a student, taking away video games for two weeks

Answer: (D)

Negative punishment means removing something a student values to decrease an undesired behavior. Grounding a student and taking away video games for two weeks does just that—video games are a desirable activity, and removing access after misbehavior aims to reduce the likelihood of that behavior happening again.

Other options illustrate other principles: giving a sticker for good performance is positive reinforcement (adding a reward to increase the good behavior); a speeding ticket is positive punishment (adding an aversive consequence to decrease the behavior); taking away an assignment for good performance doesn’t fit the typical use of negative punishment, since it removes a task in a way that isn’t directly tied to reducing a misbehavior by withdrawing a valued stimulus.