What does reinforcer mean?
A reinforcer is something that strengthens a behavior, belief, effort, or result. In everyday use, the word may refer to a person or thing that provides support, as in a reinforcer of good morale or institutional stability. In behavioral psychology, it has a more precise meaning: a reinforcer is a stimulus or consequence that follows a behavior and makes that behavior more likely to occur again. For example, praise may act as a positive reinforcer by encouraging a child to repeat a helpful action, while the removal of an unpleasant task may be a negative reinforcer that makes avoidance of the task more likely. The term is not restricted to pleasant rewards, since its essential function is to increase the future frequency of a behavior. In general writing, reinforcer is formal, while reinforcement is often more natural and more common.
nounA person, thing, event, or condition that strengthens or supports something. In behavioral psychology, a reinforcer is a stimulus that increases the likelihood of a behavior recurring.
- Something that strengthens, supports, or reinforces a belief, practice, argument, or situation.
- In behavioral psychology, a stimulus or consequence that increases the probability of a particular behavior occurring again.
- A person or thing that supplies additional support or strength to another person, institution, or effort.
"Praise from a teacher can serve as a positive reinforcer, encouraging the student to continue working hard."
"The team's success became a powerful reinforcer of the training regimen they had followed."
"In the experiment, food was used as a reinforcer for completing the response sequence."
Used when referring to multiple people, objects, or conditions that strengthen behavior, arguments, or efforts.
"Verbal encouragement and positive feedback can be effective reinforcers in classroom learning."
A reinforcer does not have to be pleasant: removing an unpleasant condition can strengthen a behavior just as effectively as offering a reward.
Reviewed by Deb Chak, Editor. AI-assisted content curated by RJS Tech Solutions LLP.
Where does reinforcer come from?
The word comes from reinforce, which in turn was formed from the prefix re-, meaning again, and force, based on Latin fortis, meaning strong or powerful. Reinforcer was developed as an agent noun from reinforce, initially meaning something that reinforces or strengthens and later acquiring a technical use in behavioral psychology. Related English words include enforce, fortress, effort, and comfort, all of which ultimately connect with Latin roots expressing force or strength.
Related word forms
How reinforcer is actually used
In general use, reinforcer is formal and less common than reinforcement or support. In psychology, it is a technical term and is distinguished from both punishment and reward: a reinforcer increases the future likelihood of a behavior, whether or not the consequence is pleasant.
Easily confused with reinforcer
A reinforcer is the specific stimulus or consequence that strengthens a behavior, whereas reinforcement is the process or effect of strengthening it.
A reward is generally a valued consequence that follows a behavior, while a reinforcer is the broader technical term for any consequence that makes that behavior more likely to recur.