Question

When a child cries when her babysitter is around, the babysitter picks her up and talks to her. because of the attention, the child becomes more likely to cry in the future. if the child cries when any adult is in the room, what process has occurred?

Answer 1

Generalized learned behavior has developed within the child as a result of interactions taking place between the child and the environment. By giving the crying child attention, the babysitter is reinforcing the child's cries for attention, thus making it more likely for the child to cry for attention in the future. This is known in behavioral sciences as a negative feedback loop. By crying, the child is seeking attention from caretakers in the environment who have access to resources that the child wants (i.e. food, comfort, attention) and by picking up the child who is aversively crying, the babysitter is seeking to avoid the aversive stimulus.