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Contributing Factor Eight: Escape and Avoidance Also Called "Negative Reinforcement"
We all know, through taking even the most elementary psychology course or by training a puppy how powerful "positive reinforcement" is. When behavior is reinforced it happens more frequently. That is the definition of reinforcement. Something that increases the probability of a behavior happening again.
Let's take the behavior of rejecting a parent in the following scenario:
A child decides he does not want to transition to the other parent's parenting time. His excuse is it is boring. He does not like the other home. He has more time in his current home than he has at his preferred parent's home. He convinces the preferred parent to tell the other parent he isn't feeling well and the visitation is cancelled.
“The kid just wants a little bit of a break, that’s all.”
The next access period comes around. This time the child starts complaining from the night before. He doesn't want to go. He is frightened and cannot say why. The preferred parent has never heard this before. The preferred parent is certain there must be something to it because why would the child lie?
Are you hit?
Are you yelled at? Are you touched?
Are you frightened? Are you left alone?
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