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Psychology term of the day

January 29th 2025

natural reinforcer

natural reinforcer

a stimulus or circumstance, such as food or water, that is inherently reinforcing and does not depend on learning to become desirable. Natural reinforcers are more precisely known as unconditioned or primary reinforcers (see primary reinforcement), in contrast to conditioned or secondary reinforcers, which are initially neutral stimuli (e.g., tones, lights) that become desirable through training (see secondary reinforcement).