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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).

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Psychology term of the day

November 18th 2024

paradigm clash

paradigm clash

in science or philosophy, the conflict that occurs when a new set of fundamental assumptions about reality or human knowledge proves incompatible with an established set of such assumptions. For example, the doctrine of organic evolution challenged established thinking about the origin and nature of the living world and ultimately replaced previous theories.