Kaplan MCAT Behavioral Sciences Practice Question - Negative vs. Positive Punishment

[stardust379]

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Hey guys,

I'm reapplying this year and am retaking the MCAT! I bought the new 2015 Kaplan materials and am working my way through the Behavioral Sciences book now. From the Practice Questions section at the end of chapter 3, Learning and Memory, there is one that I am a little confused/stuck on. It is #5:

A credit card company charges a fee for a late payment. This is an example of:
A. positive reinforcement
B. negative reinforcement
C. positive punishment
D. negative punishment

Originally, I selected C (which is the correct answer btw) but after a few more seconds of thinking I selected D. I picked it since it made the most sense to me - negative punishment attempts to stop a certain behavior (in this case, making late payments) by taking something away (in this case, a person's money because of the late fee). Negative punishment makes more sense to me here than positive. The explanation to the solution makes sense, in that it is positive punishment because there is an added unpleasant situation (charging a late fee). But I'm still a little conflicted.

Any thoughts/ideas?

 

[Premedgirl27]

Their questions are always ambiguous like that, this will continue to happen to you. I understand your point, you could argue both points. You have enough knowledge to think it through that far so obviously you have a good understanding of the subject, so I wouldn't worry about it.

 

[aldol16]

To me, this seems open to interpretation either way but C would be the more direct answer. In other words, negative punishment is usually taking something desirable away. While money is desirable, the imposition of a late fee or a fine by itself does not take money away. It's the secondary consequence - you having to pay the late fee or fine to avoid another punishment - that results in removal of the money from your bank account. On the other hand, the imposition of something undesirable is consistent with the late fee itself - having to pay the late fee is undesirable and so this is a more direct answer.

 

[sanguinee]

When looking at punishment I usually view positive as putting something into action and negative as taking something away.
The credit card company is putting a fee into place, which is why I would think it is positive punishment. Don't overthink it!