Negative reinforcement __________ responding, punishment __________ responding.

Negative reinforcement increases responding by removing an aversive stimulus (like taking aspirin to remove a headache, which increases the likelihood of taking aspirin again when headaches occur). Punishment decreases responding by adding an aversive consequence (like scolding to reduce unwanted behavior). The key distinction is that negative reinforcement always increases behavior, while punishment always decreases behavior. Many students mistakenly think negative reinforcement decreases behavior due to the word 'negative'.