Learning is in interactive process. A person seeks out information. Then they process what they find and come to long-term conclusions about the world around them. Some men such as Ivan Pavlov assumed learning occurs when some positive stimulus is paired with an event occurring. For example, in his famous experiment, dogs heard the sound of a bell every time they were brought a steak. From that point on whenever they heard the bell even in the absence of a steak they would start to salivate (Hockenbury & Hockenbury, 2012). This can occur in social events as well as in the case of Pavlov’s dogs. Understanding experiments such as these can be helpful in understanding out own behavior.
For example, in an article published on the Psychology Today website by Carl E Pickard Ph.D., “Adolescence and Seeing What Can be Gotten Away With” suggests that when some teenager’s parents constantly try to scare them by telling them all about the consequences of bad behavior (2015). Instead of scaring them, this can sometimes do the exact opposite. It can make them pick up a cigarette or begin drinking (Charlton, 1991). It makes the act seem riskier and more exciting and children are more likely to do it (Kendler, Annas & Lichtenstein, 2008).
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As Carl E. Pickhardt writes,“the adolescent pushes for more risky behavior, the seriousness of parenting decisions increases” (2011). Much like in the case with Pavlov’s dogs, the child has heard a bell, which may be the parent telling them not to do specific thing. And, they associate that thing with danger and with an adrenaline rush. This is the way they teach themselves to continue behaving poorly. This is a very important concept for parents and teachers and they can use this idea to think about the ways they want to promote rules. They might highlight positive reinforcement more than negative outcomes (Wojtkiewicz, 1992). While Pickard did not cite his academic sources within this specific piece, he does give information about how to access the sources used within his book.
This concept is a very interesting one and one that is supported by evidence. It is noted in research that young people seek adrenaline rushes. In addition, many children go through rebellious phase in which they disobey their parents’ rules. Pickard’s article provides a well-written example of understanding why young people break rules. He also addresses different parenting styles and how many types can be beneficial “because of the individuality of each parent, they will each have their own way of communicating and relating to their adolescent, and that needs to be accepted by them both” (Pickhardt, 2011).
Finally, he ensures to end the article by noting that many people are not rule breakers and seek out the same adrenaline from more positive areas such as sports or creative projects. An interesting place to go with future research might be looking at why some people choose to pursue negative risk behavior while others pursue positive forms.
