"Three weeks ago, [police chief] Hocker attended a...seminar on highway safety where more than 20 issues of safety were discussed, but the one everyone agreed was overwhelming was aggressive driving. And in almost all cases of aggressive driving, speed is a factor, Hocker said. In Hocker's opinion, B.F. Skinner holds the answer to reducing speeding: operant conditioning. The negative reinforcement of a driver having to pay for a speeding ticket and getting points on his license helps to shape behavior, Hocker said." Lancaster Online.com: News : Police chiefs renew push for radar
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Indeed, the use of "negative
Indeed, the use of "negative reinforcement" is not correct here--hence the question mark in the post title. The content of this post is all from the original article as written by Lancaster Online. (Click through the link to read the original text.) Police chief Hocker, take note.
Just a brief correction--you
Just a brief correction--you are actually speaking about Skinner's notion of positive punishment, not negative reinforcement. When you present an unpleasant stimulus in an effort to reduce the behavior (such as a speeding ticket to reduce speeding) you are involved in positive punishment. Negative reinforcement is when you remove an unpleasant stimulus after the desired behavior has been performed (such as the beeping seatbelt light turning off after you fasten your seatbelt). Negative/positive mean presence of/absence of (not good/bad) in this situation.