INHE 1003 Week 2 Concept Application Example

Introduction to Psychology Walden University Free custom sample in 24 to 48h

This INHE 1003 Week 2 concept application example defines negative reinforcement briefly, a behavior strengthened because it removes or avoids something unpleasant, the core of the operant conditioning associated with Skinner, and adds one line separating it from punishment, which weakens a behavior. It then follows a composite adult who books a dental cleaning, feels dread as the date approaches and cancels; each cancellation brings relief, and the paper names that relief as the consequence strengthening the canceling. A prediction follows, that cancellations will grow more likely while the dread stays, tied to Armfield and colleagues' account of a vicious cycle of dental fear. Walden INHE 1003, Introduction to Psychology, has BS in Integrative Health students apply concepts this precisely, and the paper ends on changes that would weaken the pattern.

CourseINHE 1003 Introduction to Psychology
WeekWeek 2
Paper typeConcept application
LengthAbout 540 words, 4 pages
FormatAPA 7 student paper
SchoolWalden University
ProgramBS in Integrative Health
UpdatedOctober 2026

Free sample paper for INHE 1003 Week 2

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Why Canceling the Dental Visit Keeps Happening: A Concept Application of Negative Reinforcement to a Composite Adult Whose Relief After Each Cancellation Strengthens the Next One, With the Line Between Negative Reinforcement and Punishment Drawn Clearly

Student Name

Walden University

INHE 1003: Introduction to Psychology

Instructor Name

Month Day, Year

What this page is doingThe title names the behavior, the concept that explains it and the confusion the paper guards against.
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Why Canceling the Dental Visit Keeps Happening: A Concept Application of Negative Reinforcement to a Composite Adult Whose Relief After Each Cancellation Strengthens the Next One, With the Line Between Negative Reinforcement and Punishment Drawn Clearly

The Concept

In operant conditioning, the approach associated with Skinner (1953), behavior is shaped by its consequences. Negative reinforcement occurs when a behavior removes or avoids something unpleasant, and that removal makes the behavior more likely in the future. It is called reinforcement because it strengthens the behavior, and negative because something is taken away.

Negative reinforcement is not punishment. Punishment weakens a behavior by following it with something unpleasant or by removing something pleasant. The difference is in the direction of the effect: reinforcement, positive or negative, makes a behavior more likely; punishment makes it less likely. The course textbook stresses the same distinction (Spielman et al., 2020), and it is where student papers most often slip: "negative" is read as "bad," and negative reinforcement is mistaken for punishment.

What this page is doingThe definition comes first and is kept short, with one line separating the concept from the idea it is most often confused with.
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The Application

A composite adult in their thirties books a dental cleaning six weeks ahead. As the date approaches, they feel growing dread: a tight stomach, trouble sleeping the night before and thoughts about pain and being judged for not having gone in two years. On the morning of the appointment, they call and cancel. Within minutes they feel relief. The dread is gone.

That relief is the consequence that strengthens canceling. The behavior, calling to cancel, removes the unpleasant state of dread. Because canceling worked to end the dread, the next time a dental appointment approaches and the dread returns, canceling is more likely. Each cancellation adds another instance in which the behavior was followed by relief.

What this page is doingThe application names what the theory predicts next, because a concept is applied well only if it says something about the future.
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What the Concept Predicts

The concept predicts that cancellations will become more likely over time, not less, even though the person wants to go to the dentist and knows the visits matter. It also predicts that the dread itself will not fade, because the person never stays long enough in the situation to learn that it can be tolerated. Armfield et al. (2007) described what they called a vicious cycle of dental fear, in which fear leads people to avoid dental care, avoidance leads to worse oral health, and worse oral health in turn maintains the fear. Negative reinforcement explains one part of that cycle: why avoidance, once it brings relief, keeps happening.

What Would Weaken the Pattern

If the concept is right, the pattern would weaken if canceling no longer brought relief or if attending did. For example, booking the appointment with a friend who comes along, or asking the dentist's office about a short first visit with no cleaning, might allow the person to experience the situation without the dread rising to the point of cancellation. Each visit that ends without the feared outcome would then begin to weaken the link between the appointment and dread.

Summary

Canceling the dental visit is strengthened by the relief that follows it. That is negative reinforcement: the behavior removes something unpleasant and becomes more likely. It is not punishment, because nothing about the cancellation weakens the behavior. Understanding the pattern this way points toward changes that make attending, rather than canceling, the behavior that brings relief.

References

Armfield, J. M., Stewart, J. F., & Spencer, A. J. (2007). The vicious cycle of dental fear: Exploring the interplay between oral health, service utilization and dental fear. BMC Oral Health, 7, Article 1. https://doi.org/10.1186/1472-6831-7-1

Skinner, B. F. (1953). Science and human behavior. Macmillan.

Spielman, R. M., Jenkins, W. J., & Lovett, M. D. (2020). Psychology 2e. OpenStax. https://openstax.org/details/books/psychology-2e

INHE 1003 Week 2 instructions, in plain terms

Week 2 asks you to apply one concept from the course to a realistic situation in about two pages. Define the concept briefly and accurately, with its source, and add a line distinguishing it from the concept it is most often confused with. Describe a situation, real with details changed or composite, in enough detail to apply the concept. Then show exactly how the concept explains what happens, naming each element, such as the behavior, the consequence and the effect on future behavior. State what the concept predicts next. Close with what would change the pattern if the concept is right. Support the paper with the textbook plus one or more studies that bear on the situation.

How this INHE 1003 Week 2 example is built

The dental visit paper defines negative reinforcement from Skinner's operant conditioning and separates it from punishment, noting the textbook's emphasis and the common student slip. The application describes the six-week booking, the stomach tension, the morning call to cancel and the relief that follows, and labels the relief as what strengthens canceling. The prediction section says cancellations will become more likely and the dread will not fade, citing Armfield and colleagues on the cycle in which fear, avoidance and worse oral health feed one another. A section proposes a friend's company or a short first visit as ways to weaken the pattern, and a summary restates the reasoning. Each step of the cancellation is labeled so the reader can see the concept at work.

Where the marks sit in the INHE 1003 Week 2 rubric

Most marks go to accuracy, and readers check that the concept is defined correctly and kept distinct from the concept it is often confused with, since that confusion is the most common error. The application must name the behavior, the consequence and the effect on future behavior precisely. A prediction that follows from the concept earns credit, as does a proposal for change that the concept supports. Research should connect the concept to the situation accurately. Papers that use "negative" to mean "bad," describe a situation without applying the concept to each part, or offer predictions the concept does not support fall into the middle range.

Common INHE 1003 Week 2 mistakes, and how to avoid them

Write the concept's definition in your own words, then check it against the textbook. Find the concept it is usually confused with and write one sentence on the difference. Choose a situation you understand well and describe it step by step. Then label each step: what is the behavior, what follows it, and does that make the behavior more or less likely? Ask what the concept says will happen next time. Finally, think about what would break the pattern. Keep the paper to two pages. Read your application aloud and check that every sentence uses the concept's terms correctly. A tutor can check your definitions, and the dental visit paper above labels each part.

Get a INHE 1003 Week 2 example written to your instructions

A concept application like this one is drafted from your prompt and rubric, plus the learning or memory concept your classroom specifies. Expect it within 24 to 48 hours, and the first sample carries no fee. The dental case is invented, so none of your own appointments, fears or records has to be shared.

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INHE 1003 Week 2 questions, answered

Where can I find a free INHE 1003 Week 2 sample paper?

The dental visit concept application is posted above in full.

What concept does the INHE 1003 Week 2 sample apply?

Negative reinforcement, in which a behavior is strengthened because it removes something unpleasant.

How is it different from punishment?

Punishment weakens a behavior; negative reinforcement strengthens one.

What strengthens the canceling?

The relief the person feels when the dread ends after each cancellation.

What would weaken the pattern?

Experiences in which attending, rather than canceling, ends the dread.