January 30, 2015

January 30, 2015

Written by Maximus Peperkamp, M.S. Verbal Engineer

Dear Reader, 

 

The question why most human behavior across the globe is still governed by coercive processes and  why we are so inclined to punish instead of reinforce, is not answered by the fact that “punishment is an effective procedure, when it occurs in certain way, and especially in the short term.” (Ledoux, 2014, p. 359). Punishment can only result in this immediate effect of decreasing a behavior as long as it is accompanied by a punitive way of communicating, what this writer calls Noxious Verbal Behavior (NVB). 

Without laws, verbally behaving organisms wouldn’t be able to achieve any “seizable decrease in the punished-behavior rate” by punishing “immediately” and “consistently” and with the “necessary intensity.” Of course, laws are written versions of what people supposedly agree on with each other. When we ask ourselves why coercive control, in spite of its tremendously negative long-term consequences, continues to be our standard, we must also look at how these punishment procedures and our common way of communicating, NVB, are codified by the law. 

In this writing, however, this writer brings the reader’s attention to the fact that NVB is an inevitable part of and necessarily needed for the implementation of punishment. Thus, NVB and coercion is perpetuated by law. However, it is also quite evident that without the law there would be  chaos. If, on the other hand, Sound Verbal Behavior (SVB), better and improved communication, would ensue, we would create very different laws, which would reinforce other behavior. In the short-term SVB is often punished by NVB, but in the long-term SVB is reinforced and will counteract and replace NVB punishment.

Punishing SVB reinforces NVB. If a parent doesn’t know how to reinforce the child, that parent, in one way or another will punish their child. Sadly, when the child who is hit by its parents immediately obeys and decreases its defiant behavior, this postcedent consequence reinforces the hitting behavior of the parent. Likewise, the consequences of punishing NVB is the reinforcement of its use. “While the long-range effects of punishment involve those problems of emotional effects and escape, avoidance; and countercoercion (among others), one immediate effect of punishment involves the quick and substantial reduction of the punished behavior” (Ledoux, 2014, p. 359). The question may arise: why do we punish SVB? If it is so beneficial and having such wonderful long-range consequences, why are we not reinforcing it? The short answer is: we don’t know how to reinforce it. The longer answer is: NVB keeps us trapped into short-term thinking. Also, emotional effects, escape and avoidance in others, which were caused by our NVB, give us a sense of power and make us believe that we are not like that. Since NVB is hierarchical, there is always someone above us and below us. Due to our status we may be able to deal with the punishment which we receive or self-inflict a little differently, but at best we only imagine that we are not on the receiving end of NVB.  

This writer, who has worked with many powerful, capable people, knows from their personal stories that they too experience emotional effects, escape and avoidance. The more powerful people became in their lives, the more conditioned punitive NVB effects appear to be. They could only get to their place of power, because they were praised continuously for their ability to punish others and their so-called discipline is based on being punitive to themselves. They punish SVB so harshly, because it exposes how they escape and avoid themselves and don’t know how they really feel.