Resource
What reinforcement actually means
It is not bribery, and it is not stickers. It is the one idea underneath everything else we do.
- For parents
- 6 min read
- Updated September 25, 2026
The short answer
Reinforcement is anything that happens after a behavior and makes that behavior more likely next time. It is not the same as a reward, and it is not bribery. A bribe comes before, to stop something. Reinforcement comes after the behavior you want more of. What your child does next shows what reinforces them.
Key takeaways
- Reinforcement is defined by what happens next, not by what we hoped would happen.
- It is already happening at home all day, planned or not.
- A bribe comes before a behavior. Reinforcement comes after.
- Notice one good moment a day, out loud.
If you learn one idea from this whole site, make it this one. Nearly everything else follows from it.
The definition, in one line
Reinforcement is anything that happens after a behaviour that makes that behaviour more likely next time.
That is the whole thing. Notice what it does not say. It does not say reward. It does not say something pleasant. It says more likely next time.
Why that distinction matters
You cannot decide in advance what will be reinforcing. Your child decides, by what they do next.
A sticker is only reinforcement if the behaviour goes up afterwards. If it does not, it was a sticker, and nothing more. Meanwhile the thing that is genuinely reinforcing for your child might be jumping, a particular song, the fan in the hallway, or ten seconds of you making a silly face.
This is why we count. Counting is how you find out what is actually working instead of what should be.
The uncomfortable half
Reinforcement is not something we choose to use. It is already happening all day, whether anyone planned it or not.
If a child screams and the tablet comes back, screaming was reinforced. If a child asks quietly six times and nobody answers until they shout, shouting was reinforced. None of that requires bad parenting. It requires a busy house, which is every house.
Most of our work with families is not adding reinforcement. It is finding what is already being reinforced by accident, and rearranging it.
Is this bribery?
No, and the difference is timing.
A bribe comes first, to stop something that is already happening. "Please stop screaming and I will buy you the sweets." That teaches screaming.
Reinforcement comes after the thing you want to see more of. "You asked, so here it is." That teaches asking.
Same sweets. Completely different lesson.
What this looks like at home
Catch one good moment a day and make a fuss of it. Not a planned programme, just noticing out loud when your child does the thing you would like more of.
Most families are already doing the hard part. What tends to be missing is that the good moments pass in silence, because they are the moments that do not need attention, and the difficult ones get all the words.
Questions people ask
Is reinforcement in ABA the same as bribery?
No. The difference is timing. A bribe is offered first, to stop something already happening, which teaches the behavior you wanted to stop. Reinforcement comes after the behavior you want to see more of.
Are stickers and rewards reinforcement?
Only if the behavior happens more often afterwards. If it doesn't, the sticker was just a sticker. For some children, jumping, a song, or a silly face works better than any prize.
Can behavior be reinforced by accident?
Yes, all the time. If screaming gets the tablet back, screaming was reinforced. Much of our work with families is finding what is being reinforced by accident and rearranging it.
From the Data Driven Educators team
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