Positive Reinforcement Essay

Helplessness Theory and Response Contingent Positive Reinforcement Theory. It would not be entirely incorrect to state that these theories merely emphasize different aspects of a similar type of phenomenon. Both of these theories are utilized as a means of determining the causes of clinical depression without delving very much into cognitive processes. Perhaps their lack of insight into cognitive processes can explain their limitations as far as successfully explaining the source of depression and how it fosters within certain people.

The main similarity between these two theories is that they are based on the external experiences that people go through. Each theory states that the outside factors of these experiences help to determine the internal feelings of depression that people develop. This focus on initial experience is largely why neither one of these theories considers very many cognitive processes as the basis of depression. Instead, these theories posit the fact that it is what is taking place within a person's environment -- externally -- that determine why a person may or may not be depressed.In this respect, these theories are extremely similar.

However, the chief area of dissimilarity in these theories is the type of experiences that they focus on. Response Contingent Positive Reinforcement Theory is based on the fact that there is a definite lack of experiences in which a person is receiving positive feedback from others that causes depression. The implications of this theory are fairly obvious: positive reinforcement is an integral part of normalcy (psychologically speaking) and happiness, and without it people become depressed. Therefore, when people are in situations in which they cannot get the sort of positive feedback that they need for happiness, they are likely to suffer from depression.

Learned Helplessness Theory, on the other hand, considers the experiences….....