reinforcement

[ ree-in-fawrs-muh nt, -fohrs- ]
/ ˌri ɪnˈfɔrs mənt, -ˈfoʊrs- /

noun

the act of reinforcing.
the state of being reinforced.
something that reinforces or strengthens.
Often reinforcements. an additional supply of personnel, ships, aircraft, etc., for a military force.
a system of steel bars, strands, wires, or mesh for absorbing the tensile and shearing stresses in concrete work.
Psychology.
  1. a procedure, as a reward or punishment, that alters a response to a stimulus.
  2. the act of reinforcing a response.

Origin of reinforcement

First recorded in 1600–10; reinforce + -ment

OTHER WORDS FROM reinforcement

non·re·in·force·ment, noun

Words nearby reinforcement

reinfect, reinfection, reinforce, reinforced concrete, reinforced plastic, reinforcement, reinforcement therapy, reinforcer, reinhardt, reinhold, reinnervation

Medical definitions for non-reinforcement

reinforcement
[ rē′ĭn-fôrs′mənt ]

n.

The act or process of reinforcing.
Something that reinforces.
The occurrence or experimental introduction of an unconditioned stimulus along with a conditioned stimulus.
The strengthening of a conditioned response by such means.
An event, a circumstance, or a condition that increases the likelihood that a given response will recur in a situation like that in which the reinforcing condition originally occurred.