Abstract
This study investigated the effects of an aversive stimulus, a rationale, and sex of the punitive agent on punishment generalization, using 14- to 16-year-old boys and one of their parents as the punitive agent. Greater stimulus generalization of punishment resulted from the use of a rationale, although an aversive stimulus also produced generalization. Neither sex of the punitive agent nor parental traits were significant factors. Generalization of punishment appears to play an important role in self-controlled behavior, but it is equally important that the child learns to discriminate between permissible and prohibited behavior in a given situation.

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