Glossary P

Principle of conservation of energy states that the energy within a system is constant; therefore, it cannot be added to or subtracted from but only transformed from one form to another.
Principle of contemporaneity refers to Lewin's contention that only present facts can influence present thinking and behavior. Past experiences can be influential only if a person is presently aware of them.
Principle of contingency stated thate the more consistently the reinforcer is delivered only for the desired behavior, the more effective the reinforcer. The question "Was the reinforcer given only when the desired behavior occurred?" should be asked to decide whether this principle has been followed

Principle of continuity refers to the tendency to experience stimuli that follow some predictable pattern as a perceptual unit.
Principle of contrast refers to a pragmatic principle that, by hypothesis, leads children to assume that different words have different meanings.
Principle of contrasts is a term which according to Wundt is the fact that experiences of one type usually intensify opposite types of experiences, an example is when eating something sour which makes the subsequent eating of something sweet taste sweeter than it would otherwise.

Principle of conventionality refers to a pragmatic principle that, by hypothesis, leads children to assume that words are used by all speakers to express the same meaning, that is, that word meaning is a convention.

Principle of deprivation is a Principle that states that the more deprived the person is, the more effective the reinforcer will be. The question "Has the reinforcer rarely been delivered?" should be asked to decide whether the principle has been followed