Talent Management Blog

While many people who are familiar with my work think I always have a positive reinforcement answer to every situation, let me state for the record that positive reinforcement is not the only consequence needed to correct unwanted behavior.

As I heard the news about the NCAA sanctions given to Penn State University and its football program, it reminded me once again how little the NCAA, institutions, and the public at large understand human behavior. Even though I have studied behavior for most of my life, I will admit that there is still a lot I don’t know about it, but one thing I do know is that punishment stops behavior. The question in this case is what behavior needs to stop and whose behavior is being punished?

Certainly freshman football players did nothing wrong as it relates to the scandal; neither did the new coach. As far as I know, neither did the rest of the players.

Yet they will be the ones most impacted by the sanctions. The coach will be limited in the number of players that can be given scholarships. Players who need them most will be greatly affected. The team will also be affected by sanctions on post-season play. Many others will be impacted economically and socially, including the student body, alumni, businesses and the community.

I have no problem with actions taken in regard to Joe Paterno, a great football coach, even to the tune of removing his statue from the stadium grounds. The question I raise is have all of those who participated in one way or another in covering up or not speaking up about Jerry Sandusky’s crimes received appropriate consequences? It appears that only the coaches, school executive administrators and at least some members of the board of trustees should be the ones who should be punished. Actually, I believe that anyone covering up Sandusky’s behavior, which includes “not speaking up” from knowledge of it, should be terminated.

Since remote consequences have limited impact on the egregious behavior, for their good and the good of the institution, they should be fired. Not receiving a consequence will mean that the behavior will continue in some other circumstance with social or economically sensitive situations. Be that as it may, the question remains: What did the players and new coach do to deserve the negative consequences of the sanctions? Sadly, it is just another case where those with authority (the NCAA) feel that something had to be done to let everyone, particularly the public, know that it does not support such behavior.

The effects of Sandusky’s behavior will have a negative impact on many students, alumni and those in the community for years to come. That is not fair and there is little that can be done to change that. However, while many people will no doubt use the same argument relative to those in the football program who are trying to recover from one man’s pernicious deeds, the leaders of the NCAA can correct this unfairness that they created with the sanctions.

How long do we continue the practice of punishing the innocent to send a message to others? That is neither fair nor effective.

Tagged with:
 
Aubrey Daniels
About The Author

Aubrey Daniels

Aubrey C. Daniels is a thought leader and an internationally recognized expert on management, leadership and workplace issues who is considered an authority on human behavior in the workplace. Trained as a psychologist and specializing in the science of behavior analysis, Daniels is the author of Bringing Out the Best in People and five other business books. As chairman of his consulting firm, Aubrey Daniels International, he and his staff help organizations employ the timeless principles of behavioral science to re-energize the workplace, optimize performance and achieve lasting results. He can be reached at editor@TalentMGT.com.

  • http://yesmobility.com/smf/index.php?action=profile;u=154919 Morris Nocon

    Healing’s Dragon…

    to search out difficulties to improve my internet site!I suppose its ok to create usage of some within your concepts!!…

  • http://www.pokeproject.net/forums/member.php?action=profile&uid=57498 Morris Nocon

    Healing’s Dragon…

    to uncover troubles to boost my website!I suppose its ok to generate usage of a couple of of the ideas!!…

  • http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=siAQGepACdk distilling wine

    Fantastic Article…

    Certainly appreciate you actually sharing this article. A good deal thanks again. Definitely will keep on reading……

  • http://vacuumstoragebags.net/ Welcome to My Blog

    Wikia…

    Wika linked to this place…

  • http://reversenumberlookup.biz/ Reverse Number Lookup

    Reverse Number Lookup…

    http://reversenumberlookup.biz/...

  • http://au.forums.yahoo.com/forum/general-discussion/thread/ceo-dr-jaydeep-biswas/1347706145907-07d85a92-8c97-4d68-9b52-df91a7354419/ Mining

    Looking For Read More…

    The shaped patterns that kind your style, reducing….

  • http://www.rzeszow.randker.com.pl umow sie na randke

    The Slave of the Husband…

    Trying to get forward to researching additional from you afterward!……

  • http://www.metacafe.com/watch/9035167/distilling_rum/ distillery

    Awesome…

    Thanks-a-mundo for the remarkable article. Appreciated Again. Simply want more….

  • http://www.warszawa.randker.com.pl randka przez internet

    Souls in the Waves…

    Fantastic Early morning, I just stopped in to visit your site and considered I would say I appreciated myself….

  • http://www.wroclaw.randker.com.pl randki internetowe

    Healing’s Dragon…

    to locate difficulties to boost my web page!I suppose its ok to produce utilization of a few of one’s ideas!!…

  • http://www.jakichmalo.takarandka.com.pl wielu ludzi w jednym miejscu

    Thorn of Girl…

    Very good data can be uncovered on this web web site….

  • http://www.clutepackaging.com/products/strapping/steel_strapping steel strapping

    OK…

    I discovered your weblog site on google and examine a couple of of your early posts. Continue to keep up the excellent operate. I just further up your RSS feed to my MSN Information Reader. Seeking ahead to reading more from you in a while!……

  • http://www.randker.com.pl randki za darmo

    Healing’s Dragon…

    to find issues to improve my web-site!I suppose its ok to help make utilization of a handful of of one’s principles!!…

  • http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Lio9e7OoiT0 distilling alcohol

    Once More…

    Great write-up. Thanks Again. Keep writing….

  • http://www.rubinetterie.biz rubinetti

    Woman of Alien…

    Excellent perform you have carried out, this page is actually neat with wonderful details. Time is God’s method of retaining all the things from occurring simultaneously….

  • http://bsometer.com/story.php?title=weddings-in-italy wedding planner tuscany

    Third Flower…

    My spouse and i are already now delighted that Albert could execute his scientific studies on account of the concepts he had as a result of your web page. It really is every now and then perplexing to simply generally be making a gift of ways which a l…

  • http://archive.remdublin.com/blog/santasuits01/2012/08/06/number-smart-ideas-holiday-gift-ideas click here

    Woman of Alien…

    Fantastic get the job done you’ve got finished, this web site is really cool with excellent data. Time is God’s way of trying to keep everything from occurring without delay….

  • http://forum.laptopparts360.com/member.php?u=186703 Web Design

    Whispering Misty…

    So sorry you will miss the workshop!…

  • http://sitenizesayac.com/bilgi-haber/ssk-sorgulama-ssk-hizmet-dokumu.html You Can Look Here

    Websites you should visit…

    [...]below you’ll find the link to some sites that we think you should visit[...]……

  • http://www.mesmarty.com/2008/10/07/bazm-e-iqbal-ii Browse This Site

    Sites we Like……

    [...] Every once in a while we choose blogs that we read. Listed below are the latest sites that we choose [...]……

  • http://www.facebook.com/reminderHead Have A Peek At This Website

    Websites worth visiting…

    [...]here are some links to sites that we link to because we think they are worth visiting[...]……

  • http://www.glassdoor.com/blog/tips-on-how-to-approach-suspected-pay-inequity/ You Could Check Here

    Read was interesting, stay in touch……

    [...]please visit the sites we follow, including this one, as it represents our picks from the web[...]……

  • http://www.idomainsltd.co.uk/ web design barrow

    Hello…..

    Thanks for sharing excellent informations. Your web site is very cool. I am impressed by the details that you have on this web site. It reveals how nicely you understand this subject. Bookmarked this website page, will come back for extra articles. You…

  • http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=UgOsJKDyaNg skachat igru karos

    %BLOGTITLE%…

    There are actually a number of particulars like that to take into consideration. That may be a nice point to deliver up. I offer the thoughts above as common inspiration but clearly there are questions just like the one you convey up where an important…

  • http://www.bengillott.com/working-from-home-jobs-in-uk/ working from home jobs uk

    Hi…..

    I have recently started a website, the information you provide on this website has helped me greatly. Thanks for all of your time & work. “The murals in restaurants are on par with the food in museums.” by Peter De Vries….

  • http://desaininteriorjakarta.com/jasa-bangun-rumah-yang-hemat-biaya/ biaya bangun rumah

    Hi…..

    I’ve recently started a blog, the information you offer on this web site has helped me tremendously. Thanks for all of your time & work. “The murals in restaurants are on par with the food in museums.” by Peter De Vries….

  • http://sdvm.ru/auto/index.php?action=profile;u=34179 Justa Andrews

    Whispering Misty…

    So sorry you’ll pass up the workshop!…

  • http://www.schnierersch.de/dws/wp-content/plugins/zingiri-forum/mybb/member.php?action=profile&uid=52832 Beverlee Anidi

    The Slave of the Husband…

    Trying to get in advance to learning extra from you afterward!……

  • http://www.UnionInstallers.com Store Fixture Installers

    Whispering Misty…

    So sorry you can pass up the workshop!…

  • http://feedthemuscle.com/healthy-uses-for-aloe-vera-juice/ aloe vera juice for hair

    Informative and precise…

    Its difficult to find informative and precise information but here I found…

  • http://forum.trickday.com/member.php?action=profile&uid=13778 Benita Pinedo

    The Silent Shard…

    This tends to most likely be rather practical for many within your work I want to never only with my blog site but…

  • http://plus-dargent.com/biznes,i,ekonomia/cv,wzor,s,104/ wzór cv

    The Absent Game…

    Among me and my husband we’ve owned much more MP3 players through the years than I can count, which include Sansas, iRivers, iPods (basic & touch), the Ibiza Rhapsody, etc. But, the last few years I’ve settled down to one line of players….

  • http://denapogaming.thewebgamer.net/forum/index.php?action=profile;u=470 Luanne Courtney

    The Birch of the Shadow…

    I believe there might be considered a number of duplicates, but an exceedingly useful checklist! I have tweeted this. Quite a few thanks for sharing!…

  • http://tehwarez.net/member.php?u=60 Franklyn Solliday

    Healing’s Dragon…

    to uncover concerns to improve my site!I suppose its ok to generate utilization of some of the principles!!…