bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025 huggingface dataset:
INAPPROPRIATE SPEECH IN A SEVERELY RETARDED CHILD: A CASE STUDY IN LANGUAGE CONDITIONING AND GENERALIZATION
Authors: Barton Elizabeth Spindler
Published: March 2006

The modification of inappropriate speech, a class of behaviors rather than a limited number of specific examples, is little known in the severely retarded. In this study, operant techniques were used to modify the strikingly bizarre and inappropriate speech of a severely retarded boy. The boy's appropriate verbal responses to questions about magazine pictures were reinforced with candy. When he responded inappropriately, the magazine was withdrawn, and social interaction was discontinued for a 10‐sec timeout period. Negative responses were ignored, the next picture displayed, and the next question asked immediately. In 10 sessions, appropriate responses increased from 26% to 86% of all responses. A reversal of reinforcement was then introduced, in which inappropriate responses were reinforced, appropriate responses resulted in timeout, and negative responses were treated as before. This reduced the percentage of appropriate responses to 24%. Subsequent sessions of reinforcement for appropriate responses increased appropriate responses to 96% of all responses. At significant stages in the experiment, a measure of possible generalization was attempted. Although some generalization was recorded, it was minimal: some explanations are discussed.
MODIFICATION OF PRESCHOOL ISOLATE BEHAVIOR: A CASE STUDY1
Authors: Kirby Frank D. , Toler Hayward C.
Published: March 2006

A 5‐yr‐old preschool boy with a low rate of interaction with his nursery school classmates was induced to pass out candy as a tactic to increase his rate of interaction with them. Interaction with classmates increased markedly during the periods he passed out choices of candy. These changes may have been due to increases in both his rate of initiating activities with his classmates and to increases in his classmates' rate of initiating activities with him. A total time of less than 1 hr was required of the teacher during the experiment.
MANAGEMENT OF CHRONIC PSYCHIATRIC PATIENTS BY A TOKEN REINFORCEMENT SYSTEM1
Authors: Winkler R. C.
Published: March 2006

A token reinforcement system for the reduction of institutionalized behavior in a chronic psychiatric ward is described. Quantitative assessments were made of the effects of the system on five types of positively reinforced behavior, two types of unreinforced behavior, and two types of fined behavior. To assess whether these effects were a function of the token procedures, three experiments were carried out, the first removing tokens for a brief period, the second making tokens non‐contingent on behavior, and the third removing fines in one area while maintaining them in another. The token procedures were found to be the source of the observed improvements.
REINFORCEMENT OF VISUAL ATTENDING IN CLASSROOMS FOR DEAF CHILDREN1
Authors: Craig Helen B. , Holland Audrey L.
Published: March 2006

The efficacy of immediate tangible reinforcement in increasing appropriate visual attending for entire classes of deaf children was examined. The subjects were three classes (seven children each) in a residential school for the deaf. Boxes were installed on each child's desk, with lights that were flashed immediately contingent upon 10 sec of visual attending. Light flashes were backed up by M & M's, cereal bits, or tokens. In two of the classes, extinction sessions were also scheduled. For all classes, the reinforcement procedure increased visual attending by 50% or more, maintaining it at rates above 82%. Withdrawal of tangibles decreased attending back to baseline levels. The results support analysis of attending as operant behavior and demonstrate the applicability of reinforcement procedures in modifying these behaviors for young deaf children in a classroom setting.
A VARIABLE INFLUENCING THE PERFORMANCE OF GENERALIZED IMITATIVE BEHAVIORS1,2
Authors: Peterson Robert F. , Whitehurst Grover J.
Published: March 2006

This research attempted to demonstrate some of the conditions that would influence the performance of generalized imitative behaviors in young children. Two experiments were conducted. The results of Exp. I indicated that generalized imitative behaviors can be very durable; only one of three subjects was influenced by a variety of reinforcement‐like procedures. Control over the behavior of all three subjects was obtained when a setting event involving the presence or absence of the experimenter was systematically varied. A second test of this variable was carried out in Exp. II. Results showed moderate to strong control over non‐reinforced imitations in four preschool children.
EYE MOVEMENTS AS A FUNCTION OF RESPONSE CONTINGENCIES MEASURED BY BLACKOUT TECHNIQUE1
Authors: Doran Judith , Holland James G.
Published: March 2006

A program may have a low error rate but, at the same time, require little of the student and teach him little. A measure to supplement error rate in evaluating a program has recently been developed. This measure, called the blackout ratio, is the percentage of material that may be deleted without increasing the error rate. In high blackout‐ratio programs, obtaining a correct answer is contingent upon only a small portion of the item. The present study determined if such low response‐contingent material is read less thoroughly than programmed material that is heavily response‐contingent. Eye movements were compared for two versions of the same program that differed only in the choice of the omitted words. The alteration of the required responses resulted in a version with a higher blackout ratio than the original version, which had a low blackout ratio. Eighteen undergraduates received half their material from the high and half their material from the low blackout‐ratio version. The order was counterbalanced. Location and duration of all eye fixations in each item were recorded by a Mackworth Eye Marker Camera. On high blackout‐ratio material, subjects used fewer fixations, shorter fixation time, and shorter scanning time. High blackout‐ratio material failed to evoke the students' attention.
INSTRUCTIONS AND GROUP VERSUS INDIVIDUAL REINFORCEMENT IN MODIFYING DISRUPTIVE GROUP BEHAVIOR1
Authors: Herman Steven H. , Tramontana Joseph
Published: March 2006

Head Start children were matched into two groups on the basis of rates of disruptive behavior during rest periods. Attempts were made to modify their behavior using either individual or group token reinforcement procedures. While the reinforcement procedures reduced inappropriate behavior somewhat, the addition of instructions to the reinforcement reduced the inappropriate behavior to near zero for both groups. Instructions alone, however, were ineffective in controlling behavior. Type of reinforcement (group or individual) did not produce differential effects. While experimental control over the target behavior was demonstrated, there was little carryover from the experimental room to the regular classroom. Even when treatment was introduced into the regular class, follow‐up results showed that with time the target behavior approximated pretreatment levels. The results suggest that (a) the combination of instructions and reinforcement is much more effective than either one of these alone, (b) behavior change is specific to the environmental contingencies, and (c) the group reinforcement technique, which is much more easily implemented, was at least as effective as individual reinforcement in the present study.
A BEHAVIORAL APPROACH TO THE CONTROL OF THUMBSUCKING IN THE CLASSROOM
Authors: Skiba Edward A. , Pettigrew L. Eudora , Alden Steven E.
Published: March 2006

The purpose of the present study was to determine whether classroom thumbsucking could be controlled by making social reinforcement contingent upon appropriate behaviors incompatible with thumbsucking. The classroom thumbsucking behavior of three 8‐yr‐old elementary school children was observed and recorded by two observers. Sixteen experimental lessons were divided into sets of baseline, reinforcement, reversal, and representation of reinforcement. The effect of the experimental treatment was determined by the changes in the total thumbsucking level for each subject during each lesson. Results indicated noticeable decreases in thumbsucking rate for all three subjects during lessons in which social reinforcement was made contingent upon appropriate behavior. Two of the three subjects showed sudden increases in thumbsucking time during lessons when social reinforcement for appropriate responses was withheld; the third subject showed continued low thumbsucking time during these lessons.
THE TEACHER AS OBSERVER AND EXPERIMENTER IN THE MODIFICATION OF DISPUTING AND TALKING‐OUT BEHAVIORS1
Authors: Hall R. V. , Fox R. , Willard D. , Goldsmith L. , Emerson M. , Owen M. , Davis F. , Porcia E.
Published: March 2006

Disputing and talking‐out behaviors of individual pupils and entire classroom groups in special education classes and regular classes from white middle‐class areas and from all black poverty areas ranging from the first grade to junior high school were studied. The classroom teacher in each case acted as the experimenter and as an observer. Various means of recording behaviors were used and reliability of observation was checked by an outside observer, another teacher, a teacher‐aide, a student, or by using a tape recorder. Observation sessions varied from 15 min to an entire school day. After baseline rates were obtained, extinction of inappropriate disputing or talking‐out behaviors and reinforcement of appropriate behavior with teacher attention, praise and in some cases a desired classroom activity or a surprise at the end of the week brought a decrease in undesired verbalizations. A reversal of contingencies brought a return to high levels of inappropriate talking with a return to low levels when reinforcement for appropriate talking was reinstated. The experiments demonstrated that teachers in a variety of classroom settings could obtain reliable observational records and carry out experimental manipulations successfully using resources available in most schools.
THE EFFECT OF INTERMITTENT FEEDBACK AND INTERMITTENT CONTINGENT ACCESS TO PLAY ON PRINTING OF KINDERGARTEN CHILDREN1
Authors: Salzberg Bernard H. , Wheeler Andrew J. , Devar Linda Taylor , Hopkins B. L.
Published: March 2006

Intermittent grading of papers and the combination of intermittent grading with contingent access to play were evaluated as methods for increasing the accuracy of kindergarten children's printing responses. For a group of target letters, intermittent grading alone failed to produce an increase in accuracy, but when grading was paired with access to play, accuracy increased for every child. These results were then replicated with another letter.
ESTABLISHING USE OF CRUTCHES BY A MENTALLY RETARDED SPINA BIFIDA CHILD1
Authors: Horner R. Don
Published: March 2006

A 5‐yr‐old mentally retarded spina bifida child was taught to walk with the aid of crutches. This behavior was developed through fading of physical prompting within a 10‐step successive approximation sequence. Preliminary training to establish gait consisted of developing use of parallel bars through fading of physically modelled responses within a six‐step successive approximation sequence. Use of parallel bars ceased during an extinction period and completely recovered upon being primed with one “free” reinforcement. Systematic use of natural reinforcers was employed as an aid in maintaining use of crutches.
THE EFFECT OF SELF‐RECORDING ON THE CLASSROOM BEHAVIOR OF TWO EIGHTH‐GRADE STUDENTS1
Authors: Broden Marcia , Hall R. Vance , Mitts Brenda
Published: March 2006

The effects of self‐recording on classroom behavior of two junior high school students was investigated. In the first experiment, study behavior of an eighth‐grade girl in history class was recorded. Following baseline observations her counselor provided slips for the girl to record whether or not she studied in class. This resulted in an increase in study. When slips were withdrawn, study decreased and then increased once self‐recording was reinstated. After teacher praise for study was increased, self‐recording was discontinued without significant losses in study behavior. In the final phase, increased praise was also withdrawn and study remained at a high level. In the second experiment, the number of talk outs emitted by an eighth‐grade boy were recorded during math period. Following baseline, slips for recording talk outs were issued for the first half of the period, for the second half, and then for the entire period. Talk outs decreased when self‐recording was in effect and increased again when self‐recording was discontinued. When self‐recording was reinstituted in the final phase there was a slight, though not significant decrease in talking out when compared to the baseline condition.
SHOCK AS PUNISHMENT IN A PICTURE‐NAMING TASK WITH RETARDED CHILDREN1,2
Authors: Kircher Alfred S. , Pear Joseph J. , Martin Garry L.
Published: March 2006

Two retarded children were taught to name pictures according to a standardized procedure. In Exp. I, correct responses were positively reinforced on a five to one ratio under one stimulus condition, incorrect responses were followed with a sharp “no”, and the subject was ignored for inattentive behavior. Under another stimulus condition, correct responses were reinforced as in the first condition, but incorrect responses and 5‐sec periods of inattentive behavior were followed by “no” and an electric shock. Less inattentive behavior was exhibited and more words were learned to a pre‐set criterion in the shock condition than in the no‐shock condition. In Exp. II, the ratio of inappropriate responses to shock was varied. The amount of inattentive behavior tended to increase in the shock condition, relative to that in the no‐shock condition, as this ratio was increased. Two other measures of performance used in the present experiments were the ratio of errors to correct responses and the number of correct responses. Shock tended to produce better performance on these measures also.
DELAYED TIMEOUT AS A PROCEDURE FOR REDUCING DISRUPTIVE CLASSROOM BEHAVIOR: A CASE STUDY1
Authors: Ramp Eugene , Ulrich Roger , Dulaney Sylvia
Published: March 2006

The disruptive behavior of a 9‐yr‐old boy was eliminated by the illumination of a light on the subject's desk, which represented the loss of free time later in the day. Instructions alone failed to reduce the frequency of disruptive behavior. When the light was removed and disruptive behavior no longer resulted in a loss of free time, disruptive behavior returned to its previous level.
EFFECTS OF REINFORCEMENT AND GUIDANCE PROCEDURES ON INSTRUCTION‐FOLLOWING BEHAVIOR OF SEVERELY RETARDED CHILDREN
Authors: Whitman Thomas L. , Zakaras Michael , Chardos Stephen
Published: March 2006

Positive reinforcement, physical guidance, and fading procedures were used to teach two severely retarded children motor responses to a variety of verbal instructions. Subjects' responses to one set of instructions provided the focus for the training procedures. Their responses to a second set of instructions were used to assess the generalized effects of training. The frequency of responses to both sets of instructions was evaluated during Baseline 1, Training 1, Baseline 2, and Training 2 periods. During the training periods, this evaluation was made after the daily training sessions when no training procedures were in effect. Results indicated that the subjects showed pronounced increases in instruction‐following behaviors (both trained and untrained) during training periods with decreases in such behavior occurring during the Baseline 2 period. The general findings demonstrate the applicability of the training procedures for producing and maintaining instruction‐following behaviors in severely retarded children and for facilitating appropriate responding to instructions not directly involved in training.
THE CHOICES AND PREFERENCES OF NURSERY SCHOOL CHILDREN1
Authors: Betancourt Francella W. , Zeiler Michael D.
Published: March 2006

After a period of equal reinforcement for choices of any job revealed which of 10 jobs each of 24 preschool children preferred and did not prefer, token payment became dependent on particular choices. Some children received tokens only for choosing previously non‐preferred jobs, others for choosing previously preferred jobs. When tokens depended on choosing the nonpreferred jobs, those came to be preferred. When tokens depended on choosing the preferred jobs, the preferences were strengthened. The effects were replicated both within and between subjects, except in the case of one boy who consistently avoided token pay.
SYSTEMATIC REINFORCEMENT: ACADEMIC PERFORMANCE OF UNDERACHIEVING STUDENTS1
Authors: Chadwick Bruce A. , Day Robert C.
Published: March 2006

The effect of contingent tangible and social reinforcement on academic performance was investigated in an experimental classroom of 25 selected underachieving students. Measures were taken of both teacher and child behavior during a baseline and two experimental treatment periods. During Treatment I, a point system with tangible backup reinforcers was combined with contingent social reinforcers dispensed by the teaching staff to assess the effects on three measures of academic performance (i.e., per cent of time at work, work output per minute, and accuracy). During Treatment II, the contingencies for the tangible reinforcers were terminated while social reinforcement was continued to see if the positive effects of Treatment I on academic performance would persist. The results show that with combined tangible and social reinforcers, students' work time, rate of output per hour, and accuracy in all activities substantially increased. After termination of the tangible reinforcers, the students maintained their high rates of ouput per hour and accuracy for the remaining period of the study while the total amount of time at work returned to the baseline level.
ACHIEVEMENT PLACE: MODIFICATION OF THE BEHAVIORS OF PRE‐DELINQUENT BOYS WITHIN A TOKEN ECONOMY1,2
Authors: Phillips Elery L. , Phillips Elaine A. , Fixsen Dean L. , Wolf Montrose M.
Published: March 2006

The “pre‐delinquent” behaviors of six boys at Achievement Place, a community based family style behavior modification center for delinquents, were modified using token (points) reinforcement procedures. In Exp. I, point losses contingent on each minute late were effective in producing promptness at the evening meal. During the reversal phase, threats (which were not backed up with point losses) to reinstate the point consequences initially improved promptness but the last two of five threats were ineffective. In Exp. II, point consequences effectively maintained the boys' room‐cleaning behavior and, during a fading condition where the percentage of days when the contingency occurred was decreased, the point consequences remained effective for over six months, even when they were delivered on only 8% of the days. Experiment III showed that the boys saved considerable amounts of money when point consequences were available for deposits but saved little money when no points were available. Also, when points were given only for deposits that occurred on specific days the boys deposited their money almost exclusively on those days. In Exp. IV, point consequences contingent on the number of correct answers on a news quiz produced the greatest increase in the percentage of boys who watched the news and, to a lesser extent, increased the percentage of correct answers for the boys who watched the news. The results indicate that “pre‐delinquent” behaviors are amenable to modification procedures and that a token reinforcement system provides a practical means of modifying these behaviors.
A RAPID METHOD OF TOILET TRAINING THE INSTITUTIONALIZED RETARDED1
Authors: Azrin N. H. , Foxx R. M.
Published: March 2006

Incontinence is a major unsolved problem in the institutional care of the profoundly retarded. A reinforcement and social analysis of incontinence was used to develop a procedure that would rapidly toilet train retardates and motivate them to remain continent during the day in their ward setting. Nine profoundly retarded adults were given intensive training (median of four days per patient), the distinctive features of which were artificially increasing the frequency of urinations, positive reinforcement of correct toileting but a delay for “accidents”, use of new automatic apparatus for signalling elimination, shaping of independent toileting, cleanliness training, and staff reinforcement procedures. Incontinence was reduced immediately by about 90% and eventually decreased to near‐zero. These results indicate the present procedure is an effective, rapid, enduring, and administratively feasible solution to the problem of incontinence of the institutionalized retarded.
THE DEVELOPMENT OF ANTI‐UTTER BEHAVIOR IN A FOREST CAMPGROUND1
Authors: Clark Roger N. , Burgess Robert L. , Hendee John C.
Published: March 2006

This study evaluates the effectiveness of an incentive procedure designed to induce litter collection in a large forest campground. Children in the campground were offered their choice of a variety of reinforcers for picking up and properly disposing of litter. The procedure resulted in a sharp decline in four types of litter planted in the campground.
TIMEOUT DURATION AND THE SUPPRESSION OF DEVIANT BEHAVIOR IN CHILDREN1
Authors: White Geoffry D. , Nielsen Gary , Johnson Stephen M.
Published: March 2006

The effects of three different timeout durations were investigated in a group of 20 retarded, institutionalized subjects. Each subject received 1, 15, and 30 min of timeout in a design that was counterbalanced in terms of the order in which timeout durations were presented. Displays of deviant behavior—such as aggression, tantrums, and self‐destruction—were followed by periods of isolation in a timeout room. A reversal design was employed such that return‐to‐baseline periods were instituted after each timeout period. The overall effect of timeout was to reduce significantly the rate of deviant behavior. On the average, 15 and 30 min produced a 35% decrease in deviant behavior with little difference between the effectiveness of 15 and 30 min. The range of effects in all timeout conditions varied widely. The sequence in which the 1‐min duration was presented effected the direction of its effect. When it preceded the use of longer durations, 1 min was most effective. As it came later in the sequence, its suppressive characteristics became less reliable.
TRAINING PARENTS AS BEHAVIOR MODIFIERS: SELF‐RECORDING OF CONTINGENT ATTENTION1
Authors: Herbert Emily W. , Baer Donald M.
Published: March 2006

Two mothers of deviant young children were instructed to count their episodes of attention to appropriate child behavior in their homes, using wrist counters. Attention and appropriate child behavior were defined before counting began. Independent observations of parent‐child interactions showed that, for each mother‐child pair, the percentage of maternal attention given following appropriate child behavior increased, as did the child's appropriate behavior. Removal of the counters did not produce a reversal of the behaviors; instead the increased level stabilized. One mother was then instructed to count her attention to inappropriate child behavior and to decrease it. This instruction had little effect on her attention, and her child's behavior did not change. When both parents were again instructed to count their episodes of attention to appropriate behavior, further improvements in both mothers, and in their children resulted. These results were obtained despite inaccurate parent self‐recording. Follow‐up observations made over the next five months showed these behavioral gains to be durable. A third parent and his child were unaffected by this training procedure. Thus, there are instances in which self‐recording may function as an effective and economical parent‐training technique for effecting improvements in child behavior.
SIDE EFFECTS OF EXTINCTION PROCEDURES IN A REMEDIAL PRESCHOOL1
Authors: Sajwaj Thomas , Twardosz Sandra , Burke Marianne
Published: March 2006

Several studies have shown that behavior modification procedures aimed at a single behavior may have effects on other, nonmanipulated behaviors. A young retarded boy engaged in excessive conversation with his preschool teacher. The teacher then began to ignore his initiated conversation during free‐play periods, and it decreased. In addition, (1) social behavior relative to children increased, and (2) use of girls' toys decreased during free play. Also, (3) appropriate behavior at group academics declined, while (4) disruptions rose. In a second study, the teacher alternated conditions of praise and ignoring for talking with children. Talking with children varied accordingly. In addition, use of girls' toys and group academics disruptions rose during the ignoring condition. Appropriate behaviors dropped. Lastly, a timeout procedure was used to eliminate the undesirable side effects of disruptions and of use of girls' toys. Apparently, a response class may have member behaviors that covary directly and/or inversely. Some covariations may be socially desirable, others undesirable. The appearance of undesirable “side effects” can be controlled using behavior modification techniques.
STIMULUS FACTORS IN THE TRAINING OF PREPOSITIONAL USAGE IN THREE AUTISTIC CHILDREN
Authors: Sailor Wayne , Taman Trudie
Published: March 2006

Language deficient, autistic children were trained to use the prepositions “in” and “on”. Three subjects were exposed to conditions of training that differed in the method of employment of stimulus objects used to train prepositional usage. Two subjects were trained first with “ambiguous” stimuli, that is, the same stimulus objects were used for training both prepositions. The two subjects were then switched to a training condition with “non‐ambiguous” stimulus objects, that is, objects used for training “in” were different than those used for training “on”. The two subjects were then switched to the ambiguous stimulus condition and finally returned again to training with non‐ambiguous stimuli (four conditions). A third subject began with training on non‐ambiguous stimuli, was switched to an ambiguous condition and was then switched back to non‐ambiguous stimuli (three conditions). The results for two of the three subjects indicated that accurate usage of the two prepositions was obtained only under training conditions with non‐ambiguous stimuli. Results for the third subject suggested that initial training with non‐ambiguous stimuli might enhance subsequent accurate responding with ambiguous stimuli.
ACHIEVEMENT PLACE: THE RELIABILITY OF SELF‐REPORTING AND PEER‐REPORTING AND THEIR EFFECTS ON BEHAVIOR1,2
Authors: Fixsen Dean L. , Phillips Elery L. , Wolf Montrose M.
Published: March 2006

The reliability of the boys reporting their own behavior and the behavior of their peers was measured in two experiments at Achievement Place, a community based, family style, behavior modification program for delinquents based on a token (point) economy. The results of these experiments indicated that; (a) the boys were not “naturally” reliable observers, (b) the reliability of peer‐reporting could be improved by providing training on the behavioral definitions and by making points contingent on agreement between each boy's peer‐report and an independent adult observers' report, (c) the reliability of self‐reporting could be improved by making points contingent on agreement between the self‐report and the trained peer's report, and (d) giving self‐reports and peer‐reports did not produce a systematic effect on the boys' room‐cleaning behavior as measured by an independent observer.
MODIFICATION OF CONSONANT SPEECH‐SOUND ARTICULATION IN YOUNG CHILDREN1
Authors: Johnston James M. , Johnston Gwendolyn T.
Published: March 2006

A series of three experiments was performed in a classroom setting with small groups of young children with severe articulation problems. Variations on a basic token reinforcement procedure were demonstrated in each experiment. A combined multiple baseline/reversal design showed effective experimenter control of rates of correct and incorrect consonant sound articulation in all cases. In addition, the data in each experiment showed the problems of obtaining stimulus generalization of the high rates of correct articulation to non‐training settings. The third experiment demonstrated a procedure for producing such generalization by making each child a discriminative stimulus for correct articulaton by the other child, thus maintaining high levels of correct articulation for each child when in the presence of the other.
INTRINSIC REINFORCERS IN A CLASSROOM TOKEN ECONOMY1
Authors: McLaughlin Thomas F. , Malaby John
Published: March 2006

An inexpensive, easily managed token economy was used in a normal classroom for one academic year, and data were collected for the entire academic performance in spelling, language, handwriting, and math for that year. During a baseline period, assignment completion was variable. The introduction of a token economy with a point exchange every five days increased assignment completion and decreased variability of performance. An application of a token economy that had a point exchange averaging four days was accompanied by an assignment completion rate that approximated 100%. A reinforcement contingency for which quiet behavior rather than for assignment completion was eased quiet behavior was accompanied by a marked diminution of assignment completion. A reintroduction of the token reinforcement for assignment completion system increased assignment completion again.
REWARD, COST, AND SELF‐EVALUATION PROCEDURES FOR DISRUPTIVE ADOLESCENTS IN A PSYCHIATRIC HOSPITAL SCHOOL1
Authors: Kaufman Kenneth F. , O'Leary K. Daniel
Published: March 2006

Sixteen pupils in a psychiatric hospital were assigned to two tutorial reading classes and balanced on six pupil characteristics and teacher preferences for the children. The effects of reward and cost procedures in a token program were assessed using both within‐ and between‐subject comparisons in the following phases: (1) Baseline; (2) Token I, teacher evaluated and reinforced children for appropriate behavior; (3) Withdrawal of Tokens; (4) Token II, same as Token I; (5) Token III, same as Token I and II, but switched order of class meeting time; and (6) Self‐Evaluation, students rated their own behavior and received prizes based on their rating, rather than the teacher's rating. The token program was markedly successful in reducing disruptive behavior and in increasing reading skills in both the Reward and Cost Classes, but there were no significant differences in the effects of the reward versus the cost procedure. While cost may be seen as a punishment procedure, there were no adverse side effects observed in the Cost Class at any time when the token program was in effect. The order of the classes was unrelated to the level of disruptive behavior or academic progress. The Self‐Evaluative Phase, in which the students rated their own behavior, was included as an alternative to the abrupt withdrawal of tokens. In this phase, disruptive behavior remained at the previous low level.
TEACHING A COMPLEX VERBAL RESPONSE TO A HEARING‐IMPAIRED GIRL
Authors: Bennett Clinton W. , Ling Daniel
Published: March 2006

A 3‐yr‐old hearing‐impaired girl, who used neither the article “the” nor the auxiliary verb “is” was taught to use these words in describing a picture, initially through imitation and then in response to the command, “Tell me about this”. As a result, she was able to use sentences in the present progressive form to describe a number of pictures on which she had received no training. This newly acquired behavior was subsequently extinguished and then reinstated.
REDUCING AND MEASURING INAPPROPRIATE VERBALIZATIONS IN A TOKEN CLASSROOM1
Authors: McLaughlin Thomas , Malaby John
Published: March 2006

A procedure was employed that enabled a teacher to bring inappropriate verbalizations under control in a classroom of approximately 25 fifth‐ and sixth‐grade students. Contingent point loss for inappropriate verbalizations was correlated with a low but steady rate of such verbalizations. Point gain contingent upon quiet behavior produced a marked decrease in inappropriate verbalizations. A return to contingent point loss was accompanied by an increasing rate of inappropriate verbalizations. Verbalizations decreased when quiet behavior was reinforced again. A noteworthy feature of the study was the utilization of students from within the class to act as data recorders. A reliability check indicated satisfactory agreement between the recorders.
THE ROLE OF PROCTORING IN PERSONAUZED INSTRUCTION1
Authors: Farmer John , Lachter Gerald D. , Blaustein Joel J. , Cole Brett K.
Published: March 2006

The effect of amount of student‐proctor interaction was investigated within the framework of Keller's (1968) method of personalized instruction. College students enrolled in introductory psychology were randomly assigned to five groups: 0%, 25%, 50%, 75%, and 100%, reflecting the percentage of units on which each student was proctored. The results indicated that (a) the proctored students were superior to the non‐proctored students as measured by final examination performance, (b) for the proctored groups, the amount of proctoring did not differentially affect final examination performance, and (c) the major effect of increased proctoring was an acceleration of the rate of progress through the course.
PARAMETRIC EFFECTS OF REINFORCEMENT FREQUENCY, AMOUNT OF REINFORCEMENT, AND REQUIRED RESPONSE FORCE ON SHELTERED WORKSHOP BEHAVIOR1
Authors: Schroeder Stephen R.
Published: March 2006

Three experiments involving parametric manipulation of reinforcement contingencies were performed with retardates in an automated Sheltered Workshop token economy. Experiment I showed that with amount of reinforcement held constant, work rates were positively related to reinforcement rates on fixed‐interval schedules and inversely related to reinforcement rates on fixed‐ratio schedules. Experiment II demonstrated an interaction between frequency of ratio reinforcement and torque required to complete a work unit: work rates were positively related to reinforcement rates when required response force was high and negatively related to reinforcement rates when required response force was low. Experiment III revealed that, with reinforcement frequency held constant, there was in inverse relationship between amount of reinforcement and work rate.
GOOD‐BEHAVIOR GAME: A REPLICATION AND SYSTEMATIC ANALYSIS1
Authors: Medland Michael B. , Stachnik Thomas J.
Published: March 2006

A good‐behavior game was implemented in a fifth‐grade reading class consisting of two groups of 14 students each. After the presentation of the game, reversal and component analysis phases were instituted. Game components included rules, lights (response feedback), and group consequences of extra recess and extra free time. Student observers recorded the dependent variables which included talking‐out, disruptive, and out‐of‐seat behaviors. The results show that the game reduced the dependent measures from their baseline rate by almost 99% for one group and 97% for the other. The component analysis revealed that after association in the game, the stimulus components of rules and lights were effective in reducing the dependent behaviors.
TRAINING LETTER DISCRIMINATION IN FOUR‐YEAR‐OLD CHILDREN1
Authors: Tawney James W.
Published: March 2006

Four‐year‐old children were tested on letter discrimination. Subjects in two experimental groups went through an experimental training program on a match‐to‐sample apparatus. Subjects in the experimental‐critical group were given reinforcers for responding to features of the stimuli thought critical for discriminating letters while subjects in the experimental‐noncritical group were given reinforcers for responding to noncritical features. Subjects went through the training program daily until they reached criterion; then they were posttested on letters. Subjects in a control group received no training but were posttested. Subjects in all groups made fewer errors on the posttest. Subjects in the experimental‐critical group made significantly fewer posttest errors than subjects in the experimental‐noncritical group, lending support to the hypothesis that reinforcement of discriminative responding to critical features of letter‐like stimuli results in greater improvement in letter discrimination than reinforcement of discriminative responding to noncritical features of stimuli. Analysis of confusion matrices provided tentative indications of the nature of letter confusions in 4‐yr‐old children.
THE HOME POINT SYSTEM: TOKEN REINFORCEMENT PROCEDURES FOR APPLICATION BY PARENTS OF CHILDREN WITH BEHAVIOR PROBLEMS1
Authors: Christophersen Edward R. , Arnold Caroline M. , Hill Diane W. , Quilitch H. Robert
Published: March 2006

Parent‐child problems within the home are frequently reported to be instances in which children refuse to help with household chores, bicker among themselves, or engage in verbally inappropriate behavior toward their parents. The present study investigated the effects of a token reinforcement program administered by the parents in ameliorating these problems. Two sets of parents, with a total of five children between the ages of 5 and 10 yr, were taught to administer a token economy within their homes. The parents received instruction in specifying desired social and chore behaviors, communicated these behavioral goals to their children, recorded data on their occurrence, and managed a point system backed with reinforcers normally found in the home. The token reinforcement program was shown to have successfully modified 15 problem behaviors in Family 1 and six in Family 2. In addition, the parents rated all 21 behavior changes as significant improvements. These studies indicated that some cooperative parents need only a small amount of professional help to learn to manage their children's behavior problems with token reinforcement procedures.
TEACHING BEHAVIOR MODIFICATION TO NONPROFESSIONALS1
Authors: Gardner James M.
Published: March 2006

Two instructional methods (role playing and lecture) were compared in evaluating the effectiveness of teaching behavior modification to institutional attendants. Pre‐ and posttest measures were obtained for two major outcome variables: (1) knowledge of behavior modification principles and (2) ratings of ability to apply behavior modification techniques. Results indicated that role playing was more effective in teaching behavior modification skills while the lectures were more effective in teaching principles of behavior modification.
AUTOMATED TRANSDUCTION OF SHELTERED WORKSHOP BEHAVIORS1
Authors: Schroeder Stephen R.
Published: March 2006

This study describes techniques for attaching transducers directly to the tools in a sheltered workshop. The resulting automatic recordings of tool usage correlate fairly highly with independent measures of work products completed.
TRAINING AND MAINTAINING A RETARDED CHILD'S PROPER EATING1
Authors: O'Brien F. , Bugle C. , Azrin N. H.
Published: March 2006

The present study was designed to explore whether motivational procedures are needed to maintain a retardate's continued use of previously trained eating skills. A profoundly retarded child who ate food with her hands was trained by a manual guidance procedure to eat properly with a spoon, but the child still did not use the spoon after having learned to do so. When a motivational‐maintenance procedure was applied, the child did begin to eat properly. When maintenance was discontinued, the child returned to eating with her hands. Proper eating returned when maintenance was applied again; when discontinued, the child returned to eating with her hands. These results demonstrate that continued motivational procedures are needed after training to maintain the retardate's continued use of proper eating skills.
MULTIPLE EFFECTS OF A PROCEDURE TO INCREASE SITTING IN A HYPERACTIVE, RETARDED BOY1
Authors: Twardosz Sandra , Sajwaj Thomas
Published: March 2006

A prompting and differential reinforcement procedure was used to increase sitting in a hyperactive, retarded boy in a remedial preschool. This procedure not only increased sitting, but had the additional effects of decreasing posturing while leaving normal walking unaffected, and increasing the use of toys and proximity to children. All of these changes can be considered socially desirable effects of the sitting program. The results suggest that preschool programs can be designed that will treat several behaviors simultaneously in order to maximize a teacher's effectiveness.
MODIFICATION OF ARITHMETIC RESPONSE RATE AND ATTENDING BEHAVIOR IN A SEVENTH‐GRADE STUDENT1
Authors: Kirby Frank D. , Shields Frank
Published: March 2006

An adjusting fixed‐ratio schedule of praise and immediate correctness feedback produced increases in a seventh‐grade student's arithemic response rate. Percentage of time spent in attending behavior also increased collaterally. Removal of the treatment led to decreases in both arithmetic response rate and collateral attending behavior. Reinstatements of the procedure again produced increases in both types of behavior. It was suggested that the present procedure of directly modifying arithmetic response rate requires less time and effort than working indirectly through modifying attending behavior.
TIMEOUT FROM POSITIVE REINFORCEMENT FOLLOWING PERSISTENT, HIGH‐RATE BEHAVIOR IN RETARDATES
Authors: Pendergrass Virginia E.
Published: March 2006

Brief isolation from a group situation was found to suppress persistent, high‐rate misbehavior in two extremely withdrawn children, even though no positive reinforcement for other behaviors was systematically administered. Changes in a variety of behaviors, including looking, touching, speaking, responding, and other non‐punished misbehaviors, were observed when isolation timeout was administered contingent on only one misbehavior of each child.
THE ELIMINATION OF AUTISTIC SELF‐STIMULATORY BEHAVIOR BY OVERCORRECTION1
Authors: Foxx R. M. , Azrin N. H.
Published: March 2006

No method is in general usage and of demonstrated effectiveness in eliminating the self‐stimulatory behaviors of retardates and autistics. An Overcorrection rationale was used to develop such a method. The Overcorrection procedures consisted of a period of practice in the correct mode of the behavior contingent upon self‐stimulatory behavior. The procedures were applied in a behavioral day‐care program to three retarded children and one autistic child who exhibited object‐mouthing, hand‐mouthing, head‐weaving and hand‐clapping. For some behaviors, comparisons were made between the Overcorrection procedure and several alternative procedures, such as physical punishment by a slap, reinforcement for nonself‐stimulatory behavior, a distasteful solution painted on the hand of a hand‐mouther, and free reinforcement. The Overcorrection procedures eliminated the self‐stimulatory behaviors of all four children in tutorial sessions and during the entire school day and were more effective than the alternative procedures in eliminating self‐stimulation. The Overcorrection procedures appear to be rapid, enduring, and effective methods of eliminating self‐stimulatory behavior.
CONTROL OF AN OBSCENE “VERBAL TIC” THROUGH TIMEOUT IN AN ELEMENTARY SCHOOL CLASSROOM1
Authors: Lahey Benjamin B. , McNees M. Patrick , McNees Margaret C.
Published: March 2006

A classroom teacher modified the behavior of a 10‐yr‐old student who had a high rate of obscene vocalizations accompanied by facial twitches. In the first phase, the subject was instructed to repeat rapidly the most frequent obscene word in four daily 15‐min sessions. This procedure reduced the frequency of obscene vocalizations, but not to an acceptable level. Subsequently, the teacher was able effectively to control the target behavior using a timeout procedure.
BEHAVIORAL SELF‐CONTROL OF ON‐TASK BEHAVIOR IN AN ELEMENTARY CLASSROOM1
Authors: Glynn E. L. , Thomas J. D. , Shee Seok M.
Published: March 2006

Techniques of behavioral self‐control were employed in a class where a high level of on‐task behavior had been established with externally administered reinforcement procedures. The behavioral self‐control techniques maintained behavior at its ongoing high level both immediately following the externally administered reinforcement treatments and during follow‐up treatments after five and seven weeks. Variability in on‐task behavior was reduced during the behavioral self‐control phases of the study.
INDEPENDENT CONTROL OF A PRESCHOOL CHILD'S AGGRESSION AND PEER INTERACTION BY CONTINGENT TEACHER ATTENTION1
Authors: Pinkston Elsie M. , Reese Nancy M. , LeBlanc Judith M. , Baer Donald M.
Published: March 2006

This study demonstrated the existent role of contingent teacher attention in maintaining a preschool child's aggression to his peers, as well as an imposed use of contingent teacher attention to increase his low peer interaction. Aggression and peer interaction were analyzed independently as two baselines of multiple baseline design; each was subjected to at least one reversal. The multiple baseline design was used to examine three possibilities: (1) that the high rate of aggressive behavior was in itself impeding the emergence of peer interaction; (2) that contingent teacher attention could be used to maintain a reduced rate of aggressive behavior; and (3) that a similar use of teacher attention could maintain an increased rate of peer interaction. The technique of largely ignoring the subject's aggressive behavior and attending instead to whatever child he was attacking decreased his aggressive behavior to an acceptable rate. Two reversals of this technique displayed experimental control, each recovering the high baseline rate of aggression. After the aggressive behavior was decreased for the final time, teachers attended to the subject only when he was involved in social interaction with peers, and they thus increased his social interaction to a high rate. Later, they withdrew their attention for social interaction and reversed the effect and finally then recovered it.
REDUCING THE LATENCY OF A CHILD'S RESPONDING TO INSTRUCTIONS BY MEANS OF A TOKEN SYSTEM1
Authors: Fjellstedt Nancy , Sulzer‐Azároff Beth
Published: March 2006

The response latency of following directions by an 8‐yr‐old boy from a class for emotionally disturbed children was modified by the contingent application of a token system. To demonstrate reinforcer effectiveness, a multiple baseline approach was used. Measures were obtained for the time elapsed between the presentation of verbal directions and five performances: (1) entering the experimental room, (2) putting toys away, (3) beginning academic work, (4) putting toys away again, and (5) returning to the classroom and completing preparations for leaving school. These five measures were placed on the token system at three different times. The results demonstrated that four of the five performances were clearly affected by the token system as their response latency for following directions decreased substantially.
TOWARD THE CERTIFICATION OF BEHAVIOR THERAPISTS?1
Authors: Agras W. Stewart
Published: March 2006

The issue of certification of behavior therapists is considered. The existence of potentially measurable performance criteria for behavior therapists suggests that certification is possible. It is argued that steps toward certification will tend to separate experimenter and clinician, and foster separation of behavior modification and therapy from closely related fields of enquiry. Behavior modifiers should work within existing professional organizations to strengthen current licensing and certification procedures, rather than form their own certifying body.