In a two-phase experiment, four different token conditions were presented each session to retarded students in a TMR class. In Phase 1, students responded by matching-to-sample under the following conditions: (A) correct responses produced exchangeable tokens, (B) correct responses produced exchangeable tokens and incorrect responses lost tokens, (C) correct responses produced nonexchangeable tokens, and (D) no-tokens given. In Phase 2, the students chose the condition in which they worked. Results showed that responses cost decreased errors but did not influence correct responding, that each baseline condition produced less correct responding than the token conditions, and that Condition C produced more responding than D. Phase 2 results showed a preference for Condition A and no difference between Conditions B and C. Results were discussed in terms of baselines, response cost, and type of datum.

Achievement↗

PubMed1974

Reducing aggressive and self-injurious behavior of institutionalized retarded children through reinforcement of other behaviors.

Aggressive and self-injurious behaviors of four retarded children were reduced by combining various techniques with the differential reinforcement of other behaviors (DRO). In one study, aggressive responses of a severely retarded child were reduced when DRO was combined with a 30-sec timeout. In a second study, various aggressive classroom behaviors were reduced when the child was told "no" for an inappropriate response but earned puzzle pieces for periods of time when inappropriate responses resulted did not occur. Exchangeable tokens were given to a third subject for every 15 min in which aggressive responding did not occur, while each inappropriate response resulted in the loss of all tokens accrued. Responding was decreased to a level far below baseline. For a fourth child, self-injurious responses were followed by "no", and intervals of time in which no self-injurious responding occurred earned candy. The rate of this behavior reduced significantly. In each case, the DRO procedure combined with the other techniques proved to be manageable for the teacher and successful in reducing the inappropriate behavior.

Adolescent↗

PubMed1973

Decreasing classroom misbehavior through the use of DRL schedules of reinforcement.

In three studies, reinforcing low rates of responding reduced inappropriate behaviors. In the first study, the talking-out behavior of one TMR student was reduced when the teacher allowed 5 min of free time for a talk-out rate less than 0.06 per minute. In a second study, the talking-out behavior of an entire TMR class was reduced when reinforcement was delivered for a response rate less than 0.10 per minute. In a third study, successively decreasing DRL limits were used to reduce off-task verbalizations of an entire high school business class. In each case, the DRL procedure proved manageable for the teacher and successful in reducing misbehavior.

Journal Article↗

PubMedDate not supplied

A comparison of static and dynamic presentation procedures on discrimination learning of individuals with severe or moderate mental retardation.

A dynamic presentation of stimulus materials may be more effective than a static presentation. To test this hypothesis, we taught 16 individuals with moderate or severe mental retardation to identify two comparative discriminations (more, longer) by each of two different procedures. In the static, or traditional, presentation procedure the stimuli were positioned before a trial began and not manipulated by the experimenter during the trial. In the dynamic presentation procedure the individual watched the experimenter manipulate the relevant dimension of the stimuli during a series of trials. Both procedures were used in combination with a procedure that relied on fading and on many examples of both the correct and incorrect stimuli across trials. Data were presented in four phases: training, generalization, 1-week maintenance, and 1-month maintenance. No differences in percentage of unprompted correct responses were found between the two procedures in training, generalization, or any of the four maintenance tests. Discussion included possible reasons these results differed from those of prior studies as well as the need for further investigation of the dynamic presentation procedure used with more traditional teaching procedures that rely on extrastimulus prompts.

Adolescent↗

PubMedDate not supplied

The effects of initial interval size on the efficacy of DRO schedules of reinforcement.

The differential reinforcement of other behavior (DRO) is a behavior-reduction procedure that has been popular for several years. In classroom settings, it provides reinforcement when a student does not display inappropriate responding for a particular interval of time. Unfortunately, relatively little is known about how to use DRO effectively in applied settings. Most research has been conducted in laboratory settings; the purpose of the present study was to provide a replication of one of those studies. This study examined the effect of the size of the initial DRO interval on the disruptive behavior of students with moderate disabilities. In the first experiment, a group of six students was observed during baseline in two classes. Two different DRO values were then used. In one classroom, it was equal to the mean number of 10-second intervals between disruptions during baseline. In the other classroom, it was twice the mean number during baseline. In the final phase, behavior in both classrooms was put under the same DRO program. In the second experiment, the disruptive behavior of three students was studied in a different design in which both methods of determining the initial DRO value were compared. The results of both experiments showed that an initial DRO value equal to the mean number of intervals between responses in baseline was much more effective than a value twice that size in reducing disruptions.

Behavior Therapy↗

PubMedDate not supplied

A comparison of frequency, interval, and time-sampling methods of data collection.

Data representing high, medium, and low response rates in constant and nonconstant patterns were generated by electromechanical equipment to determine whether the same data collected by time-sampling, interval recording, and frequency recording would be represented similarly by each method. Results indicated: (1) that time-sampling provided an extremely inaccurate estimate of responding, and (2) that interval recording accurately represented responding of low and medium rates, but grossly underestimated high-rate responding.

Journal Article↗