Learning complex skills is driven by reinforcement, which facilitates both online within-session gains and retention of the acquired skills. Yet, in ecologically relevant situations, skills are often acquired when mapping between actions and rewarding outcomes is unknown to the learning agent, resulting in reinforcement schedules of a stochastic…

Research has shown that functional analysis results are beneficial for treatment selection because they identify reinforcers for severe behavior that can then be used to reinforce replacement behaviors either differentially or noncontingently. Theoretically then, if a reinforcer is identified in a functional analysis erroneously, a well researched…

The study evaluated a reinforcement theory of stereotyped behavior with six autistic students (ages 9-16). Three students evidenced decreases in stereotypy and increases in responding in the presence of usual reinforcers, while the other three students required external suppression of stereotypy before increases in responding were shown.…

Two experiments examined the reinforcing value of response contingent sensory events consisting of combinations of visual, auditory, and vibratory stimulation with 10 nonambulatory profoundly mentally retarded individuals. Results indicated that systematically varying a multimodal sensory event is an effective way to identify positive reinforcers…

Four nonverbal autistic boys (ages 11-16) were successfully taught sign language action-object phrases following an intervention composed of prompting, fading, stimulus rotation, and differential reinforcement. The skill generalized to new situations. (Author/DB)

The effects of three interventions (peer initiation, reinforcement, and prompting) delivered by nonhandicapped students (4th graders) on the social initiation behavior of untrained peers toward a student with severe handicaps were examined. Results indicated the prompt procedure produced the highest levels of positive social initiation from…

The study assessed transfer of visual training for myopia using two different training stimuli and a single subject A-B-C-A design with a male student volunteer. A procedure including stimulus fading and reinforcement (positive verbal feedback) was used to effectively improve performance on both behavioral acuity tests during the training phases…

A communication program for autistic children (three to six years old) which increased communication skills in the context of establishing reciprocal communication exchanges involving intensive modeling of verbal responses within joint activity routines and reinforcement based on fulfilling the intent of the child's communication. (Author/CL)

The study compared the effectiveness of two different reinforcement conditions to teach speech to severely handicapped nonverbal autistic children (N=4). Findings indicated that reinforcing speech attempts was more effective than reinforcing motor speech sounds in terms of both children's interest and behavior and of improvements in children's…

Purpose: The purpose of this paper is to explore the level of consideration given to unlearning during human resource development interventions and to identify the methods being used to reinforce training and development. Design/methodology/approach: A self-administered questionnaire was given to a convenience sample of employers in regional…

The study evaluated the effectiveness of an assertiveness training program with three young adult male stutterers. The program included instruction, modeling, behavior rehearsal, feedback, social reinforcement, and homework. Results indicated substantial increases during employment interviews in such target behaviors as responding to pejorative…

A 20-year-old institutionalized nonverbal male with Down's Syndrome was trained via total task chain training, verbal prompts, and self-reinforcements to acquire skills of a busperson at a community restaurant. The S acquired and performed skills at a situationally appropriate rate. (CL)

A training package consisting of instruction in role-play social behaviors, reinforcement of appropriate behaviors, and a correction procedure was used with 20 children (ages 7-13) with deafness and severe language disabilities. The training package was effective in increasing greeting, turn waiting, initiating interaction, and giving help; and…

While numerous parent-training programs have been developed over the years, few systematically address the unique difficulties of single-parent families. A 10-week training program. "Parenting Alone Successfully (PALS)," was designed to assist single parents encountering difficulties in the management of their children's behavior. This…

The study examined the effects of physical fitness training and reinforcement on the maladaptive behaviors of five institutionalized mentally retarded/emotionally disturbed adults. Results showed a dramatic decrease of target behavior during intervention phases and a clear increase during the baseline and maintenance phases. (Author/JDD)