The purpose of this study was to evaluate the effectiveness of a simple contingency contracting intervention on the correct use of punctuation marks in freely produced texts by elementary school children with learning disabilities. This approach can be considered a promising strategy for facilitating the development of academic skills in…

The purpose of this study was to examine the use of a classwide positive peer reporting intervention known as "tootling" in conjunction with a group contingency procedure to reduce the number of disruptive behaviors in a third-grade inclusive classroom. Nineteen elementary students including four students with disabilities (i.e., specific learning…

Twenty-four learning disabled students (10 to 14 years old) assigned to three reward schedules (response contingent reward, 100 percent noncontingent reward, and 50 percent random noncontingent reward) were asked to replicate block designs and solve coding problems. No differences were found in errors, but Ss in noncontingent conditions…

Three experiments investigated the effects of self recording, tokens and contingent free time on learning disabled children's reading comprehension performance. Results of these three experiments supported recent findings that only minimal changes occur on comprehension performance when left as an untargeted dependent behavior. (Author)

The effects of a systematic study period, peer tutoring, and contractual consequences on the spelling performance of six junior high learning disabled students were investigated. Ss were scoring poorly or inconsistently on unit spelling tests. An intervention period of 2 to 4 weeks consisted of daily exposure to words through a peer tutor and…

The study implemented simple classroom procedures to increase the ontask behavior of eight second and third grade learning disabled students in an inner city school. Procedures used were modification of the environmental arrangement of the classroom (such as moving the learning centers closer to students' desks), changing the method of curriculum…

A contingency based lottery system was implemented to improve the classroom behavior of 18 learning disabled and educable mentally handicapped students, 13 to 16 years old. The lottery led to greater preparation for class and fewer incidents of talking without permission per student. (Author/CL)

Two intermediate elementary grade level learning disabled students deficient in reading skills participated in a study to explore the efficacy of utilizing a token reinforcement program combined with behavioral contracting to increase the acquisition rate of sight vocabulary. Word recognition behavioral data were collected by measuring the time…

An interdependent group-managed response-cost system mediated by free tokens was employed to decrease inappropriate verbalizations of two groups of elementary-level learning disabled children (N=9). Results indicated that this contingency system was a viable and effective method of decreasing inappropriate behavior. Peer pressure was credited for…

Group contingencies with different criteria resulted in high performance averages for 12 elementary-aged learning disabled students. Two of the group contingencies produced significantly more frequent positive social interaction among subjects than that observed during baseline. (CL)

A creative writing program using a token reinforcement approach for six 10- to 12-year-old students with learning and behavior problems resulted in increased output of written words, reduced spelling errors, and improved composition quality. (CL)

A contingency-based lottery system was implemented to improve the classroom behavior of 18 learning disabled and educable mentally handicapped students, aged 13 to 16 years. Results indicated substantial increases in times students remained in assigned areas, and numbers of students prepared for class; and marked reduction in nonauthorized…

Frequency of rule violations was tabulated for two mildly mentally retarded and two learning disabled males (ages 9-11). All four received social skills training, and two additionally received contingency management intervention. Post-intervention data on rule violations and teacher approval ratings for observed social skills yielded mixed…

The major purpose of this study was to describe the rule-governed and contingency-shaped behavior of learning-disabled, hyperactive, and nonselected elementary school children working on a computer-managed task. Hypotheses tested were (1) that the children would differ in the degree to which either instructions or external contingencies controlled…

Destructive behavior of 9-year-old with learning disabilities was evaluated in a functional analysis. The effects of extinction, negative reinforcement, and negative reinforcement combined with access to preferred activities were compared on behavior and task engagement. Engagement occurred most and destructive behavior occurred least when…