Nudge theory describes how indirect suggestions and positive reinforcement can influence decision-making. We used nudge theory to implement a traffic-light labeling and choice architecture (modifying product placement) intervention at Harvard University cafeterias, but found no significant change in sales. Survey and focus group data showed that…

Background: Peer mentoring can be a powerful complement to health instruction. Mentoring has been used to change health behaviors and promote sustainable lifestyle patterns in adults and, more recently, among adolescents. Purpose: This article reviews the use of peer mentoring to promote health practices and describes how this approach can be used…

A significant increase in correctly completed steps of the targeted behavior was noted for the independence-training group. (Author/DLS)

Presenting a five-step positive reinforcement model for teachers and prospective teachers wishing to achieve a greater degree of self-management, this article includes discussions: selecting a goal; recording the quantity and circumstances of behavior; changing setting events; establishing effective consequences; and focusing on environmental…

Describes the extinction of demanding behaviors of a nine-year-old boy by placing responsibility for behavioral reinforcement directly under his own control. The therapist assumed that the behavioral pattern of the paranoid personality is characterized by an overdependence upon environmental reinforcers and therefore used the self-management…

This review analyzes data-based studies dealing with self-management procedures (self-monitoring, self-evaluation, self-reinforcement, and self-instruction) used by individuals with mental retardation in public school settings. Although support is found for the positive effects of self-management, questions regarding efficient implementation of…

Disruptive children in an after-school remedial reading class were taught to match teachers' evaluations of their behavior in the context of a token reinforcement program. (Editor)

In this paper, self-control strategies are conceptualized as existing on two intersecting continuums of more or less individual control and increasing complexity depending on individual need. Behavioral self-control strategies for young children require external supports to assist children in learning the skills necessary to practice and implement…

This study examined the effects of an assessment-based intervention plan on the appropriate classroom behavior of a socially withdrawn, Hispanic, learning disabled, third grade student. The study focused on (1) the effects of peer mediation as part of a behavioral intervention package of empirically validated components, (2) the effects of…

This experiment involved training students in self-instruction (specifically, teaching them to verbally cue and instruct themselves through given assignments), as an alternative to the direct intervention method for increasing on-task behavior and decreasing disruptive behavior in the elementary school classroom. Assignment completion rather than…

The study examined the effectiveness of a behavior point system in reducing the frequency of three maladaptive social behaviors (verbal outbursts, interruptions, nonsensical talk) in a severely brain injured male (age 21). All target behaviors declined with introduction of the point system, though nonsensical talk was least responsive to…

One aspect of family-centered positive behavior support (PBS) that has not received great attention to date involves the indirect benefits on the lives of family members who have children with challenging behavior. For instance, reductions in a child's problem behaviors could enhance the lifestyle status of parents and other family members.…

Because they felt that students can be responsible for their own behavior, the staff of Jefferson Elementary School, serving 300 students in grades 1 through 4 in a small rural community, developed a program which promoted self-management. In September 1979, teachers participated in an assertive discipline workshop. A Positive Action Plan evolved,…