Background: Behavioural interventions conceptualise self-injurious behaviour (SIB) as developing from early repetitive behaviours through acquisition of homeostatic functions in regulating stimulation and subsequent shaping into SIB through socially mediated or automatic operant reinforcement. Despite high success rates, such interventions rarely…

This study examined how the amount of effort required to produce a reinforcer influenced subsequent preference for, and strength of, that reinforcer in 7 individuals with intellectual disabilities. Preference assessments identified four moderately preferred stimuli for each participant, and progressive-ratio (PR) analyses indexed reinforcer…

This article reviews evidence from basic and translational research with pigeons and humans suggesting that the persistence of operant behavior depends on the contingency between stimuli and reinforcers, and considers some implications for clinical interventions. (Contains 4 figures.)

Basic research with pigeons on behavioral momentum suggests that differential reinforcement of alternative behavior (DRA) can increase the resistance of target behavior to change. This finding suggests that clinical applications of DRA may inadvertently increase the persistence of target behavior even as it decreases its frequency. We conducted…

The purpose of this experiment was to establish discriminative control of responding by an antecedent stimulus using differential punishment because the results of past studies on this topic have been mixed. Three adults with mental retardation who exhibited stereotypy not maintained by social consequences (i.e., automatic reinforcement)…

The guide presents information for parents, advocates, residential counselors, or retarded persons on the use of drugs in behavior modification. Reasons for concern over the use of drugs are noted, and general principles regarding such factors as individual differences in metabolism and reaction, dosage level, and changes over time are discussed.…

A twelve-year-old profoundly retarded, self-abusive and assaultive child who did not feed himself was motivated to feed himself and modify undesirable responses within eight days. (Authors)

Two punishment procedures were compared to determine their effectiveness in reducing rates of noncompliance in a class of 11 educable mentally retarded elementary school students. (Author/DLS)

Three experiments involving four children (ages 3-7) with mental retardation found participants preferred unreliable reinforcements under certain conditions. Findings are discussed regarding the role of specific stimuli as conditioned reinforcers and how they influence preference for a response that produces reinforcement on a leaner schedule than…

Three experiments were conducted in a variety of settings to test the effectiveness of differential reinforcement of other behavior in reducing high rates of inappropriate behavior in 6 mildly and severely retarded children (8-14 years old). (Author/CL)

The present case study describes a toilet training program planned, developed, and implemented within a sheltered workshop. The client was a severely retarded woman for whom incontinence had been a life-long problem. The ease with which the program was carried out recommends its use with similar client problems. (Author)

Satiation, over-correction and differential reinforcement of other behavior resulted in the elimination of chronic clothes ripping by six institutionalized mentally retarded emotionally disturbed adolescents. (CL)