We observed 11 undergraduates in an experiment designed to simulate infant caregiving. In negative reinforcement conditions experienced by all participants, a targeted caregiving response (e.g., rocking a baby doll) produced escape from, and avoidance of, a recorded infant cry. Nine participants' caregiving was shown to be controlled by this…

Two experiments were conducted to identify the conditions likely to produce resurgence among adult human participants. The preparation was a simulated caregiving context, wherein a recorded infant cry sounded and was terminated contingent upon targeted caregiving responses. Results of Experiment 1 demonstrated resurgence with human participants in…

A demonstration of the effects of reinforcement requires comparison of response rates in the presence of a contingency with those in another condition that controls for the influence of extraneous variables. We describe several control conditions that have been used in evaluating the effects of positive and negative reinforcement. The…