Sequential action makes up the bulk of human daily activity, and yet much remains unknown about how people learn such actions. In one motor learning paradigm, the serial reaction time (SRT) task, people are taught a consistent sequence of button presses by cueing them with the next target response. However, the SRT task only records keypress…

The use of extinction procedures or the discontinuation of reinforcement following a behavior targeted for reduction is often used to enhance the efficacy of behavioral interventions. Unfortunately, the application of extinction procedures is associated with several side effects that can produce potentially harmful and counterproductive outcomes.…

The effect of two types of verbal consequences, rule-following feedback and task performance feedback, on rule-induced insensitivity to programmed schedules of reinforcement were examined. Rule-following feedback could be either accurate or non-contingently positive. The task involved moving a sign through a grid using telegraph keys operating on…

Technology can extend human memory and improve performance, but bypassing human intelligence has its dangers. Cognitive apprenticeships that compress learning experiences, provide coaching, and allow trial and error can build complex problem-solving skills and develop expertise. (SK)

Eighty-four nine year old children, twelve in each of seven experimental groups, learned a two-choice successive discrimination problem. The parameters that were systematically manipulated included: (1) immediate versus delayed reinforcement; and (2) forced preresponse stimulus exposure versus stimulus exposure during the delay interval,…

This study indicates that a period of positive prior contact between a child subject and an adult experimenter may result in a relative decrease in performance for material reward dispensed by that adult experimenter. (Authors)

Although children given tangible reward performed better than children given intangible reward, neither type of reward had an effect that was significantly different from the level attained by a control group which received no explicit reward at all. (Authors)

Two experiments were designed to detect frustration phenomena hitherto only observed in subhuman animals, frustration being defined as the omission of the response item after a correct anticipation in a partial reinforcement schedule. (Authors)

The hypothesis that success influences task preferences was tested. Results supported the hypothesis: the probability of change in task preference was greatest under high success reinforcement ratio conditions. (Author)

AN EXTENSIVE REVIEW OF THE RELEVANT LITERATURE SINCE 1900 SEEMS TO INDICATE THAT, IN SOME WAY, THERE IS AN INTERACTION BETWEEN INTELLIGENCE, AGE, SOCIAL GROUP, AND THE EFFECTS OF PRAISE AND BLAME ON SCHOOL CHILDREN. INCONSISTENCIES IN EXPERIMENTAL FACTORS HAVE PRECLUDED ANY DEFINITIVE STATEMENTS REGARDING THE PROBLEM. AN INVESTIGATION OF THE…

Study data indicated that a combination of awareness and reinforcement was more effective in increasing the emission of target statements than either variable alone. (Author)

The study investigates the relative efficacy of self-monitored and externally imposed reinforcement in intrinsically motivated and extrinsically motivated children, grades two through five. Results show the importance of individual differences in children's dispositions to respond to incentive conditions. (JH)