THE STUDY INVESTIGATED SOME OF THE RELATIONSHIPS BETWEEN A CHILD'S VERBAL BEHAVIOR AND ENVIRONMENTAL EVENTS NECESSARY IN ACQUIRING LANGUAGE. TWO TRAINABLE RETARDATES (FROM A GROUP OF SIX, AGED 3-6 TO 5) WITH A FUNCTIONAL VOCABULARY OF NO MORE THAN TWO OR THREE WORDS WERE SEEN INDIVIDUALLY IN 20- TO 30-MINUTE SESSIONS TWICE A WEEK DURING A 4-MONTH…

Twenty mildly and moderately retarded boys (age 12 to 18 years) participated in a behavior modification program in which adaptive behavior was rewarded through tokens or privileges, while maladaptive behavior was controlled through the use of fines and removal from the situation. The preliminary results (based on four months of operation) showed…

Two experiments using paraprofessional personnel were conducted to determine effectiveness of a schoolwide token system on academic performance of trainable mentally retarded (TMR) children. The first experiment consisted of 42 TMRs in a 6-week summer program, in which reading, writing, and arithmetic were the behaviors studied. Pretest and…

Three studies were conducted to compare standard instruction with reinforcement programs for the trainable mentally retarded (TMR). In the first study, 24 TMRs were matched into two groups, with one group participating in a 6-week academic program having token reinforcement and the other group continuing in a standard teaching program. Statistical…

A 14-year-old student with moderate retardation rode a stationary bicycle, while rotation of the bicycle wheel operated one of three consequence conditions (television, flashing lights, or vibrator sound). Vibrator sound was the most potent reinforcing consequence. The activity led to the development of exercise behavior with a minimum amount of…

Designed for both parents and teachers, the handbook presents methods for educating the moderately and severely retarded child. Those methods include measuring progress, rewarding and punishing, ways of using rewards and punishers, ways of giving positive reinforcers and punishers, withholding reinforcers (extinction), letting the child reward…

Reported are five studies related to the effects of a token reinforcement system based upon principles of operant conditioning on academic performance of trainable mentally retarded (TMR) children, conducted over a 9-month period in an entire school for TMR students. Study 1 investigated the effects of a school-wide reinforcement program on…

Outlined are plans for a 9-month elementary school-wide program of token reinforcement for the trainable mentally retarded (TMR), which is said to allow for later additional components. Program focus is to be application of reinforcement to TMR academic work. All children will take the Metropolitan Readiness Test in pretest and posttest design for…

WORKING FROM A POPULATION OF SEVERELY AND PROFOUNDLY RETARDED RESIDENTIAL SCHOOL PATIENTS, AN ATTEMPT WAS MADE TO DEVISE AN EXPERIMENTAL PROGRAM FOR TRAINING SUBJECTS ON SELECTED WORKSHOP TASKS. TASK ANALYSIS WAS EMPLOYED TO DESCRIBE THE RESPECTIVE VOCATIONAL ENVIRONMENTS AND TO SPECIFY BEHAVIORAL REQUIREMENTS. TRAINING PROGRAMS BASED UPON THE…

A multiple baseline design for modifying the gross motor coordination of a 31-month-old boy suspected of suffering from congenital brain damage was conducted at the University of Kansas Infant Study Laboratory. The primary purpose of the study was to establish, by experimental procedures, the desired, but absent, behavior of walking, getting up,…