When discrete localizable stimuli are used during appetitive Pavlovian conditioning, "sign-tracking" and "goal-tracking" responses emerge. Sign-tracking is observed when conditioned responding is directed toward the CS, whereas goal-tracking manifests as responding directed to the site of expected reward delivery. These…

Following from the seminal work of Ferster, Lewinsohn, and Jacobson, as well as theory and research on the Matching Law, Lejuez, Hopko, LePage, Hopko, and McNeil developed a reinforcement-based depression treatment that was brief, uncomplicated, and tied closely to behavioral theory. They called this treatment the brief behavioral activation…

Resurgence refers to the recovery of previously extinguished responding when a recently reinforced response is extinguished. Although the topic of resurgence has received limited experimental attention, there recently have been an increased number of investigations involving the topic. This increased experimental attention also has been…

When behavior suggests that the value of a reinforcer depends inversely on the value of the events that precede or follow it, the behavior has been described as a "contrast" effect. Three major forms of contrast have been studied: "incentive contrast," in which a downward (or upward) shift in the magnitude of reinforcement produces a relatively…

Behavior therapy is by no means simplistic and mechanistic. It is possible to expand the horizons of behavior therapy to include such concepts as cognition and awareness without resorting to mentalistic or Freudian speculation. A new technique, the Idealized Self-Image (ISI) has been devised for the enhancement of self-esteem and learned…

Seventy mentally retarded students, successfully taught to conserve number and substance in the Piagetian sense, resisted attempts at extinction but were unable to generalize to other conservation tasks. (Author)

The covert modeling group was somewhat more improved than the cognitive restructuring group. Results suggest that cognitive restructuring may work by mechanisms of covert rehearsal and response-relevant covert positive reinforcement. (Author)

Data are presented from two experiments investigating whether covert responses can be modified. Imagery was chosen as a target because of its significant role in behavior therapy techniques. Resent evidence on the facilitative effects of imagery in paired-associate learning suggested to the experimenters the use of performance on a…

Briefly reviews the research literature concerning the overjustification effect. The effect describes the situation where positive reinforcement reduces one's intrinsic motivation for a behavior, thereby decreasing the probability that the behavior will be repeated. Notes the limitations of this explanation and recommends a broader representation…