This study of 15 children with feeding disorders investigated identification of effective behavioral reinforcers by comparing outcomes and time requirements of two procedures in which presence in a particular area produced access to a preferred stimulus (i.e., zone discrimination). Both procedures were viable reinforcer identification tools, but…

Behavioral pharmacology is a maturing science that has made significant contributions to the study of drug effects on behavior, especially in the domain of drug-behavior interactions. Less appreciated is that research in behavioral pharmacology can have, and has had, implications for the experimental analysis of behavior, especially its…

The Good Behavior Game (GBG), a type of interdependent group-oriented contingency management procedure, was first introduced in 1969 and has been used with overwhelming success in classrooms and other settings. Since its inception, the "game" has utilized team competition and peer influence combined with reinforcement procedures. It has been found…

Recent evidence indicates that certain forms of memory, upon recall, may return to a labile state requiring the synthesis of new proteins in order to preserve or reconsolidate the original memory trace. While the initial consolidation of "instrumental memories" has been shown to require de novo protein synthesis in the nucleus accumbens, it is not…

The aim of this study was to test a method of increasing adherence to a coping method assignment in individuals interested in reducing stress. Eighty university students and 48 adult nonstudents were asked to write about their emotions for 15 minutes per day over 3 days. Participants were randomly assigned to experimental or control conditions,…

The paper presents a literature-based comparison of psychodynamic and behavioral approaches in the management of aggression in children. The section on psychodynamic approaches discusses the work of August Aichhorn, Fritz Redl, Nicholas Long, and William Glasser, in addition to discussions of life space interviewing and the importance of the…

Older Americans are suffering from both physical and social losses as they age. These losses are sometimes accompanied by the elderly person's entrance into a long-term care facility. Some researchers have suggested that such facilities fail to maintain the residents' independent behavior. Others contend that behavior is plastic and can be…

A home-based reinforcement program was instituted with three underachieving fourth graders who exhibited inappropriate behavior. Each day the children brought home a workbook assignment indicating percentage of correct responses and parents provided reinforcement for correct items and for improvement over time. Effectiveness on completion of daily…

In its attempts to apply behavior modification principles to teaching job-required behaviors to manpower trainees, the Mobilization for Youth-Experimental Manpower Laboratory (MFY-EML), has mounted a number of reinforcement-based Neighborhood Youth Corps training programs. The nature, magnitude and scheduling of reinforcers, the nature of the…

Available from: Sage Publications, Inc., 275 South Beverly Drive, Beverly Hills, California 90212. Presented are guidelines for the identification of target behaviors and suitable intervention techniques by therapists using behavior modification techniques. (IM)

After 20 second-grade lisping children were taught to articulate /s/ and /z/ correctly, each child invited three classmates to a session in which classmates could earn tokens contingent on the target child's correct articulation. Target children in groups using a response cost procedure produced significantly more correct responses. (Author/KM)

A systematic assessment procedure successfully identified stimulus preferences of seven profoundly and multiply handicapped individuals (ages 12-34). Preference rankings based on caregiver opinion did not consistently coincide with these results. Systematically assessed student preferences were a likely, though not certain, source of reinforcing…

Reviews the literature on reciprocity counseling. Evidence is presented for the usefulness of reciprocity counseling with young, well-educated, White clients with slight to moderate marital distress. Research into the effectiveness of several components of reciprocity counseling including contracting, problem solving training, and feedback is…

Compared the effects of two behavior management strategies. More rapid and slightly greater improvement was achieved under the praise-soft reprimand combination than under the praise-ignore combination. Improvement in behavior diminished less rapidly in the reversals following the praise-ignore phases. (Author)

Reciprocity counseling is a rapid reinforcement-based procedure developed for teaching marriage partners how to increase their individual happiness within their marital relationship. The major obstacle to implementing reciprocity techniques is convincing the partners to engage in the procedures, even if they feel these procedures appear contrived…