The effects of directed positive imagery on performance by trainable mentally handicapped (TMH) students on a numeral naming task were explored. Ss were 43 TMH students ages 7-21 (IQ 33-54) having adequate auditory and visual acuities, and understandable speech. Between pretest and posttest, in which all Ss were required to identify and name…

To examine the feasibility and effects of implementing relaxation training with a heterogeneous group of secondary school students in the classroom setting, and to determine the validity and reliability of using wrist temperature as a biofeedback method, 532 seventh grade students, divided into experimental and control groups, participated in a…

The study investigated the efficacy of training three behaviorally disordered elementary grade students to recruit reinforcement and assistance from teachers. The study also investigated the effect of systematically fading external experimenter reinforcement of students for prompting and praising teachers in the regular classroom. The three…

Describes a token system for a fifth grader, designed to increase her ability to complete assignments. Study was conducted in four phases, with favorable outcomes. (HMV)

This paper describes a study which compared the results of treating out-patient middle-income problem drinkers with: (1) a multi-component positive reinforcement procedure emphasizing moderation; or (2) traditional group encounter therapy emphasizing abstinence. Results suggested that behavioral treatment was more effective than traditional…

Condensed from "Phi Delta Kappan," Volume 50 (December 1968), 228-30.

Research has found that individuals present themselves in a self-enhancing fashion when audiences lack information that could contradict their claims. To examine reactions to evaluations and the potential interplay between the valence of the evaluation, the public versus private nature of the response, and the audience to whom a public response is…

Research on feedback acceptance in sensitivity groups has consistently found that subjects rate positive feedback more credible than negative, a phenomenon referred to as the "credibility gap." To assess subjective distortion versus actual differences in credibility as an alternative explanation for the different ratings given positive and…

In a study of behavior modification two Down's syndrome preschool children, the first a 5-year-old boy with autistic behavior patterns and the second a 4-year-old girl whose behavior problem was to reject other children, were examined. The first S was engaged in ball catching activities with a teacher with positive reinforcement (playing the S's…

THE NATURAL ABILITIES OF PEOPLE CAN BE STIFLED BY ENVIRONMENT, LEADING TO THE ATTITUDE THAT ONE HAS NO CONTROL OVER HIS DESTINY AND NEED MAKE NO LIFE PLANS. THEREFORE EDUCATIONAL COUNSELORS SHOULD PROVIDE OPPORTUNITIES FOR THE ADOLESCENT TO EXPRESS HIS ABILITIES IN A CONSTRUCTIVE MANNER. DISADVANTAGED CHILDREN FEEL THAT--STAYING OUT OF TROUBLE,…

This study was designed as a partial replication and extension of the research on interpersonal problem solving in preschool children by Shure and Spivack. Fifteen well-adjusted and 14 impulsive children from Head Start Centers were administered the Preschool Interpersonal Problem Solving test (PIPS) under either incentive or no incentive…

Two papers describe studies to decrease inappropriate social behaviors of severely retarded students. R. Spangler and others in "The Effect of a Time-Out Procedure on the Duration of Tantrum Behavior in a 13-Year-Old Severely Retarded Male S" report on a three phase study in which a combination of verbal instructions and a timeout procedure…

In October, 1967, the staff of the Work Opportunity Center (WOC) in Minneapolis, Minnesota, began issuing coupons to students for attendance and achievement in classes. Each coupon is worth 10 cents when used toward noon lunches at the WOC cafeteria, dry cleaning services at WOC cleaners, or labor or services charges at the WOC auto service…