Rats obtained food-pellet reinforcers by nose poking a lighted key. Experiment 1 examined resistance to extinction following single-schedule training with different variable-interval schedules, ranging from a mean interval of 16 min to 0.25 min. That is, for each schedule, the rats received 20 consecutive daily baseline sessions and then a session…

This study was an attempt to measure the effects of praise and reinforcement on children in a computer learning setting. A sorting game was designed to simulate 2 interaction styles. One style, called high computer control, provided frequent praise and coaching. The other, called high child control, had narration and praise toggled off. A…

Two field experiments were conducted in the Business Information Technology Department of a major retail industry to analyze the impact of positive task performance reinforcers. The employees were divided into two broad groups--those performing complex tasks and those performing relatively simpler tasks. The first group was further divided into…

This article describes a new training curriculum for educators, youth workers, and mentors which draws from research and best practices in positive youth development and positive behavior support. Response Ability Pathways or RAP focuses on three practical interventions: connect to others for support, clarify challenging problems, and restore…

Oppositional defiant disorder is an individual diagnosis given commonly to children and adolescents who exhibit a pattern of noncompliant and defiant behaviors. Some children's temperament, behaviors, and interpersonal style merit this diagnosis. Other children, however, exhibit behaviors consistent with this diagnosis within the context of their…

This meta-analysis examines patterns of sex differences in teacher-initiated teacher-student interactions. While extensive research has examined factors that influence student evaluations of effective and ineffective teachers, this study examines whether teacher-initiated interactions with students, such as praising or blaming, vary as a function…

Positive Behavior Supports (PBS) experts were surveyed to examine their perceptions of the treatment acceptability of commonly used decelerative consequence-based behavioral procedures. Findings illuminate the paradigm shifts that have occurred over the course of the careers of PBS experts and the factors that have contributed to these personal…

Schools have widely used suspension and related punitive practices, in spite of their proven ineffectiveness. This article discusses the role of Aggression Replacement Training (ART) as part of a schoolwide positive behavior support initiative. Grounded in theory and research, ART focuses on the proactive teaching of acceptable behaviors to…

In the current study, nursing home staff were taught to administer functional analyses to determine the variables maintaining aggression by an elder with dementia. The results indicated that aggression was evoked during bathroom routines and that escape maintained aggression. Staff then reduced aggression to near-zero levels with noncontingent…

The purpose of the present study was to extend previous research on reinforcer assessment by comparing effectiveness of stimuli identified by two preference procedures on teaching figure coloring to three children with disabilities in Turkey; and to find out what special education teachers think about social validation of the two preference…

The potential of emotional interaction between human and computer has recently interested researchers in human-computer interaction. The instructional impact of this interaction in learning environments has not been established, however. This study examined the impact of emotion and gender of a pedagogical agent as a learning companion (PAL) on…

There is a body of evidence that has linked teachers' verbal feedback to pupils with pupil behaviour. In this study teacher verbal behaviour that was directed towards those pupils that the teachers had nominated as being especially difficult to teach was examined. A series of lessons was observed in a secondary school. The quality and quantity of…

This article discusses three focal areas in promoting positive youth development (PYD) in schools: positive people, positive places, and positive opportunities. Given school personnel workload and federal policies that emphasize academic achievement, it remains a goal to focus on holistic adolescent outcomes and school outcomes that increase both…

This study examines the effects of using response cost in combination with positive reinforcement procedures in helping two second grade students with attention deficit hyperactivity disorder maintain their attention in the classroom. This involved the loss of reinforcers/points contingent upon inappropriate behavior in the classroom, in addition…

This brief paper describes a Behavioral Intervention Program (BIP) in Georgia in 1995-1997 that provided services at the local level for 88 students with severe and challenging behaviors. Under the program, students with severe behaviors are identified at the local level and referred to the BIP through a request for service process. The local…