Energy conservation programs at Louisiana State University reduced energy use 23 percent. The programs involved computer controlled power management systems, adjustment of building temperatures and lighting levels to prescribed standards, consolidation of night classes, centralization of chilled water systems, and manual monitoring of heating and…

The rate of achievement and enjoyment of 12 learning disabled pupils (ages 8-12 years) in a token economy was demonstrated to be higher when they were permitted to select their own reinforcers than when the teacher selected the reinforcers. (MH)

Self-referred and court-referred clients were randomly assigned to one of three treatment groups, aversive counterconditioning, behavioral self-control training or a controlled drinking composite. All therapies were conducted by trained paraprofessionals and consisted of 10 weekly sessions. No significant differences among treatments were found.…

In a descriptive analysis of behavior management research with mentally retarded persons, data from 56 studies within a recent 5-year period is presented in four tables. (CL)

Videotapes from a behavior modification training program for five ward attendants in an institution for the mentally handicapped show these personnel tend to depend too much on verbal prompts and physical guidance. (JG)

This experiment examines extended learning over a 4-day period in infants exposed to responsive and unresponsive wooden mobiles. Frequency of kicks and attention to the mobile increased over the first three days and was found to vary with the introduction of a novel mobile on day four. (GO)

One-hundred and sixty families of retarded children were randomly assigned to four training conditions in behavior modification (telephone consultations, training groups, training groups plus home visits, and instructional manuals). (Author/CL)

Three children with reading difficulties increased their reading skill through a contingency program involving "happy face" charts and the opportunity to contribute to a class mural. (CL)

Seven techniques for measuring information processing in infants are proposed to aid in the early identification of mental retardation. The techniques are based on conditioning, attentional, and manual exploration paradigms and could be combined into an assessment battery more valid than current infant IQ tests in predicting later disability.…

Discusses how operant conditioning has not brought instructional designers any closer to using feedback effectively in computer assisted instruction they design, defines and describes types of feedback, presents guidelines for effective feedback use, and suggests use of templates to bring instructional design to a sophisticated level of…

Four developmentally disabled children (ages 3-5) identified as noncompliant received a standard set of adult requests under three conditions: no reinforcement, noncontingent reinforcement, and reinforcement contingent on compliance. Among results was that the contingent reinforcement procedure produced covariation in all subjects' compliance and…

Describes an inexpensive program using invertebrates as subjects in conditioning demonstrations and experiments. Provides a bibliography of reviews about invertebrate learning in addition to information on obtaining required apparatus and invertebrates.

Two adolescents with severe disabilities were successfully taught pictorial communication skills using an interrupted behavior sequence strategy. The independent variable involved insertion of a typical operant instructional trial for teaching communication skills into the midst of ongoing predictable sequences of behaviors, rather than at the…

An easy-to-implement method for demonstrating classical conditioning in an introductory psychology course is described. (RM)