Variations of systematic desensitization that include deep muscle relaxation (DMR) seem useful in remediating some behavior problems of children. Studied the effects of DMR and DMR with Covert Positive Reinforcement (CPR) in reducing maladaptive behavior of children, ages 6 to 12. (Author)

Those evaluating teacher behavior were highly influenced by verbal remarks that led them to expect either excellent or poor performance. (Editor)

Two punishment procedures were compared to determine their effectiveness in reducing rates of noncompliance in a class of 11 educable mentally retarded elementary school students. (Author/DLS)

Areas of controversy covered center around the nature of the disorder, the effects of drugs, and methodological problems. Alternative approaches offered focus on evaluation and remedial techniques. (DLS)

The results of a survey of 50 state departments of education to identify efforts to change the school calendar. Also includes the results of a research study to determine the effects of changing the school calendar on energy consumption in Phoenix (Arizona) schools. (Author/MLF)

The treatment appeared to be functionally related to significant reduction in the self-stimulatory behavior in the treatment setting. In addition, a functional relationship was indicated between treatment conditions in one setting and changes in behavior rates in two other nontreatment settings. (Author/DLS)

Three experiments, employing conditioned suppression in rats, examined the extent to which pretraining on one element of a compound stimulus blocked conditioning to the other element when some feature of the reinforcer was changed on compound trials. (Editor)

The research reported here was directed at evaluating whether or not the effectiveness of a Pavlovian unconditioned stimulus (US) in promoting associative learning is reduced if the US is shortly preceded by another occurrence of the same US. (Author)

Recent data indicate that the form of the conditioned response (CR) may often be substantially influenced by the characteristics of the conditioned stimulus (CS) as well as by those of the unconditioned stimulus (US). Here five experiments examine the influence of CS characteristics on the form of the Pavlovian CR anticipatory to a food US in…

Discusses the "chutzpah factor", the ability to transcend fear and enter into the unknown, in altered states of consciousness, especially in what are known as "adept" individuals. Examines the powerful effect a person's belief system has upon what he or she is able to do and endure. (Editor/RK)

The present investigation was designed to examine the relationship, if any, between extraversion and modes of reinforcement (reward or punishment) in verbal operant conditioning (VOC). (Author)

Repeated, isolated presentations of a stimulus typically reduce the subsequent ability of that cue to become an effective conditioned stimulus. This phenomenon is known as the latent inhibition effect. Four experiments investigate this effect. (Editor/RK)

A cybernetic model of factors involved in the fossilization of grammatical and lexical forms in learner grammars is offered. A distinction is made between affective and cognitive dimensions of a multidimensional channel of human communication; and the effect of expected and unexpected feedback on these two dimensions is discussed. (Author/POP)

Time-out is an effective child deceleration technique. The Time-Out Grid is a simple heuristic tool illustrating the fundamental feature of an effective time-out intervention and subsequently guides those involved in the problem analysis and program evaluation phases of consultation. Provides specific procedural recommendations for classroom…