Assessed the effects of reinforcement on the test scores of middle- and low-income children labeled learning and behaviorally disordered. Each child was tested under conditions of no reinforcement, immediate tangible reinforcement, and immediate social reinforcement. Results indicated that test scores can be significantly increased by…

Paradoxical strategies appear to provide a change in the dynamics of the teacher-child relationship and are thus a more systemic way of viewing problem behavior than time-out procedures. Three case studies are presented in which the paradoxical strategies have varying degrees of success. (Author/ABB)

Two reinforcement techniques were compared to determine their relative effectiveness in motivating improved science test performance in a fourth-grade classroom. The first technique, using a backup reinforcer, was effective in decreasing error rate of the class. The second simplified technique, without a backup reinforcer, was equally effective.…

Examined the effects of daily report cards designed to increase the completion and accuracy of in-class assignments in two youngsters described as having a behavioral history of difficulty in completing seat work. Use of the procedure produced immediate significant changes in rates of both completion and accuracy. (Author)

Children in the response-cost condition required more trials to reach a performance criterion and exhibited longer response times than children receiving reinforcement only. Response cost appeared to produce a negative effect that interfered with problem solving ability. (Author/RL)

Argues against the use of rewards for students. Discusses their origin in Skinner's behaviorism and their application in behavior modification in the classroom. Describes the problems with using rewards, as noted by Alfie Kohn and others, including the erosion of intrinsic motivation and the distortion of the focus of learning. Presents…

Data were collected on rate per minute of administering token reinforcement for one male and six female teachers enrolled in a behavior modification course. Comparison of reinforcement rates for observer-present versus absent indicated significantly higher rates of token delivery in the observer-present condition. Implications of this fact are…

Presents an annotated bibliography for children in kindergarten through grade six. The titles in this bibliography focus not on world problems but more on the child's everyday world, particularly in the home and community. They positively strengthen and reinforce children's own world views and illustrate active roles children can play. (BB)

Suggests an approach to health education that addresses the innate human drive for physical, mental, and spiritual well-being and to the inherent potential to learn behaviors that facilitate it. This approach involves parents and teachers, because children's behaviors are deeply influenced by them. (Author/BEF)

This article reviews the research on the benefits of applied behavior analysis (ABA) for the education of children with autism up to 5 or 6 years of age. The most common models for service delivery are presented (home- based and center- or school-based) and a few recent treatment innovations are discussed. (Contains references.) (CR)

This article describes the first session of behavioral parental consultation. The session is broken down into six parts: rapport building, structuring, information taking and diagnosis, explaining behavioral principles, reexamining behavior, and goal setting and selection of techniques. Steps to be taken after the first session are discussed…

This book is addressed to school-age care staff and suggests they rethink their attitudes about the behavior of the children under their care. Ideas were generated by workshop participants about ways to promote misbehavior, as a way of gaining insights into encouraging positive behaviors. The following six key elements of a school-age care program…

Article reports the results of a brief, computer-based assessment of reinforcer dimensions affecting choice and the application of information yielded by the assessment in informing interventions for classroom disruptions of two students. Results showed that choice (time allocated problems within each set) was differentially affected by the…

P. M. Lewinsohn has theorized that depression is related to the amount of positive reinforcement that an individual receives. Lewinsohn has supported this model in adults by showing that depression is correlated with an increase in unpleasant activities and a decrease in pleasant activities. This study extended Lewinsohn's model by developing…

This document describes research which examined the principles of reward and punishment applied to certain types of behavior portrayed by characters illustrated in 30 school readers. It was hypothesized that certain portrayed values, which have political connotations, are being transmitted to young people through the indirect method of…