Project Succeed is a program for helping failure- and dropout-oriented pupils to improve their school achievement. Attendance and assignment completion are the key behaviors for enhancing achievement. Behavior modification and communications procedures are used to bring about the desired changes. Treatment procedures include current assessment…

This selective bibliography contains references to 76 ERIC documents and journal articles on the subject of behavior modification in the preschool and elementary school classroom. A total of 36 entries were taken from "Research in Education" (RIE), 1969 through 1974, and 36 entries were taken from "Current Index to Journals in Education" (CIJE),…

Internal reinforcement control is defined as one's belief that his rewards or punishments are contingent upon his own behavior. This study tested two main hypotheses: (1) that inconsistency in the home environment interferes with the development of internal reinforcement control, and (2) that internal reinforcement control can be increased by…

An analysis of the concept of motivation in learning situations and of factors related to it is presented. Part I of the book focuses upon basic principles of motivation, which is defined as the extent to which stimuli effect the presence or absence of a given behavior. Other concepts discussed include competing behaviors, reinforcement, and…

This paper reports a short term intervention in the area of "need to achieve" among disadvantaged preschoolers. Changes in measured intelligence were also examined. The study hypothesized that children receiving need for achievement ("n"-Ach) training would score higher on intelligence tests and evidence more of an increase in…

Two research traditions in the study of learning and motivation are integrated for the study of adolescent behavior. One is concerned primarily with the normal functioning of adolescent society, the other with the design of reward structures to foster academic achievement. The literature covering the use of material incentives for motivating…

Presents current psychological and educational literature associated with the behavioral characteristics of the mentally retarded adolescent. Discusses empirical constructs including adaptive behavior, motivation, reinforcer effectiveness, locus of control, and social discrimination skills of the mentally retarded. Suggests practical strategies…

High, neutral, and low statements of success expectancy were paired with positive and negative success feedback statements in a reading comprehension experiment. Incongruent combinations such as high success expectancy--negative feedback produced higher comprehension than congruent combinations. Results were interpreted by arousal and attribution…

The primary core deficit in autism spectrum disorders is social development. While frequently acknowledged as a critical aspect of intervention for improved functioning, research on the specifics of social development and effective models of intervention is not commensurate with the acknowledged importance. We present a model of social competence…

A STUDY, IN PROGRESS, IS ATTEMPTING TO DETERMINE THE INTERACTION OF VARIOUS REWARD CONDITIONS AND VARIOUS TYPES OF PRESCHOOL EXPERIENCE WITH DISCRIMINATION LEARNING. THE SUBJECTS ARE 240 4- AND 5-YEAR-OLD CHILDREN WITH THREE TYPES OF PRESCHOOL EXPERIENCE--1 TO 3 MONTHS OF HEAD START, 10 TO 12 MONTHS OF HEAD START, AND NO ATTENDANCE IN A PRESCHOOL…

This paper describes a study which examined interactive relationships between a personality variable (need for approval) and a situational variable (incentive for achievement) as determinants of transgression in temptation situations. Hypotheses were formulated that need for approval would correlate differentially with transgression when…

Despite the support for the proposition that learning is enhanced by the reinforcement of correct responses, there remain learners who continue to fail when contingent reinforcement is administered, even though they may have the ability and be motivated to succeed. This condition, known as learned helplessness, presents a problem for instructional…

This paper is about myths in general and the "myth" of Democracy in the United States of America in particular. Myths have a number of definitions among which legendary stories containing some elements of fact but wholly untrue can be cited as the basis for the establishment of commonly accepted beliefs. Myths can be functional in the…

This study was designed to ascertain whether reading achievement and attitude toward reading of students in grades two, four, and six can be improved through implementation of a token system within regular reading programs. Two schools were assigned to the experimental and two to the control treatment, with an equal number of classrooms from the…

A study is reported in which the effects of 2 competitive treatments on mean classroom performance, interest and retention were examined with the use of a 10-day vocabulary-learning task. Sixty-six 5th grade classrooms were randomly assigned to one of 3 conditions: (1) control; (2) competition with reward; and (3) competition in a game setting.…