Effective training programs for individuals with disabilities often involve the use of positive reinforcement. Social interactions have many benefits over other forms of reinforcement, but more research is needed to determine how to identify social interactions that serve as reinforcers. In the first experiment, we evaluated the use of two…

Paper is based on a dissertation submitted to the University of Illinois in partial fulfillment of the requirements for the Ph.D. (WY)

The data are taken as an indication that the sweeping generalization that male homosexuals have a preference for objects of the same sex, which has its basis in a high expectancy for negative reinforcement from female figures, may be in need of qualification or revision. (Author)

Five adult males with profound retardation were assessed on a motor task during baseline, satiation, and deprivation conditions, with three classes of consequences: small food items, music, and social praise. Each stimulus class functioned as reinforcement, with different degrees of effectiveness during satiation versus deprivation conditions.…

The paper presents two experiments which test the "change in feelings of competence and self-determination" proposition of cognitive evaluation theory. This proposition states that when a person receives feedback about his performance on an intrinsically motivated activity this information will affect his sense of competence and…

This study indicates that social drive and valence theories of social reinforcement cannot adequately account for the results of three different measures of reinforcer efficacy (accuracy, rate, and persistence). Suggests that activation/arousal theories provide a better basis for behavior modification. (BH)

Given research findings that women have a strong tendency to describe the ideal man as androgynous, perhaps social interaction with an androgynous male could be seen as a social reward, whereas interaction with a masculine male may be less rewarding or aversive for women. A study was conducted to determine the functional properties of androgyny as…

Available from: Sage Publications, Inc., 275 South Beverly Drive, Beverly Hills, California 90212. The effect of a differential reinforcement procedure alone was compared with the use of verbal prompts plus differential reinforcement in reducing deviant social behavior of an institutionalized retarded male (28 years old). (IM)

The study investigated the manner in which locus of control (the degree to which an individual conceptualizes a relationship between his own behavior and the outcomes of this behavior) interacted with selected task and reinforcer variables in the performance of educable mentally handicapped boys. One hundred ninety-two adolescent males performed…

A group of seventh graders was challenged to decide between achievement and social approval while playing a two-choice probability game. Girls sacrificed approval for achievement more often than boys and did not reduce their efforts to achieve even when there was no opportunity for approval. (KH)

Black males with a mean age of 5 years 7 months were randomly assigned to one of eight cells of a 2 X 2 X 2 factorial design. Results indicate that when the experimenter was White and female, absence of rewards inhibited preference for delayed rewards. Results support situational specificity of delay preference. (Author/BEF)

Observations of parent-child interaction indicate that mother's positive feeling is correlated with her child's sociability, curiosity, attentiveness, manipulation, and offering information. (AJ)