EFFECTS OF REINFORCER QUALITY ON BEHAVIORAL MOMENTUM: COORDINATED APPLIED AND BASIC RESEARCH

The high-probability (high-p) instructional sequence has been an effective treatment for noncompliance. However, treatment failures have also been reported. We hypothesized that the efficacy of the high-p treatment may be improved by using higher quality reinforcers for compliance to high-p instructions. The resistance of compliance to change was tested by varying reinforcer quality in two applied studies and a basic laboratory experiment. Experiment 1 tested the hypothesis that an increase in reinforcer quality for high-p compliance will increase the effectiveness of the high-p treatment when it fails to increase compliance. Experiment 2 assessed the effects of reinforcer quality on resistance of compliance to change by presenting successive low-p requests following the high-p treatment. A basic laboratory study (Experiment 3) was conducted to further isolate the relation between reinforcer quality and behavioral momentum. Two different liquid reinforcers (sucrose and citric acid solutions) were presented in a two-component multiple variable-interval variable-interval schedule followed by a single extinction test session. Results of all three experiments showed a generally consistent relationship between reinforcer quality and behavioral momentum.     

INCREASING COMPLIANCE WITH MEDICAL PROCEDURES: APPLICATION OF THE HIGH-PROBABILITY REQUEST PROCEDURE TO A TODDLER

The effects of high-probability (high-p) requests on compliance with low-probability (low-p) responses have received increased attention from applied investigators. This study examined the effects of a high-p procedure on a toddler's compliance with medical procedures. Compliance to low-p requests occurred more frequently following compliance to high-p requests, suggesting that this procedure may be useful across different topographies of compliance.     

MOMENTUM AND EXTINCTION EFFECTS ON SELF-INJURIOUS ESCAPE BEHAVIOR AND NONCOMPLIANCE

Previous research on applications of behavioral momentum has indicated that a high-probability (high-p) instructional sequence, in which a series of instructions for which there is a high probability of compliance is presented immediately before an instruction for which there is a low probability of compliance, is an effective method for increasing compliance. It is not dear, however, whether the procedure is effective when individuals actively attempt to escape from the instructional situation. In this study, we examined the effects of the high-p sequence, when implemented first alone and then later with an extinction component, as treatment for the self-injurious escape behavior of 2 individuals. Results showed that when the instructional sequence was implemented without extinction, rates of self-injury increased and percentage of compliance decreased. In addition, the percentage of trials occasioning escape behavior increased for both high- and low-probability instructions. When an extinction component was added to the high-p sequence, rates of self-injury and the percentage of trials containing self-injury decreased, and compliance increased. These findings suggest that extinction may be an important component of treatment when escape behavior such as self-injury accompanies noncompliance in instructional contexts and competes with compliant behavior.     

VARIANT AND INVARIANT HIGH-PROBABILITY REQUESTS: INCREASING APPROPRIATE BEHAVIORS IN CHILDREN WITH EMOTIONAL-BEHAVIORAL DISORDERS

This study examined the effects of variant versus invariant high-probability (high-p) request sequences on the performance of requests to initiate a social bid by young children with emotional-behavioral disorders. In the initial phases of the investigation, a multiple baseline design showed that the delivery of invariant sequences (i.e., high-p requests delivered in the same sequence) produced initial increases in compliance to requests to initiate a social bid to a peer. However, increases were not maintained across the invariant condition. The delivery of variant high-p sequences produced increases in compliance to requests to initiate social bids that were maintained across the variant condition. In a follow-up condition, the number of requests within the pool of the variant and invariant high-p requests were controlled. Results of the follow-up condition replicated those found in the initial condition. Implications for applied use and future research are discussed.     

USING HIGH-PROBABILITY INSTRUCTION SEQUENCES WITH FADING TO INCREASE STUDENT COMPLIANCE DURING TRANSITIONS

Making efficient transitions from one instructional activity to another has been shown to increase academic learning time and therefore student achievement. Because compliance with teacher instructions is a prerequisite for efficient transitions, we sought to determine if high-probability (high-p) instruction sequences issued by a classroom teacher would increase student compliance and decrease latency to comply during transitions. Three children in a regular second-grade classroom participated. Each day at the beginning of morning calendar time, the teacher issued five instructions to the class as a group while compliance data were recorded for the 3 target students. Following baseline, a multielement design was used to examine the effects of the high-p instruction sequence. We then systematically faded the number of instructions included in the high-p sequence as a means of transferring stimulus control to low-probability instructions. The procedure was effective for 2 of the 3 participants, and the results were maintained at 2-and 3-week follow-up. The implications of these findings for group applications of the high-p instruction sequence in regular education classrooms are discussed.     

Using High-Probability Request Sequences to Increase Journal Writing

Written expression is a key aspect of academic success. Programs to enhance writing skills often rely on a feedback loop that consists of student production (i.e., get something on paper) and teacher feedback. Unfortunately, some students fail to produce enough written product so that the teacher can give constructive feedback. The purpose of this study was to examine two methods to increase the written word production of four students with difficulties in written expression. In the verbal prompt condition, students were given verbal prompts by their teacher to resume writing in their journals after the student stopped writing for approximately one min. In the high-p request condition, the teacher asked students to write a series of three words that typically occasioned compliance prior to asking the student to resume journal writing. Both interventions were assessed within the context of verbal praise and no verbal praise. Results suggested that both interventions increased the number of words written, particularly in the verbal praise condition. However, the high-p request sequence was more efficient and produced writing behavior that was more persistent across sessions. Results are discussed within the context of the theory of behavioral momentum.     

Applying Behavioral Momentum Theory to Increase Compliance

ABSTRACT

Behavioral momentum has been used as a theory to create effective interventions to increase compliance with requests, including student compliance in schools. These interventions are based on delivering a series of high probability compliance request-response-reinforcement (RRR) trials at high rates just prior to providing a request for a response that has often resulted in noncompliance. In this article, a real example of a substitute teacher leading her class through the Hokey-Pokey is used to describe and clarify interventions based on behavioral momentum. Analysis of specific procedural variables that may impact the effectiveness of interventions based on behavioral momentum theory is provided to assist practitioners with development and implementation of these proce dures within educational contexts. Recommendations for future research on this innovative technology areprovided.     

Explicit Instruction With or Without High-<Emphasis Type="Italic">p</Emphasis> Sequences: Which is More Effective to Teach Multiplication Facts?

Basic fact acquisition is an important component for developing higher-order math skills. However, getting students with a history of academic noncompliance to engage in activities related to skills acquisition can be difficult. Prior research demonstrates that engagement increases when nonpreferred activities are preceded by a series of brief activities with a high probability of completion. This technique, called high-p task/request sequences, was not fully explored within the context of skill acquisition. The purpose of this study was to examine the effects of adding high-p sequences to explicit instruction on the math fact acquisition of three elementary-age students in a learning support classroom. Results showed no differences in fact acquisition between explicit instruction and explicit instruction with an added high-p component. However, the high-p sessions took nearly twice as long to complete when compared to explicit instruction alone. Implications for instructional efficiency and limitations of the high-p procedures for acquisition tasks are discussed.     

Effects of three-step prompting on compliance with caregiver requests

Three-step prompting is a procedure commonly used in behavioral assessments and interventions; however, little research has evaluated the effects of this procedure on increasing children's compliance with caregiver requests. In this study, caregivers of children who demonstrated low levels of compliance were trained to use three-step prompting when presenting task requests to their children. Results indicated that training caregivers to implement this procedure decreased the frequency of caregiver-delivered prompts and increased compliance by the children.     

Behavioral momentum and stimulus fading in the acquisition and maintenance of child compliance in the home

The provision of a series of requests to which compliance is highly likely (high-probability requests) immediately antecedent to low-probability requests has been used to establish behavioral momentum of compliance. We evaluated a fading procedure for maintaining high levels of compliance obtained with high-probability requests. Fading involved a systematic reduction in the number of high-probability requests and an increase in the latency between the high- and low-probability requests. High levels of compliance for both "do" and "don't" requests were maintained for 16 weeks in a 5-year-old boy with developmental disabilities after the high-probability request sequence was faded. Similar maintenance was obtained for "do" requests in a 15-year-old girl with developmental disabilities. For this subject, however, the high-probability request sequence was ineffective with "don't" requests. When "don't" requests were phrased as "do" requests, the high-probability request sequence produced high levels of compliance to the low-probability request. High levels of compliance to these "do" requests were maintained for 16 weeks after the high-probability request sequence was faded.     

Acquiring Assistance from Others The Effect of Indirect Requests and Relational Intimacy on Verbal Compliance

This research examines the effectiveness of indirect requests in attaining assistance from intimate and nonintimate others. Prior research indicates that people are inclined to make requests using indirect forms. However, help-seeking research has neglected to consider request forms, and research on indirect requests has focused mainly on issues of interpretation. The results of this study indicate that the directness of a request increases request force and also interacts with relational intimacy to influence verbal compliance. Directness is more effective at eliciting verbal compliance at higher levels of intimacy. The experimental findings highlight issues concerning the definition of indirectness and also the utility of merging interpretation and compliance in language research.     

The Effects of Direct Questions on Preschool Children's Responses to Indirect Requests

Indirect instructional approaches, such as responsive interaction, are common in inclusive early childhood settings. Unfortunately, young children with disabilities do not always have the skills to take advantage of these learning opportunities. Teaching children with disabilities to be more responsive to developmentally appropriate indirect instructional strategies may help them take advantage of and benefit from available learning opportunities in inclusive settings. The purpose of this research was to examine the extent to which presenting a series of direct questions increased children's attempts to respond and correct responses to indirect requests. Increased attempts to respond and correct responses to indirect requests were evident for all participants with whom the intervention was implemented. Three of the participants continued to attempt to respond and responded correctly to indirect requests when intervention procedures were removed. The contributions of these findings to literature on language instruction with young children, implications of the findings for practitioners, methodological limitations, and suggestions for future research are discussed.     

IN PURSUIT OF GENERAL BEHAVIORAL RELATIONS

Efforts to develop behavioral technologies from advances in basic research assume that results from studies with nonhuman subjects can, in some instances, be applied to human behavior. The behavioral principles likely to be most useful for application are those that represent robust general behavioral relations. Basic and applied research on behavioral momentum suggests that there is a general behavioral relation between the persistence of behavior and the rate of reinforcement obtained in a given situation. Understanding the factors that affect behavioral persistence may have important implications for applied behavior analysts that justify studies aimed at establishing the generality and limits of the functional relation between reinforcement rate and behavioral persistence. Strategies for establishing the generality of behavioral relations are reviewed, followed by a brief summary of the evidence for the generality of behavioral momentum.     

Token reinforcement: Translational research and application

The present paper provides an integrative review of research on token reinforcement systems, organized in relation to basic behavioral functions and economic variables. This type of functional taxonomy provides a useful way to organize the literature, bringing order to a wide range of findings across species and settings, and revealing gaps in the research and areas especially ripe for analysis and application. Unlike standard translational research, based on a unidirectional model in which the analysis moves from laboratory to the applied realm, work in the area of token systems is best served by a bidirectional interplay between laboratory and applied research, where applied questions inspire research on basic mechanisms. When based on and contributing to an analysis, applied research on token economies can be on the leading edge of theoretical advances, helping set the scientific research agenda.     

Effects of response independent delivery of preferred items and the high‐probability instructional sequence on compliance

The use of the high‐probability (high‐p) instructional sequence to increase compliance, which includes issuing a series of instructions with which a participant is likely to comply immediately before issuing a low‐probability instruction, has received mixed support in the literature. Previous research has suggested that the delivery of response independent reinforcement may be as effective to increase compliance, at least for some types of instructions. In this study, we examined the effects of response independent reinforcement and the high‐p sequence on compliance with two types of instructions with two young children. Results show that neither procedure was effective for increasing compliance for either type of instruction; however, contingent access to a high preference item increased compliance. Results are discussed in terms of the conditions under which response independent delivery of high‐preference items and the high‐p instructional sequence might be effective to increase compliance.     

Compliant in a moment: a commentary on nevin

Nevin's scholarly and timely discussion attempts to maintain the precarious union of the experimentally derived theory of behavioral momentum with applications of the behavioral momentum construct to human subjects in applied settings. Nevin's discussion adds much-needed clarification to a process that at times has proven to be awkward for applied researchers. In this commentary, we will address three general questions: (a) Can the applications of behavioral momentum be derived from the theory as conceptualized by Nevin? (b) Could those applications have been developed had the theory not been formulated? (c) Does behavioral momentum theory add significantly to the compliance literature?     

COMPLIANCE TRAINING AND BEHAVIORAL COVARIATION IN THE TREATMENT OF MULTIPLE BEHAVIOR PROBLEMS

The present study investigated the use of a compliance-training procedure and its effect on untreated deviant child behaviors. Three children, each generally noncompliant to adult requests and with several additional problems, such as crying, aggression, and self-injurious behavior, were trained in the compliance procedure under a multiple-baséline design across therapists. Compliance was defined as the correct response to prespecified requests. Other classes of deviant child behavior were measured continuously throughout the study but not directly reinforced. The results of the study showed that (a) increases in compliance to requests were directly related to the contingencies employed; (b) decreases in untreated deviant behaviors occurred when compliance increased, even though no direct contingencies had been placed on these behaviors; and (c) the relationship between untreated deviant behaviors and compliance appeared to be maintained by a different set of events in each of the three children. The results are discussed in terms of behavioral covariation and generalization.     

Social facilitation

Video-recording procedures have been used in previous research as a motivational manipulation. The present study investigated the permanent recording of behavior as a manipulation of evaluation apprehension and its effects upon behavioral performance and upon autonomic arousal. Twenty-four subjects (12 males, 12 females) were randomly assigned to one of four conditions formed by completely crossing two levels of audience status (peer or authority) with two levels of behavioral record (non-permanent or permanent). Another 24 subjects were assigned to an external control group to the 2×2 design. Subjects' performance on a hidden-word task and their arousal level (as assessed by the Palmar Sweat Index) were measured. Analyses of variance results showed a significant performance (p<.05) and a significant arousal (p<.05) difference between the behavioral record conditions as predicted. The control group was also found to be significantly (p<.05) different from the experimental groups on the behavioral performance measure. The results were related to previous research findings and interpreted within the context of the evaluation apprehension notion presented within social facilitation research.The author would like to thank Angelia Mellors, Valerie K. Golish, and Judy Cohen for serving as experiments, and Susan L. Doman and Cheryl Primmer for scoring the PSI measures.     

Interpreting action as an answer

The aim of this paper is to introduce a logically grounded approach to action semantics and action interpretation. The main idea is to present the context of action as a set of questions demanding an action to answer. I introduce (a) a basic procedure of action interpretation, which is a reformulation of Hilpinen's semantical procedure for imperatives; (b) a procedure of what-interpretation; (c) a procedure of why-interpretation. The conditions of mutual reducibility of interpretation procedures are explicated. The paper concludes by putting forth the problem of interpretive bounds of moral responsibility.