The effects of reciprocal reactivity on positively and negatively valenced self-rated behaviors

Reactivity refers to behavioral changes that occur in a target behavior when some assessment procedure is used to record that behavior (Webb. Campbell. Schwanz and Sechrest, 1966). One example of these reactive effects is the change in response frequency that occurs when individuals are asked to self-record their own behavior. Several studies have demonstrated that self-recorded behaviors will increase or decrease in frequency (Ciminero. Nelson and Lipinski. 1977). Kanfer (1970) speculated that the direction of this reactive behavior change is related to the social norms or valence of the response. Thus, appropriate or positively valenced behaviors are likely to increase when they are self-monitored whereas inappropriate or negatively valenced behaviors would be more likely to decrease (e.g. Broden. Hall and Mitts. 1971).Cavior and Marabotto (1976) directly examined the effects of behavior valence on the direction of change due to self-monitoring. They used heterosexual dyads to compare the effects of various monitoring procedures on behaviors that were selected by subjects as having one of three valences: High social desirability, neutral social desirability, or low social desirability. They found that the valence of a target behavior was important in determining the direction of change: positive verbal behaviors increased whereas negative verbal behaviors decreased during the dyadic interactions.Reactive effects other than those found in self-monitoring have also received some attention. In an examination of the parameters of reactivity Ciminero. Graham and Jackson (1977) studied a phenomenon they labelled reciprocal reactivity. This term describes the behavior changes that occur in individuals who are asked to record the behavior of others. Ciminero et al. reported four single-case designs in which parameters of reciprocal reactivity were examined in female dyads. In the first three experiments, various motor responses (e.g. leg-kicking, head-nodding, or face-touching) decreased in subjects when they were asked to monitor those behaviors in their partners. The fourth experiment showed that self-monitoring resulted in greater decreases in response rate than did the reciprocal reactivity.As with self-monitoring, the valence of the target behavior may have an important influence on the direction of the behavior change due to reciprocal reactivity. Since the valence of behaviors targeted in the study by Cimineroet al. (1977) were not specifically evaluated the effects of valence could not be established. Therefore, the present study was designed to replicate the effects of reciprocal reactivity and to examine the influence of the valence of the target behaviors.     

TEACHING JANITORIAL SKILLS TO THE MENTALLY RETARDED: ACQUISITION,GENERALIZATION, AND MAINTENANCE

A task analysis of janitorial skills required for cleaning a restroom was performed. Six subtasks with a total of 181 component responses were identified. Subjects were required to progress through a series of four prompt levels ordered generally from more to less direct assistance for 20 of the most difficult component steps. Another series of four prompts, ordered from less to more direct assistance, was used to teach the other 161 responses. Subjects progressed to the next more intense prompt level contingent on a failure to respond appropriately with less assistance. A multiple baseline across subjects as well as the six subtasks was employed to evaluate the efficacy of the procedures. Six moderately retarded adolescents were trained in their public school. The results show rapid response acquisition, skill generalization to a second restroom, and maintenance of the newly learned behavior. The present research provides evidence of a model for analyzing and training vocational skills to the mentally retarded.     

The effect of a contraceptive theme on response to erotica

Undergraduate students (60 males, 60 females) viewed a sexually explicit movie in which a couple engaged in intercourse. Different themes were introduced by prefacing the film with information varying the filmed couple's apparent marital status (single, married) and contraceptive practices (no information, no contraception, contraception via the pill). After viewing the movie, subjects filled out a questionnaire assessing their own affective reactions plus their perceptions and evaluations of the couple. Male subjects reported the greatest positive affect when the film couple was described as single and using contraception, but they also perceived the stimulus couple as caring the least for one another when they were using contraceptives. In contrast, females perceived contraceptive use as positive evidence of mutual caring. These sex differences in reacting to contraceptive use were discussed in terms of the relatively greater tendency of males to separate love and sex than is true for females.Work on this experiment was supported by a research grant (SOC 74-15254) from the National Science Foundation. The authors wish to thank Elizabeth Rice Allgeier, William A. Fisher, and Richard Knox for their comments and suggestions.     

Immediate and sustaining effects of extrinsic rewards on specific exploratory behavior

The purpose of the present investigation was to examine the immediate and sustaining effects of monetary and social rewards on specific exploratory behavior. Specific exploratory behavior was conceived as a behavioral expression of intrinsic motivation and was measured by the number of additional requests for viewing blurred tachistoscopically presented slides of varying degrees of uncertainty. The results of the study showed that when monetary and social rewards were presented contingent on performance, exploration increased at the upper levels of uncertainty above a control group. It was also found that after removal, females who had previously received social rewards sustained a significantly higher level of exploration above the control group, while males who had previously received social rewards, as well as both males and females who had previously received monetary rewards, did not differ significantly from the control. The discrepany between these findings and previous findings is explained in terms of theoretical differences in defining and measuring intrinsic motivation.     

Contextes et variation trans-situationnelle des concepts

Les trois expériences présentées ont pour objectif de tester l'effet de divers contextes sur l'accès initial aux propriétés dominantes et secondaires de concepts de catégories naturelles. Les résultats indiquent l'existence d'un effet facilitateur du contexte, pour peu qu'il soit suffisamment contraignant du point de vue de la richesse sémantique, et ceci dans des temps qui garantissent l'implication de processus automatiques. Cette dernière interprétation est par ailleurs confirmée par l'absence constante d'inhibition. La dernière expérience infirme de plus l'hypothèse d'une facilitation intralexicale entre contexte et cible et confirme que c'est bien la construction sémantique élaborée par le sujet qui facilite l'accès à certaines propriétés spécifiquement pertinentes des concepts-amorces.     

The Role of Temporal Comparison, Social Comparison, and Direct Appraisal in the Elderly's Self-Evaluations of Health

Elderly persons (n= 91) were interviewed about self- perceptions of physical health and the contribution of social comparison, temporal comparison, and direct appraisal to these judgments. Consistent with previous studies, self-assessments tended to be mainly positive (67% reported their health as “good” or “excellent”), though tempered somewhat by the individual's objective physical condition (i.e., number of chronic diseases or disabilities). Independent of objective health, respondents' ratings were more negative if they mentioned thinking about past or anticipated health. Respondents were more concerned about their health if they thought about their past or anticipated health or mentioned comparing with a specific other person. Direct feedback had no effect on health ratings. Among those who reported social comparison, ratings were more positive when worse-off others were mentioned. Temporal comparisons may be associated with more negative ratings because the elderly's past health is likely to have been better and their future (anticipated) health can be expected to become worse. If using temporal and social comparison information is associated with more negative assessments then what accounts for the generally positive self-assessments? We propose that the elderly compare themselves with a cognitively constructed stereotypical standard of the frail elderly rather than with a specific other. Because few elderly actually “fit” this stereotype, most elderly feel they are doing well.     

Maternal depression: Effects on social cognition and behavior in parent-child interactions

The social interactions of depressed and nondepressed mothers and their preschool-age children were observed and mothers' perceptions of child behavior assessed. Depressed mothers, as a group, exhibited more negative behavior than controls; however, no differences were found for maternal positive behavior or contingent responding. There was a high degree of reciprocity between child and mother behavior in both groups and there was a trend for children of the depressed mothers to be more negative than the control children. The results with cognitive measures were consistent with depressive realism in perception of social interactions: Depressed mothers recalled more negative child behavior than nondepressed mothers; however, these perceptions paralleled the observed interactions. Overall, the results suggest that maternal depression is associated with negative parent-child interactions and more negative, albeit fairly accurate, perceptions of child behavior.This study is based on portions of a doctoral dissertation completed in the Department of Psychology at the University of Iowa. I appreciate the guidance of my advisors Michael O'Hara and Donald K. Routh and committee members Leonard Feldt, John Knutson, and Sue Rosner.