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Preference for and reinforcing efficacy of different types of attention in preschool children
Author(s) -
Harper Amy M.,
Dozier Claudia L.,
Briggs Adam M.,
Villegas Sara Diaz,
Ackerlund Brandt Julie A.,
Jowett Hirst Erica S.
Publication year - 2021
Publication title -
journal of applied behavior analysis
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 1.1
H-Index - 76
eISSN - 1938-3703
pISSN - 0021-8855
DOI - 10.1002/jaba.814
Subject(s) - reinforcement , psychology , preference , developmental psychology , social psychology , microeconomics , economics
It is unknown whether and to what extent common types of attention delivered in early childhood environments are preferred by and function as reinforcers for young children. We assessed children's preference for commonly delivered types of attention across 31 preschool‐aged participants (Experiment 1). Next, we conducted a reinforcer assessment (Experiment 2) and a progressive‐ratio assessment (Experiment 3) to (a) validate the results of the preference assessment and (b) determine the relative reinforcing efficacy of each type of attention. Results of Experiment 1 showed that most participants preferred conversation or physical interaction. Results of Experiment 2 validated the results of Experiment 1 showing preferred types of attention were more likely to function as reinforcers. Finally, although some types of attention functioned as reinforcers, results of Experiment 3 indicated these reinforcers only maintained responding under relatively dense schedules of reinforcement. Clinical implications and directions for future research are discussed.