Premium
FREE‐TIME AS A REINFORCER IN THE MANAGEMENT OF CLASSROOM BEHAVIOR
Author(s) -
Osborne J. Grayson
Publication year - 1969
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 - 10.1901/jaba.1969.2-113
Subject(s) - reinforcement , psychology , contingency management , behavior management , developmental psychology , cognitive psychology , social psychology , intervention (counseling) , psychiatry
Six subjects, comprising one class at a school for the deaf, were given reinforcement consisting of time free from school work for remaining seated in the classroom. As a result, the frequency of leaving their chairs was sharply reduced. A second procedure presented free‐time not contingent on remaining seated. Little change was seen in the already lowered response rate. An extension of the time required to be seated with corresponding reduction in the number of daily free‐time periods did not reduce the effectiveness of the procedure. A one‐day observation after six weeks indicated that the procedure was still effective. A one‐day contingency reversal, requiring subjects to leave their chairs at least once during each seated period in order to receive free‐time, substantially raised the frequency of out‐of‐seat responses.