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SELF‐RESTRAINT AS POSITIVE REINFORCEMENT FOR SELF‐INJURIOUS BEHAVIOR
Author(s) -
Smith Richard G.,
Lerman Dorothea C.,
Iwata Brian A.
Publication year - 1996
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.1996.29-99
Subject(s) - reinforcement , psychology , self destructive behavior , developmental psychology , clinical psychology , injury prevention , poison control , social psychology , medicine , medical emergency
Many individuals who engage in self‐injurious behavior (SIB) also exhibit self‐restraint. We compared rates of SIB exhibited by a 32‐year‐old woman diagnosed with profound retardation across conditions in which access to restraint was (a) continuously available, (b) presented as a consequence for SIB, or (c) unavailable. Rates of SIB increased when access to restraint was contingent upon SIB and decreased when restraint was unavailable, suggesting that self‐restraint functioned as positive reinforcement for SIB.