Reinforcer rate effects and behavioral momentum in individuals with developmental disabilities
UMass Chan Affiliations
Shriver CenterDocument Type
Journal ArticlePublication Date
2003-02-05Keywords
AdolescentAdult
Behavior Therapy
Child
Female
Humans
Male
Mental Disorders
Mental Retardation
*Reinforcement (Psychology)
Mental and Social Health
Neuroscience and Neurobiology
Psychiatry and Psychology
Metadata
Show full item recordAbstract
Behavioral momentum theory states that behavioral resistance to change is positively related to reinforcer rate and independent of response rate under most circumstances. We examined behavioral momentum in humans with developmental disabilities. The experimental procedures were implemented as a computer game. Different rates of positive reinforcement were programmed in two alternating components signaled by distinctive cues. For 10 participants who successfully completed testing, resistance to disruption by an alternate source of reinforcement was greater in the component with the higher reinforcer rate, although the magnitude of the difference varied among individuals. These results confirm reinforcer rate effects consistent with behavioral momentum under laboratory conditions and with the largest number of human beings with developmental disabilities studied to date.Source
Am J Ment Retard. 2003 Mar;108(2):134-43. Link to article on publisher's websiteDOI
10.1352/0895-8017(2003)108<0134:RREABM>2.0.CO;2Permanent Link to this Item
http://hdl.handle.net/20.500.14038/48936PubMed ID
12564945Related Resources
Link to Article in PubMedae974a485f413a2113503eed53cd6c53
10.1352/0895-8017(2003)108<0134:RREABM>2.0.CO;2