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. 2012 Winter;45(4):709-19.
doi: 10.1901/jaba.2012.45-709.

Noncontingent reinforcement: a further examination of schedule effects during treatment

Michele D Wallace  1 , Brian A Iwata, Gregory P Hanley, Rachel H Thompson, Eileen M Roscoe
Affiliations

Noncontingent reinforcement: a further examination of schedule effects during treatment

Michele D Wallace et al. J Appl Behav Anal. 2012 Winter.

Abstract

We conducted 2 studies to determine whether dense and thin NCR schedules exert different influences over behavior and whether these influences change as dense schedules are thinned. In Study 1, we observed that thin as well as dense NCR schedules effectively decreased problem behavior exhibited by 3 individuals. In Study 2, we compared the effects of 2 NCR schedules in multielement designs, one with and the other without an extinction (EXT) component, while both schedules were thinned. Problem behavior remained low as the NCR schedule with EXT was thinned, but either (a) did not decrease initially or (b) subsequently increased as the NCR schedule without EXT was thinned. These results suggest that dense schedules of NCR decrease behavior by altering its motivating operation but that extinction occurs as the NCR schedule is thinned. The benefits and limitations of using dense or thin NCR schedules are discussed.

Keywords: aggression; extinction; functional analysis; motivating operation; noncontingent reinforcement; schedule effects; self-injurious behavior.

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Figures

Figure 1.
Figure 1.
Responses per minute of problem behavior during baseline and NCR sessions (Study 1) exhibited by Susan, Shelby, and Matt.
Figure 2.
Figure 2.
Responses per minute of problem behavior during baseline, NCR with extinction, and NCR without extinction (Study 2) for Shelby, Matt, and Susan.
See this image and copyright information in PMC

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