The use and misuse of extinction in classroom behavioral programs

The use of contingent ignoring to help reduce problems in the classroom has been advocated by behavioral psychologists, but in practice, teachers have found this procedure often is not successful. In fact, sometimes well-intentioned misuse of the ignoring technique exacerbates inappropriate behavior. This paper documents the difficulties found in using an ignoring procedure in the classroom. The potential mistakes (including not specifying target behavior; not taking a baseline; inadvertently, intermittently reinforcing the inappropriate behavior; reinforcing response bursts; reinforcing spontaneous recovery; and not reinforcing an appropriate alternative behavior) are described. For each potential problem, a remedy is prescribed. It is hoped that this paper will help bridge the gap between researchers and practitioners.     

The effect of noncontingent outcomes on extinction of the response-outcome association

The effect of noncontingent outcomes on an instrumental response-outcome (R-O) association was examined in four experiments using transfer tests. In each experiment, rats were first given instrumental discrimination training designed to establish different stimuli as signals (S+s) for different outcomes. Transfer responses were subjected to different treatments across the experiments and then tested with the S+s. In Experiments 1 and 2, two transfer responses were both initially trained with two contingent outcomes. Then, each transfer response was subjected either to the addition of noncontingent presentations of one of those outcomes (Experiment 1) or to the replacement of one of the contingent outcomes with noncontingent presentations of that outcome (Experiment 2). Transfer tests revealed no significant difference in the ability of an S+ to promote performance of a transfer response based on their shared association with either the contingent or the noncontingent outcome. These results suggest that a response reinforced with two outcomes remains equally well associated with both of those outcomes despite prolonged exposure to noncontingent presentations of one of those outcomes. In Experiments 3 and 4, the possibility that the noncontingent schedules of reinforcement used in Experiments 1 and 2 might be capable of establishing an association between a response and its noncontingent outcome was examined. Transfer responses were trained with one contingent outcome and a different noncontingent outcome. Performance of these transfer responses was augmented more by presentations of an S+ trained with the contingent outcome than with the noncontingent outcome. These results confirm previous reports that instrumental responses are sensitive to outcome contingencies in acquisition and that noncontingent outcome presentations do not weaken previously established R-O associations. Several explanations are considered for the failure of subsequent noncontingent presentations of an outcome to reduce the strength of its association with the instrumental response.     

The mediating role of mindfulness on stress and counseling self-efficacy

The authors explored how mindfulness influenced the relationship between perceived stress and counseling self-efficacy (CSE) among 187 counseling students. Results suggest mindfulness mediated the relationship, diminishing the negative impact of stress on CSE. Implications address how counselor educators can promote mindfulness as an avenue to enhance counselor development by increasing CSE and reducing stress in counseling students.     

The effect of left-behind phenomenon and physical neglect on behavioral problems of children

Objective: Left-behind children have a high incidence of behavioral problems in some Eastern countries, especially China. We sought to assess the combined effects of physical neglect, a major embodiment of the left-behind phenomenon, and the trauma of being left behind on subsequent behavioral problems.Method: 776 children (including 600 left-behind children) aged 12–16 years were chosen by cluster sampling in rural China. The Childhood Trauma Questionnaire-Short Form and the Conners Teacher Rating Scale were used to evaluate physical neglect and behavioral problems.Results: Left-behind children experienced more physical neglect (mean difference = 0.63; 95%CI 0.15–1.10; P = 0.01) and were more inattentive (mean difference=0.11; 95%CI 0.03–0.19; P = 0.009) than non-left-behind children. Physically neglected left-behind children had higher scores for conduct problems, inattention, and hyperactivity index than non-left-behind without physical neglect group (P < 0.05 for each). Among left-behind children, physical neglect group had significantly more conduct problems than those of controls (mean difference=0.14; 95%CI 0.05–0.23; P = 0.008). Physically neglected non-left-behind children had higher scores for conduct problems than those of left-behind children without physical neglect (mean difference=0.31; 95%CI 0.13–0.47; P = 0.003). Among physically neglected children, left-behind children had significantly higher scores for inattention than those of non-left-behind children (mean difference=0.13; 95%CI 0.04–0.22; P = 0.037).Conclusion: Left-behind children have more behavioral problems than non-left-behind children. Physical neglect may result in more severe conduct problems than those associated with staying behind, and staying behind may lead to inattention. Exposure to both may lead to more obvious behavioral problems. Therefore, we should accord more attention to physically neglected and left-behind children.     

The effect of methylphenidate on teachers' behavioral ratings in specific school situations

Fifty-seven students with attention deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) were treated with 5 and 15 mg of methylphenidate (MPH) twice a day, and ratings of their behavior were compared to placebo on the School Situations Questionnaire (SSQ). SSQ ratings improved with MPH treatment in all situations related to task performance (i.e., arriving at school, during individual seat work, small group activities, and lectures) but less so in non-task or unstructured situations. Many change scores were large enough to be clinically meaningful. Use of SSQ by school psychologists was discussed as a means of efficiently providing contextual information not available from ADHD dimensional rating scales. © 1998 John Wiley & Sons, Inc.     

The partial-reinforcement extinction effect in 4–5-day-old guinea pigs

The partial-reinforcement extinction effect was demonstrated at 4–5 days of age in the precocial guinea pig and was related to the appearance of this effect at 12–14 days in the altricial rat. We suggest that the maturity of the septohippocampal system at birth in the guinea pig, relative to the immaturity of this system in the rat, is a possible basis for this difference.     

The effect of intensity of intermittent punishment in acquisition on resistance to extinction of an approach response

In a transfer of persistence paradigm, intensity of shock employed as intermittent punishment during the acquisition of a food-motivated instrumental response was manipulated. While intensities that increased response time during acquisition did increase resistance to extinction, an intensity that had no punishing effect did not increase persistence. The results indicated that there is both a lower and an upper limit to the transfer of an approach response from s_p to S_f and that these limits should be determined by behavioral rather than intensity measures.     

The effect of number and minimum duration of post-response-prevention escapes on the resistance to extinction of an avoidance response

After one-way avoidance training, rats were exposed, during avoidance response prevention, to light (CS-only) presentations or to light-shock (CS-US) pairings. Subgroups were then given 1, 5, or 10 trials during which they could escape immediately (unrestricted) or after 5 sec (restricted) by means of the previously conditioned avoidance response from a simultaneous light-shock compound. All animals were then exposed to avoidance extinction. The number of unrestricted escapes increased responding for CS-only animals, but had no significant effect on the performance of CS-US animals. Nevertheless, resistance to extinction was considerably less for CS-only animals given 10 unrestricted escapes than for CS-US animals given one unrestricted escape. One restricted escape had no more effect than one unrestricted escape for either response-prevention group. However, 5 restricted escapes elevated responding for CS-only animals to the level of CS-US animals. Extinction responding for CS-US animals increased significantly only after 10 restricted escapes. Since CS-only animals showed no further increase, resistance to extinction once more was greater for CS-US animals. These results, together with the very brief unrestricted escape latencies of CS-only animals, support a greater role for Pavlovian extinction than for response competition in the facilitation of avoidance extinction by CS-only response prevention. The fact that 10 restricted escapes were required to elevate resistance to extinction for CS-US animals over that obtained with one unrestricted escape attests to the effectiveness of Pavlovian conditioning during avoidance response prevention in elevating CS aversiveness to a near ceiling level.     

Teaching and learning in digital environments: The resurgence of resource-based learning

The digital age has not simply changed the nature of resources and information; it has transformed several basic social and economic enterprises. Contemporary society—the settings where we live, work, and learn—has likewise changed dramatically. Both the amount of information and access to it have grown exponentially; a significant potential for using varied resources in numerous ways for instruction and learning has emerged. However, several issues related to the educational uses of varied resources (e.g., people, place, things, ideas) must be addressed if we are successfully to implement resource-based learning environments. In this paper, we trace the changing nature of resources and perspectives in their use for learning in the digital age, describe the overarching structures of resource-based learning environments, and identify key challenges to be addressed.     

Quantitative analysis of local-level resurgence

Resurgence is the recurrence of a previously reinforced and then extinguished behavior induced by the extinction of another more recently reinforced behavior. Resurgence provides insight into behavioral processes relevant to treatment relapse of a range of problem behaviors. Resurgence is typically studied across three phases: (1) reinforcement of a target response, (2) extinction of the target and concurrent reinforcement of an alternative response, and (3) extinction of the alternative response, resulting in the recurrence of target responding. Because each phase typically occurs successively and spans multiple sessions, extended time frames separate the training and resurgence of target responding. This study assessed resurgence more dynamically and throughout ongoing training in 6 pigeons. Baseline entailed 50-s trials of a free-operant psychophysical procedure, resembling Phases 1 and 2 of typical resurgence procedures. During the first 25 s, we reinforced target (left-key) responding but not alternative (right-key) responding; contingencies reversed during the second 25 s. Target and alternative responding followed the baseline reinforcement contingencies, with alternative responding replacing target responding across the 50 s. We observed resurgence of target responding during signaled and unsignaled probes that extended trial durations an additional 100 s in extinction. Furthermore, resurgence was greater and/or sooner when probes were signaled, suggesting an important role of discriminating transitions to extinction in resurgence. The data were well described by an extension of a stimulus-control model of discrimination that assumes resurgence is the result of generalization of obtained reinforcers across space and time. Therefore, the present findings introduce novel methods and quantitative analyses for assessing behavioral processes underlying resurgence.     

The resurgence of everyday experiences in school science learning activities

Cultural Studies of Science Education - Science education can be alienating for students, as it is apart from the mundane world with which they are familiar. Science education research has...     

Perspectives on a whole class mindfulness programme

This study sought to establish pupil and teacher views about a six-hour, whole-class mindfulness programme called Paws.b. Pupil post-intervention focus groups and teacher semi-structured interviews were used to ascertain what was interesting and useful about Paws.b, and how it could be developed. Audio recordings were transcribed and thematically analysed. Findings indicated the vast majority of pupils enjoyed Paws.b and it was deemed to be both accessible to pupils and feasible for teachers to deliver. A number of themes highlighted the impact of Paws.b upon pupils’ attention but also on their metacognition and social/emotional functioning, both within and beyond the classroom. Several potentially fruitful adaptations were also proposed. Findings are discussed relative to mindfulness and educational psychology literature, and future directions for research are outlined.     

The effect of phubbing,a behavioral problem,on academic procrastination: The mediating and moderating role of academic self-efficacy

Our preoccupation with smartphones affects our attitudes. Our changing attitudes also create disruptions in our daily routines. Smartphones, the most common technological device we use, have exposed individuals to phubbing behavior. The behavioral problem we define as phubbing causes disruptions and procrastination in our academic responsibilities. In this study, the relationship between phubbing frequency and academic procrastination tendencies of students and the effect of academic self-efficacy on this relationship were performed. For this purpose, in this study, the mediator and moderator role of academic self-efficacy in the relationship between academic procrastination and phubbing was examined. The study group of the research consisted of 518 students in late adolescence from Turkey. 323 (62.4%) of the participants were females and 195 (37.6%) of them were males (Mage = 19.4 years). They completed questionnaires measuring phubbing tendency, academic procrastination, academic self-efficacy, and personal information form. It was found that academic self-efficacy was a partial mediator in the relationship between academic procrastination and phubbing. In addition, academic self-efficacy also had a moderator effect. According to these results, it can be said that the acquisition of academic self-efficacy can reduce the negative effects of phubbing, which is a behavioral problem, and the tendency to academic procrastination.     

The effect of intensity and frequency of intermittent punishment in acquisition on resistance to extinction of an approach response in the rat

Rats trained to make an approach response with either nonreward or 150- or 175-V shock occurring on 2, 3, or 4 of 6 daily trials showed greater resistance to extinction than continuously reinforced-unpunished controls. Persistence during extinction was a function of both the type and the frequency of response-contingent event in acquisition. The significant interaction of these two factors was best interpreted as a result of the counterconditioning of the approach response (Amsel, 1972) to anticipatory conditions which varied in similarity to the frustrative nonreward of extinction.     

Partial reinforcement delayed extinction effect after regularly alternating reward training

When extinction is delayed very long, the superior resistance to extinction of the random schedule group relative to the alternating schedule group disappears (partial reinforcement delayed extinction effect, PRDE). Two experiments assessed the effects of reinforcement/nonreinforcement on Trial 1 on the PRDE. Following extended partial reinforcement acquisition training in a runway, rats received extinction training after a short (1-day) or long (23-day) retention interval. The schedules used in Experiment 1 were: a single-alternation (SA) schedule beginning each day with a rewarded (r) trial, for Group r-SA; an SA schedule beginning with a nonrewarded (n) trial, for Group n-SA; and a random (Rd) schedule, for Group Rd. The schedules and group names used in Experiment 2 were r-SA, Rd, and r-Rd. The results were that (1) rats given r-SA schedules yielded considerable resistance under delayed extinction, (2) those given Rd and r-Rd schedules showed a decline in resistance to extinction over a long retention interval, (3) those given the n-SA schedule showed relatively low resistance at both retention intervals, although retention deficit was not greater than in the case of the Rd schedule, and thus, (4) the PRDE was found in both experiments, although only weakly in Experiment 1. The results indicated that a regularly alternating reward pattern was a more important determinant than was type of reward on Trial 1 for the PRDE. The PRDE due to differential retention deficits among schedules is discussed on the basis of dual-process associative sequential mechanisms and cognitive rule-encoding mechanisms.     

The pattern of responding after extensive extinction

Extensive extinction greatly reduces response rate and increases the relative frequency of short interresponse times, but does not affect temporal learning or operant response rate. In each of two experiments, 24 rats were trained in a multiple cued interval procedure with three stimuli (noise, light, and clicker) at three intervals (30, 60, and 120 sec). In Experiment 1, after 50 sessions of extinction, response rate decreased from about 25 to 0.5 responses/min, but temporal discriminations were maintained and the initial response gradients in reacquisition had a pattern that corresponded with the original (rather than current) training conditions. In Experiment 2, these results were replicated and extended by examination of the effect of stimulus duration on response patterns during extinction, but its lack of effect on reacquisition. The similarity of the initial performance in reacquisition to the asymptotic performance in acquisition was presumably due to the similarity of context. The individual subject data may be downloaded from www.psychonomic.org/archive.     

Investigating the effect of school‐wide positive behavioral interventions and supports on student learning and behavioral problems in elementary and middle schools

Many states have scaled up School‐Wide Positive Behavioral Interventions and Supports (SW‐PBIS) with the goal of improving student behavior and academic outcomes. Although the effects of SW‐PBIS on behavioral and discipline outcomes have been promising, the findings for academic achievement have been inconclusive and are often limited to cross‐sectional data. This paper examined the longitudinal effect of SW‐PBIS on student behavioral problems and academic achievement growth in elementary and middle schools using propensity score matching. We found no statistically significant longitudinal effects of SW‐PBIS on either student behavior problems or academic achievement among elementary and middle schools in this quasi‐experimental design, even though the positive direction of longitudinal changes would be identified. The result raised questions about the efficacy of SW‐PBIS using a statewide achievement test when scaled up to a state level. Additional research is needed to better understand the impact of SW‐PBIS using rigorous scale‐up designs.