Date of Award:

5-2012

Document Type:

Thesis

Degree Name:

Master of Science (MS)

Department:

Special Education and Rehabilitation

Committee Chair(s)

Sarah E. Bloom

Committee

Sarah E. Bloom

Committee

Robert L. Morgan

Committee

Andrew L. Samaha

Abstract

The purpose of this investigation was to determine if negative reinforcers can be ranked from high- to low-quality using a progressive-ratio assessment. This area of research is important for individuals with disabilities: in behavioral treatments it may be important to use negative reinforcers of varying qualities to reduce or increase socially relevant behavior such as communicative responses.

This investigation was carried out by Ryan Knighton in the Department of Special Education and Rehabilitation at Utah State University under the supervision of Sarah E. Bloom in partial fulfillment of the requirements for the degree of Master of Science. This research was conducted with resources already in possession of the Severe Behavior Clinic and did not exceed $25.

Two adults with disabilities participated in this research. These individuals learned to communicate to remove stimuli (i.e., sound) that were perceived as aversive. One individual responded more to remove stimuli that were high-quality negative reinforcers and the other individual responded equally to remove stimuli that were highand low quality. This research demonstrated the use of progressive-ratio assessments to rank negative reinforcers of varying qualities and demonstrated the use of methods to identify preferred and nonpreferred sounds for individuals with limited communication skills.

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Comments

This work made publicly available electronically on September 20, 2012.

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