Date of Award:

5-1982

Document Type:

Dissertation

Degree Name:

Doctor of Philosophy (PhD)

Department:

Psychology

Committee Chair(s)

Frank R. Ascione

Committee

Frank R. Ascione

Committee

Carl D. Cheney

Committee

J. Grayson Osborne

Committee

Richard B. Powers

Committee

Daniel P. Morgan

Abstract

This research investigated factors that influence the reinforcing or punishing effects of various social stimuli on choice behavior. Previous research has suggested that the extended effectiveness of social reinforcers in modifying behavior is inversely related to the frequency with which they have been administered under noncontingent conditions. The ways in which frequency and contingency may alter the effectiveness of social disapproval had never been previously investigated.

A series of studies was conducted with normal, primary grade children for the purposes of: a) determining the functional relation between verbal stimuli and the child's choice behavior as a consequence of the high frequency, noncontingent delivery of verbal stimuli; b) identifying the interfering effects of tangible consequences on the control of verbal stimuli; and c) investigating the possibility that the effectiveness of verbal stimuli in controlling children's choice behavior is determined by the child's specific conditioning history with verbal and tangible consequences.

Results indicated that previous interpretations of the boundaries of social stimulus effects on children's behavior have been too limited. Verbal approval does not necessarily function as a reinforcer ·when presented in conjunction with tangible consequences. The combined presentation of such stimuli apparently creates an ambiguous history with regard to the functionality of verbal stimuli. A history of verbal stimuli alone, without other stimuli, resulted in functional control by the verbal stimuli. Methodological issues (repeated sessions and contingent baselines) are discussed in an effort to account for the failure of frequency and contingency to alter the effectiveness of the social stimulus, once it was shown to control responding. It may be that the current methodology more closely represents the natural conditions in which social stimuli typically function to control behavior.

Download

Included in

Psychology Commons

Share

COinS

Copyright for this work is retained by the student. If you have any questions regarding the inclusion of this work in the Digital Commons, please email us at .