A child who habitually sucked his thumb in the classroom was rewarded if the teacher or any classmate did not catch him thumbsucking for a specified length of time. Each time S was caught by a peer, the peer was rewarded. Thumbsucking decreased markedly after introduction of the reinforcement contingencies. The decrease was maintained as frequency of reinforcement was reduced. During a follow-up period, when there was no attempt at behavioral control, thumbsucking reverted to the baseline level.
References
1.
AxelrodS.HallR. V.MaxwellA.Use of peer attention to increase study behavior. Behavior Therapy, 1972, 3, 349–351.
2.
BaileyJ. S.TimbersG. D.PhillipsE. I.WolfM. M.Modification of articulation errors of pre-delinquents by their peers. Journal of Applied Behavior Analysis, 1971, 4, 265–281.
3.
BlackhamG. J.SilbermanA.Modification of child behavior. Belmont, Calif.: Wadsworth, 1971.
4.
CarlsonC. S.ArnoldC. R.BeckerW. C.MadsenC. H.The elimination of tantrum behavior in an elementary classroom. Behaviour Research and Therapy, 1968, 6, 117–119.
5.
PattersonG. R.BrodskyG.A behavior modification program for a boy with multiple problems. Journal of Child Psychology and Psychiatry, 1966, 7, 277–295.
6.
PattersonG. R.ShawD. A.EbnerM. J.Teachers, peers, and parents as agents of change in the classroom. In BensonF. A. (Ed.), Modifying deviant social behaviors in various classroom settings. Eugene, Ore.: Department of Special Education, Univer. of Oregon, 1969. Pp. 13–48.
7.
PhillipsD.Application of behavioral principles to classroom settings. In BeckerW. C. (Ed.), An empirical basis for change in education. Chicago: Science Research Assoc., 1971. Pp. 333–357.
8.
SkibaE. A.PettigrewL.AldenS. E.A behavioral approach to the control of thumbsucking in the classroom. Journal of Applied Behavior Analysis, 1971, 4, 121–125.
9.
SurrattP. R.UlrichR. E.HawkinsR. P.An elementary student as a behavioral engineer. Journal of Applied Behavior Analysis, 1969, 2, 85–92.
