Differential Reinforcement Flashcards
Definition of differential reinforcement of alternative behaviour (DRA)
Procedure in which an undesirable behaviour is no longer reinforced (undergoes extinction) and a desirable alternative behaviour is reinforced
What happens during differential reinforcement
Undesirable behaviour will decrease, desirable behaviour will increase
Does the alternative behaviour in DRA need to be related to the undesirable one? E.g.
Not necessarily; may be arbitrary
e.g putting plastic brick into a bucket as an alternative to screaming
Two steps of using DRA
- select alternative behaviour
- select reinforcement
The alternative behaviour in DRA needs to…
- require equal or less effort than the problem beh
- already be in the learner’s repertoire
- be likely to be reinforced in the learner’s natural environment
The reinforcement in DRA needs to…
- be potent; same reinfrocer that maintains the problem beh, if possible
- can be delivered immediately and consistently, then switch from continuous -> intermittent schedules of reinforcement
Definition of differential reinforcement of incompatible behaviour (DRI)
Procedure in which an undesirable behaviour is extinguished, and a behaviour that is impossible to do at the same time as the undesirable behaviour is reinforced
Examples of incompatible behaviours
Disruptive classroom beh vs completing tasks
Arriving late to class vs being on time for class
Definition of functional communication training (FCT). AKA
AKA differential reinforcement of communication (DRC)
Subtype of DRA in which the alternative behaviour is a communication response
Definition of differential reinforcement of other behaviour (DRO)
Procedure in which an undesirable behaviour undergoes extinction, and a reinforcer is delivered after a period of time in which the behaviour does not occur
DRO also called..
Differential reinforcement of zero responding or differential reinforcement of the omission of behaviour
DRO has been applied to…
Fingernail biting
Thumb-sucking
Disruptive and self-injurious behaviours
Two variations of DRO
- Whole-interval DRO: reinforcer delivered if problem beh is absent during the entire interval
- Momentary DRO: reinforcer delivered if problem behaviour is absent at the end of the interval
DRO can also be based on… e.g.
Permanent-product data
e.g. student gets a sticker on homework that has no doodles on it
Five steps to using DRO
- Functional assessment to determine reinforcer of problem
- Choose reinforcement for DRO
- Choose length of initial DRO time interval (based on baseline data)
- Extinguish problem beh; reinforce omission intervals
- Increase interval length
What do you do if the problem behaviour occurs before the end of the interval in whole-interval DRO
Reset the time interval
Consideration for DRO
Extinction can lead to extinction-induced aggression, which is undesirable and we do not want to reinforce that
Using DRO in learners with limited beh repertoire can create a…
“Behaviour vacuum” which may end up being filled with the undesirable target behaviour
Definition of differential reinforcement of low rates of responding (DRL)
Procedure in which a lower rate of a behaviour is reinforced to decrease the rate of that behaviour
DRL is used when…
the goal is to reduce, not eliminate. the behaviour
DRL has been applied to…
Beh of which too much is not good
e.g. sleeping, eating too quickly
Three DRL variations
- Full-session DRL
- Space-responding DRL
- Interval DRL
What is full-session DRL
Reinforcer delivered if target beh occurs fewer than a certain number of times during a session
What is space-responding DRL
Reinforcer delivered if a certain amount of time has elapsed since the last target behaviour
Used to pace behaviour
