Preferred Name
Morgan
Creative Commons License
This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-No Derivative Works 4.0 International License.
Date of Graduation
5-9-2024
Semester of Graduation
Spring
Degree Name
Master of Arts (MA)
Department
Department of Graduate Psychology
Second Advisor
Krisztina Varga Jakobsen
Third Advisor
Tracy Zinn
Abstract
Following Mace at al.’s (1988) seminal article, which first established the efficacy of the high-probability request sequence, further research on the high-p sequence has examined the factors which impact the effectiveness of the sequence. Wilder et al.’s (2015) research supports that the use of programmed reinforcement within high-p sequences is critically important for the procedure’s effectiveness. Some research has supported the efficacy of fading the number of high-p requests presented while maintaining responding, yet no research thus far has examined the use of fading reinforcement and its effects on maintenance of responding. The present study aimed to replicate the findings of Wilder et al. (2015) and extend the research to include a fading reinforcement phase. The study employed an ABAB reversal, and results suggested no difference in effectiveness between baseline and the continuous reinforcement condition, such that levels of compliance were low during the first two phases, and moderate during the second two phases. The participant’s learning history and the study’s time limits are discussed as possible reasons for the results which conflict with Wilder et al.’s (2015) previous findings.
