Date of Award
5-1-2013
Degree Name
Master of Science
Department
Behavior Analysis and Therapy
First Advisor
Dixon, Mark
Abstract
While preference assessments are effective at identifying potential reinforcers, they consume large amounts of time and resources. Multiple variations have been developed in order to save time and money when conducting assessments such as briefer versions, pictorial formats, and verbal formats. The purpose of this study was to examine the efficacy of three different brief MSWO procedures at identifying effective reinforcers for children with developmental disabilities. The procedures of the current study examined a tangible brief MSWO procedure which provided access to the edibles, a pictorial brief MSWO procedure which provided access to the edibles, and a pictorial brief MSWO procedure which did not provide access to edibles. After hierarchies from all three assessments were identified, reinforcer assessments were conducted to determine the efficacy of highly preferred stimuli. Results indicated that all three formats were able to identify effective reinforcers, with similar hierarchies produced for three out of four participants.
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