Preference for and reinforcing efficacy of different types of attention in preschool children

Area of Science:

• Child Psychology
• Behavior Analysis

Background:

• Understanding the effectiveness of social attention as a reinforcer is crucial for early childhood interventions.
• Commonly delivered attention types in preschools may vary in their reinforcing properties.

Purpose of the Study:

• To assess preschool children's preferences for different types of social attention.
• To determine if preferred attention types function as reinforcers and their relative efficacy.

Main Methods:

• Experiment 1: Preference assessment for various attention types among 31 preschool-aged children.
• Experiment 2: Reinforcer assessment to validate preference findings.
• Experiment 3: Progressive-ratio assessment to evaluate reinforcing efficacy.

Main Results:

• Children predominantly preferred conversational and physical attention.
• Preferred attention types were more likely to function as reinforcers.
• Attention as a reinforcer was effective only under dense schedules of reinforcement.

Conclusions:

• Conversational and physical attention are preferred and can serve as reinforcers for young children.
• The effectiveness of attention as a reinforcer is dependent on the schedule of delivery.
• Findings have implications for designing effective behavioral interventions in early childhood settings.