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  1. Home
  3. Conditioned Motivating Operations: Examples And Practical Considerations.
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  3. Conditioned Motivating Operations: Examples And Practical Considerations.

Related Experiment Video

A Fully Automated Rodent Conditioning Protocol for Sensorimotor Integration and Cognitive Control Experiments
09:43

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Published on: April 15, 2014

Conditioned Motivating Operations: Examples and Practical Considerations.

Carissa D Basile1, Tiffany Kodak2, Hannah M Effertz2

  • 1Department of Special Education and Applied Behavior Analysis, Gonzaga University, Spokane, Washington USA.

Behavior Analysis in Practice
|June 22, 2026

View abstract on PubMed

Summary
This summary is machine-generated.

Conditioned motivating operations (CMOs) are crucial in behavior analysis, requiring a learning history to influence behavior. This review offers practical guidance for clinicians on identifying and using CMOs in interventions.

Keywords:
Conditioned motivating operationsMotivating operationsReflexive motivating operationsSurrogate motivating operationsTransitive motivating operations

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Related Experiment Videos

A Fully Automated Rodent Conditioning Protocol for Sensorimotor Integration and Cognitive Control Experiments
09:43

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06:57

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Published on: February 4, 2016

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07:43

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Area of Science:

  • Behavior Analysis
  • Psychology
  • Clinical Practice

Background:

  • Motivating operations (MOs) alter consequence value, influencing behavior likelihood.
  • Unconditioned MOs do not require a learning history; Conditioned MOs (CMOs) do.
  • CMOs (reflexive, transitive, surrogate) are prevalent in clinical settings.

Purpose of the Study:

  • To review applied and basic research on CMOs since 2009.
  • To translate research findings into practical guidance for clinicians.
  • To integrate CMO research into clinical examples and practice guidelines.

Main Methods:

  • Literature review of applied and basic research on CMOs.
  • Synthesis of findings for clinical application.
  • Development of practical guidance and clinical examples.

Main Results:

  • Key findings from CMO research are translated into actionable clinical strategies.
  • Research on CMOs is integrated into behavior-analytic interventions.
  • Improved identification and application of CMOs in clinical practice.

Conclusions:

  • Accurate identification of motivating variables influencing behavior is enhanced.
  • Selection of function-based treatments is improved.
  • Precision in arranging antecedent conditions to strengthen alternative behaviors is increased.