COMPARISON OF THE EFFECTIVENESS OF REINFORCERS WITH DELINQUENTS AND NONDELINQUENTS

• NCJ Number: 7281
• Author(s): R C ERICKSON
• Date Published: 1969
• Length: 78 pages
• Sale Source: UMI Dissertation Services
• Publication Type: Thesis/Dissertation
• Language: English
• Country: United States of America
• Note: UNPUBLISHED DISSERTATION

Annotation

EFFECTS ON PERFORMANCE LEVELS OF MATERIAL REINFORCERS, VERBAL PERSON REINFORCERS, VERBAL PERFORMANCE REINFORCERS, AND NO EXTERNAL REINFORCERS.

Abstract

ATTENTION WAS PAID TO SUCH FACTORS AS AGE, SOCIAL CLASS STATUS, AND INTELLECTUAL ABILITY. SUBJECTS PERFORMED A SERIES OF ADDITION PROBLEMS AND A TASK OF CUTTING AND GLUING PAPER SQUARES. IN GENERAL, DELINQUENTS AND NON-DELINQUENTS DID NOT DIFFER SIGNIFICANTLY IN THE NUMBER OF ADDITION PROBLEMS COMPLETED, BUT DELINQUENTS DID SIGNIFICANTLY MORE POORLY ON THE SQUARES TASK. RESULTS OF THE STUDY SUPPORT THE PROPOSITION THAT DELINQUENTS HAVE LEARNING DEFICIENCIES IN THE AREA OF MOTIVATION, AND SUGGEST THAT TASK ATTRACTIVENESS IS AN IMPORTANT VARIABLE WHICH MUST BE CONTROLLED IN MOTIVATIONAL STUDIES.