Comparing skill acquisition under varying onsets of differential reinforcement: A preliminary analysis
Begin differential reinforcement on the very first trial to speed skill mastery for kids with autism.
01Research in Context
What this study did
The team taught new skills to three children with autism.
They used an alternating-treatments design.
Kids got the same task, but differential reinforcement started at different times: right away, after a few trials, or later.
Each child served as their own control.
What they found
Immediate differential reinforcement won in six of seven comparisons.
Kids reached mastery faster when the good stuff came right from trial one.
Waiting even a handful of trials slowed learning.
How this fits with other research
Cividini-Motta et al. (2013) also compared DR setups and found the fastest path varied by child.
Their focus was prompt dependency, not timing, so the papers complement rather than clash.
Wilder et al. (2020) paired DR with three-step guided compliance and saw gains only when the two were combined.
Together the studies say: use DR early, and pair it with other tactics when needed.
Why it matters
Start reinforcement the moment teaching begins.
No warm-up trials with free praise—save the high-value item for correct responses from the start.
This tiny shift can trim days or weeks off mastery.
Try it with any new program, from tacts to daily-living skills.
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02At a glance
03Original abstract
The purpose of the current study was to evaluate the effect of implementing differential reinforcement at different times relative to the onset of teaching new skills to learners with autism spectrum disorder. Specifically, we first determined the most efficient differential reinforcement arrangement for each participant. Using the most efficient arrangement, we evaluated if differential reinforcement from the immediate onset, early onset, or late onset is the most efficient for learners to acquire a new skill. Three children diagnosed with autism spectrum disorder who have a history of receiving intervention based on the principles of applied behavior analysis participated in this study. The immediate onset of differential reinforcement resulted in the most efficient instruction in 6 of 7 comparisons. The results are discussed in light of previous studies and suggestions for future research are provided.
Journal of Applied Behavior Analysis, 2020 · doi:10.1002/jaba.615