Decreasing fuel-oil consumption through feedback and social commendation.

Researchers mailed weekly fuel-use charts to 60 families. Half got charts plus a short note praising any drop in gallons used. The rest got charts only or no mail at all.

Oil meters were read before and after the eight-week winter test.

Families who got praise plus charts burned less oil than chart-only or no-mail families. Praise made the feedback stick.

The drop was big enough to matter on a heating bill.

Michael (1988) saw the same pattern with diabetics. Feedback plus a tiny cue card beat feedback alone for guessing blood-sugar levels.

Rutter et al. (1987) pushed the idea further. They taught workers with disabilities to ask bosses for feedback and praise. Self-grabbed praise kept job skills high, showing the oil-study trick works when people run it themselves.

Yamamoto et al. (2022) looks like a clash but isn’t. Their teens with autism learned social niceties with feedback only—no praise added. The key gap: the teens already wanted the skill; the families did not care about oil. When motivation is low, praise seals the deal.

You already give feedback. Add a quick compliment when the data move the right way and you get more change for almost zero cost. Try it next time you graph a client’s reduction in vocal stereotypy or increase in peer bids: one sentence of real praise can turn a flat line into a downward or upward trend.