This cluster shows how to measure how fast people choose small rewards now instead of bigger rewards later. It gives easy ways to test this habit, called delay discounting, which is linked to smoking, overeating, and drug use. BCBAs can use these tools to spot clients at risk and track if their self-control plans are working. The papers also teach how to pick the right math model and use simple stats so the data stay clear and useful.
Common questions from BCBAs and RBTs
Delay discounting is how quickly someone prefers smaller immediate rewards over larger delayed ones. It links to impulsivity, substance use, and other health risk behaviors, and can be tracked over time to measure whether self-control interventions are working.
The shinybeez app is a free, no-code web tool that lets you run demand and discounting analyses and see results visually in one place. It is a practical starting point for most practitioners.
Always impute a y-intercept indifference point and use the free R or Excel tools from updated published guidance. Skipping the y-intercept step is a common error that distorts your AUC value.
Yes. Meta-analytic evidence shows CM for cocaine produces abstinence gains larger than the incentive dollar amounts alone would predict. The behavioral principles behind it are strong.
Yes. Research shows reinforcers previously paired with extinction can cue problem behavior to return. When designing maintenance or relapse prevention plans, choose reinforcers with no prior extinction history.