The effects of several different schedules of primary reinforcement were compared in a picture-naming task with retarded children. In Experiment I, number of correct responses and learning rate were higher under fixed-ratio schedules than under continuous reinforcement. In Experiment II, number of correct responses and learning rate tended to be greater under intermediate than under low or high fixed-ratio schedules. In Experiment III, number of correct responses was higher under interlocking schedules, in which the response requirement increased with time following the previous reinforcement, than under comparable fixed-ratio schedules. Learning rates were generally low and, perhaps because of this, not very different under the two types of schedules in this experiment. Accuracy (i.e., proportion of trials on which correct responses occurred) was typically high and insensitive to variations in schedule and schedule parameter throughout each experiment DESCRIPTORS: reinforcement schedules, continuous reinforcement, fixed-ratio schedule, interlocking schedule, retarded children, picture naming One decision that must be made in devising procedures for training the mentally retarded concerns the schedule for reinforcer delivery, yet to date there is little applied research on which to base this decision.Several studies have described the effects of various schedules of reinforcement on the leverpressing behavior of normal children and retarded adults and children (e.g., Ellis, Barnett,
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