ABA Term of the Month – “Positive Reinforcement”

By Francisco Prieto, MA, MS

Welcome to ABA Term of the Month! Here we will explore various terms used in Applied Behavioral Analysis practice, break down what they mean and some best practice strategies associated with either the behaviors or practices!

May 2019’s ABA Term: “Positive Reinforcement”

Positive Reinforcement is the delivery of a desirable or pleasant stimulus after an occurrence of a replacement behavior.

The purpose of positive reinforcement is to increase the occurrence of replacement behaviors by providing a stimulus desired by your student/client. In the beginning of this particular strategy, you begin by providing a frequent delivery of the desired stimulus to create an understanding that first the behavior must occur. As this strategy continues, increasing the amount of behavior occurrences before the desired stimulus is presented. Positive Reinforcement is the strategy most commonly used in ABA and it is ultimately used to encourage the engagement in the appropriate replacement behaviors.

Example of increasing the behavior to reinforcement contingency:

• Student receives 5 minute break after the completion of 4 questions of their work assignment. As the student masters this contingency, you move onto the completion of 6 questions before providing the 5 minute break.
  • This example applies to preferred tangibles or desired activities.

The above example may or may not apply with your client, so please discuss strategies with your supervisor for your assigned client before applying them in practice.