Effects of self‐monitoring and contingent reinforcement on on‐task behavior and academic productivity of learning‐disabled students: A social validation study

The purpose of this study was to investigate the social validity of behavior change produced by self‐monitoring and contingent reinforcement upon the on‐task behavior and academic productivity of six learning‐disabled students using a single‐case, multiple‐treatment design. Subjects self‐monitored their on‐task behavior while concurrent measures of academic productivity were collected. This study employed two phases of self‐monitoring and contingent reinforcement. Self‐monitoring was broken down into its component parts: self‐observation and self‐recording. Contingent reinforcement consisted of verbally reinforcing improvements and meeting goals set for both on‐task behavior and academic productivity. On‐task behavior and academic productivity improved under both interventions. Improvements were commensurate to levels of on‐task behavior and academic productivity exhibited by the subjects' nonhandicapped peers. Implications for research and practice are discussed.