Michele D. Wallace

Noncontingent Reinforcement: Behavioral Mechanisms Involved in Response Suppression and Treatment Efficacy

Noncontingent reinforcement (NCR) has been found to be an effective treatment for a variety of undesirable behaviors maintained by various types of reinforcement (e.g., social positive, social negative, and automatic). Throughout the last decade, over 100 research articles have been published on the topic of NCR as a treatment for maladaptive behavior. Research has involved questions ranging from treatment comparisons and efficacy to parametric analyses. Specifically, much of the research has questioned the specific behavioral mechanisms involved in the reduction of undesirable behavior. In addition, more recent studies have started to evaluate the efficacy of NCR with respect to both short- and long-term outcomes. This paper reviews these two prominent areas; highlighting particular research that is indicative of current views in the field of behavior analysis. In addition, suggestions for future research on NCR are provided.