Choice versus Reinforcement: Which Produces Better Effects in Decreasing Disruptive Behavior for Students with or at Risk of Emotional and Behavioral Disorder?

As the number of students with developmental disabilities increases in schools (U.S. Department of Education, 2017a), so does the need for effective interventions within school settings. Both antecedent and consequence interventions have been conducted within schools in attempts to decrease maladaptive behaviors and increase appropriate behaviors in relation to academics. Providing choices and reinforcement have demonstrated empirical evidence that both interventions were successful in creating positive behavior change in students with emotional and behavioral disorders (EBD). This study compared the use of an antecedent-based intervention (i.e., activity choice) versus a consequence-based intervention (e.g., differential reinforcement without extinction) to determine which of the behavior management strategies produced a more effective behavior change for three students with or at risk of EBD. A non-concurrent multiple baseline across participants with an alternating treatments design was used. The feasibility for teachers to implement the interventions in their classrooms was also evaluated. Results indicated that both interventions were effective in increasing on-task behavior for all participants, although activity choice demonstrated a slightly higher effect for two of the three participants. Both interventions resulted in high levels of treatment fidelity by the teachers