Effects of blood alcohol concentrations on negative punishment: implications for decision making.

OBJECTIVE: A series of studies examined how various blood ethanol concentrations influenced the effectiveness of a negative punishment procedure in a risk-taking/decision-making task. Based on the animal punishment literature plus the impression that ethanol diminishes the effects of punishment and impairs decision making, it was predicted that individuals receiving alcohol would increase their risk- taking behavior despite the presence of a negative punishment stimulus (point loss) given on a variable schedule. METHODS: In Experiment 1, a within-subjects design with repeated measures was used where 10 male subjects played a modified computer-generated choice game under three levels of punishment certainty, three levels of punishment severity and four ranges of blood ethanol (0.00%, 0.01-0.049%, 0.050-0.099%, 0.10-0.15%) RESULTS: Results indicated significant decreases in risk taking as either punishment certainty or severity was increased. However, no significant effects were found for ethanol, or interactions of ethanol with punishment certainty or punishment severity. Two additional studies examining aspects of the experimental procedure produced similar results CONCLUSIONS: Overall, the results of these studies do not support the hypothesis that high concentrations of blood alcohol are sufficient in and of themselves to eliminate the suppression function of negative punishment contingencies leading to increased risk-taking behavior. The implications of these results for understanding blood alcohol effects are discussed.

Increasing designated driving with a program of prompts and incentives.

Designated driving (DD) is a potentially viable but underutilized component of efforts to reduce driving while intoxicated. A reversal design was used to evaluate the effects of prompts and incentives in a bar on the frequency of DD. The results showed an approximate doubling of the number of designated drivers during the two intervention periods.

Modifying hypnotizability with the Carleton Skills Training program: a partial replication and analysis of components.

3 standard components of the Carleton Skills Training (CST) program--information, modeling, and instructions--were administered in 1 of 3 sequences to 12 low-hypnotizable Ss. Hypnotizability measures were obtained after each component was given, as well as before and after training. Although objective scores showed significant gains from screening to testing, subjective scores did not, suggesting that while training encouraged behavioral compliance, few Ss learned to have the subjective experiences traditionally associated with hypnosis. Results from the component analysis were clear and consistent: whether instructions were presented first, second, or third in the training sequence, no significant changes occurred until this component was provided.

Modifying hypnotic suggestibility with the Carleton Skills Training program.

The Carleton Skills Training (CST) program was used to investigate (a) whether increases in hypnotic responsiveness obtained at Carleton University could be replicated at a different laboratory, (b) the influence of demand characteristics on suggestibility gains, and (c) whether initial gains are maintained over time. After two screening sessions, a replication and experimental group received the CST program, while a control group was allowed to practice hypnotic responding. All groups were then tested twice. Whereas the replication group was told that training and testing were part of the same experiment, the experimental group was told that training and testing were unrelated. Trained subjects returned after 4 months for a final session. Results indicated that (a) the CST program does increase hypnotic responsiveness, (b) suggestibility gains found in this study were relatively modest, (c) demand characteristics may influence suggestibility gains, and (d) suggestibility gains were not maintained at follow-up.

Accuracy of drinkers' recall of alcohol consumption in a field setting.

In a previous field study of how feedback on intoxication might affect an individual's decision to drive, it was found that a small sample of people were quite accurate in their recall of alcohol consumption. The accurate estimation of alcohol consumption clearly is of potential value in driving while intoxicated (DWI) prevention programs. However, because the finding of accurate recall is inconsistent with other reports in the literature, it was decided to replicate the testing with a larger sample. Randomly selected patrons leaving taverns and bars were asked to participate in a study, and individuals agreed to answer a consumption questionnaire and have their blood alcohol level (BAL) measured. Results indicated that subjects were very accurate in their estimates of consumption when self-reports were compared with Breathalyzer readings (r = .70, p less than .01). An additional trend of some interest was that men were apparently more accurate in their estimates of consumption than women even though they generally had higher BALs. The present study replicates and extends the earlier findings concerning the ability of college-age drinkers to estimate alcohol consumption in field settings accurately.

Tolerance of aversive stimuli in relation to life change.

This study investigated the relation between an individual's tendency to tolerate and/or report discomfort and the amount of life change experienced by that individual. The role of attention in this relation was also examined and manipulated through instruction. Eighty college freshman were selected and divided into three groups (high, medium, low) as a function of scores obtained on the College Schedule of Recent Experience (CSRE). Participants were asked to experience two known discomforting stimuli, the cold pressor and loud broad-band noise. Dependent measures included participant's tolerance time, report of discomfort, and amount of attention paid to each of the stimuli. Results indicated that "high"-life change groups tolerated the two discomforting stimuli significantly less than either the "low"- or the "medium"-life change groups. Neither discomfort ratings nor attention was significantly different across groups. Findings are discussed in relation to epidemiological studies of the life change and illness relation.

Effects of feedback on legally intoxicated drivers.

College-aged patrons leaving a drinking establishment were given feedback about their blood alcohol level (BAL): 24 were administered a Breathalyzer and were then read a statement on the consequences of driving with their BAL; 21 were shown a large chart and had to determine their own BAL from their weight and number of drinks consumed; and 21 were given no feedback. The two feedback groups were later collapsed. The subjects were also followed unobtrusively to determine whether they drove away from the premises. A total of 24 of the feedback subjects (47%) were legally intoxicated, but 83% of this group nonetheless drove after learning that they were legally intoxicated. In addition, when self-reports of consumption were compared with Breathalyzer BALs, a correlation of .82 was obtained.

Self-control revisited: Or why doesn't anyone actually read Skinner anymore?

Self-control continues to develop as a major source of explanatory concepts within cognitive behavior therapy. The recent history of self-control is reviewed, and three related areas of disagreement between radical behaviorists and cognitive behaviorists are discussed. The logical status of self-reinforcement, reciprocity, and private events is examined and evaluated. This review suggests that a radical behavioral approach continues to offer psychology the most effective program for the analysis of behavior.

A comparison of self-delivered consequences and desensitization in the treatment of fear of rats.

Exposed 52 rat phobic Ss to either group desensitization, self-delivered consequences imagined exposure, self-delivered consequences in-vivo exposure, or no treatment. Self-delivered consequences Ss conducted the treatment on their own and self-delivered preselected reinforcers contingent upon performance of the treatment exercises. All treatment groups improved significantly more than the no-treatment control group. The self-delivered consequences imagined exposure and the group desensitization treatments were equally effective. The self-delivered consequences in-vivo exposure treatment was significantly more effective than the self-delivered consequences imagined exposure and group desensitization treatments. The applicability of self-management techniques to the treatment of fear responses to specific stimuli and an extinction explanation of the effectiveness of systematic desensitization are discussed.

The use and evaluation of study guides with middle school students.

Two experiments were conducted with 24 fifth-grade students participating. In the first experiment, quiz performance with study guides was compared to quiz performance without study guides. The group whose students received study guides always scored higher than the group who did not receive study guides. Experiment II assessed the feasibility of students scoring their own study guides. The reliability of student scoring was found to be 93% over all study guides and there were no significant differences between "self-scored" and "teacher-scored" groups on the weekly quizzes.

Development and evaluation of treatment paradigms for the suppression of smoking behavior.

A multiple-baseline component-analysis design was employed to assess the effectiveness of three treatment programs for suppressing the cigarette smoking behavior of 24 subjects. Sartiation, cognitive control, and continger shock procedures were evaluated. The results demonstrated a consistent relationship between contingent shock and suppression of smoking. It was further indicated that subjects should be exposed to the number of sessions necessary to achieve total suppression in order to gain maximally from treatment and to avoid relapse. Neither the satiation component nor the cognitive control component was correlated with clear, permanent decrements in smoking frequencies. To date no other treatment program has demonstrated the dramatic effects ofethe contingent shock procedures used in the present study.

Effects of choice and immediacy of reinforcement on single response and switching behavior of children.

Children responded on a single operandum to produce marbles or candy within a two-component multiple schedule and then were allowed to choose which component was in effect. Experiment I examined the effects of exchanging marbles after sessions for subject-selected or experimenter-selected candy. Rate of response to the single operandum was not affected. However, when the subjects could switch components, they spent the majority of time and responded at somewhat higher rates in a component where marbles were exchangable for subject-selected candy. Experiment II examined the effects of eliminating the immediate marble consequence for responses. Rate of response to the single operandum was not affected. However, when subjects could switch components they spent more time in a component where immediate marble consequences were available for responses, than where no immediate marble consequences were available.

The use of programmed materials in the analysis of academic contingencies.

Programmed handwriting materials were used to examine the effects of different reinforcement contingencies on the academic performance of six public school kindergarten children. The children's responses to these materials provided an educationally relevant dependent variable for the analysis of factors that affected the accuracy of their responses and the attainment of criterion performances. Variations in the complexity of most academic materials, which confound the analysis of contingencies, were eliminated by the programmed sequence so that the differential effects of three reinforcement conditions were observed. The three conditions were: baseline without tokens, tokens contingent on correct writing responses, and noncontingent tokens. It was consistently observed that the children were more accurate when their correct responses produced tokens, and that noncontingent tokens reduced accuracy below baseline levels.

Analysis of the effects of sequential reinforcement contingencies on aspects of composition.

The procedures of manipulating consequent events were applied to the problems of teaching composition in a fifth-grade remedial classroom. Three objective aspects of composition, total number of words, number of different words, and number of new words, were selected for manipulation and reinforcement contingencies were sequentially applied to these components. The writing output of all subjects was greatly increased.

The effects of token procedures on a teacher's social contacts with her students.

The effects of a token system on a teacher's rate of social contacts with her students were investigated in a public school kindergarten. A group of six children were observed daily during a 20-min handwriting lesson. The children were divided into two groups (A and B) of three children each. Five conditions were imposed sequentially: (1) baseline without tokens, (2) contingent tokens for Group A, noncontingent tokens for Group B, (3) contingent tokens for Group B, noncontingent tokens for Group A, (4) reinstatement of condition 2, and (5) contingent tokens for both groups. It was consistently observed that the teacher's rate of social contact was higher with the children receiving the contingent tokens than with those who received noncontingent tokens.

An experimental analysis of verbal imitation in preschool children.

A model presented English words to three preschool children and reinforced accurate imitation of these words. The model also presented novel Russian words but the subjects' imitation of these words was never reinforced. As long as the subjects' imitation of English words was reinforced, their accuracy of imitating non-reinforced Russian words increased. When reinforcement was not contingent upon imitation of English words, accuracy of imitating both the English and the Russian words decreased. These results support and extend previous work on imitation.