Biomaterial Database

Self-reinforcement in mildly mentally retarded adults: effects of motivational orientation and instructional demand. 1991

H N Switzky, and H C Haywood

Department of Educational Psychology, Counseling, and Special Education, Northern Illinois University, DeKalb 60115.

The effects of external (environmental) and internal (cognitive) self-influences of self-regulatory behaviour were investigated in 60 mildly mentally retarded adults. External conditions were three demand conditions (stringent, variable, and lenient). The 'internal' variable was an individual differences one, motivational orientation: one-half of the subjects were relatively intrinsically motivated and the other half were relatively extrinsically motivated. Both external and internal self-influences affected performance on a motor/attention task. Subjects in the stringent-demand condition worked harder, set higher performance standards and arranged leaner schedules of self-reinforcement than did subjects in the lenient demand condition. Intrinsically motivated subjects worked harder, set higher performance standards, and arranged leaner schedules of self-reinforcement than did extrinsically motivated subjects over all demand conditions. Furthermore, intrinsically motivated subjects chose higher performance standards than had been demonstrated to them in the lenient-demand condition, and also arranged leaner schedules of self reinforcement over all demand conditions than had been demonstrated to them, compared to extrinsically motivated subjects. Internal self-system characteristics appear to interact reciprocally with external demand characteristics to reveal substantial individual differences in patterns of self-reward behaviour.

UI	MeSH Term	Description	Entries
D007100	Imitative Behavior	The mimicking of the behavior of one individual by another.	Behavior, Imitative,Behaviors, Imitative,Imitative Behaviors
D007380	Intermediate Care Facilities	Institutions which provide health-related care and services to individuals who do not require the degree of care which hospitals or skilled nursing facilities provide, but because of their physical or mental condition require care and services above the level of room and board.	Care Facilities, Intermediate,Care Facility, Intermediate,Facilities, Intermediate Care,Facility, Intermediate Care,Intermediate Care Facility
D007389	Internal-External Control	Personality construct referring to an individual's perception of the locus of events as determined internally by his or her own behavior versus fate, luck, or external forces. (ERIC Thesaurus, 1996).	Locus of Control,External-Internal Control,Sense of Control,Control Locus,Control, External-Internal,Controls, External-Internal,Controls, Internal-External,Internal-External Controls
D008297	Male		Males
D008607	Intellectual Disability	Subnormal intellectual functioning which originates during the developmental period. This has multiple potential etiologies, including genetic defects and perinatal insults. Intelligence quotient (IQ) scores are commonly used to determine whether an individual has an intellectual disability. IQ scores between 70 and 79 are in the borderline range. Scores below 67 are in the disabled range. (from Joynt, Clinical Neurology, 1992, Ch55, p28)	Disability, Intellectual,Idiocy,Mental Retardation,Retardation, Mental,Deficiency, Mental,Intellectual Development Disorder,Mental Deficiency,Mental Retardation, Psychosocial,Deficiencies, Mental,Development Disorder, Intellectual,Development Disorders, Intellectual,Disabilities, Intellectual,Disorder, Intellectual Development,Disorders, Intellectual Development,Intellectual Development Disorders,Intellectual Disabilities,Mental Deficiencies,Mental Retardations, Psychosocial,Psychosocial Mental Retardation,Psychosocial Mental Retardations,Retardation, Psychosocial Mental,Retardations, Psychosocial Mental
D009042	Motivation	Those factors which cause an organism to behave or act in either a goal-seeking or satisfying manner. They may be influenced by physiological drives or by external stimuli.	Incentives,Disincentives,Expectations,Disincentive,Expectation,Incentive,Motivations
D012054	Reinforcement, Psychology	The strengthening of a conditioned response.	Negative Reinforcement,Positive Reinforcement,Psychological Reinforcement,Reinforcement (Psychology),Negative Reinforcements,Positive Reinforcements,Psychological Reinforcements,Psychology Reinforcement,Psychology Reinforcements,Reinforcement, Negative,Reinforcement, Positive,Reinforcement, Psychological,Reinforcements (Psychology),Reinforcements, Negative,Reinforcements, Positive,Reinforcements, Psychological,Reinforcements, Psychology
D012055	Reinforcement Schedule	A schedule prescribing when the subject is to be reinforced or rewarded in terms of temporal interval in psychological experiments. The schedule may be continuous or intermittent.	Reinforcement Schedules,Schedule, Reinforcement,Schedules, Reinforcement
D004495	Education of Intellectually Disabled	The teaching or training of those individuals with subnormal intellectual functioning.	Education of Mentally Defective,Education of Mentally Retarded,Education, Mentally Retarded,Mentally Retarded Education,Disabled Education, Intellectually,Disabled Educations, Intellectually,Intellectually Disabled Education,Intellectually Disabled Educations,Mentally Defective Education
D005260	Female		Females