Thesis (Ph. D.)--Indiana University of Pennsylvania. / Includes bibliographical references.

Reinforcement menus were used to dhange response probabilities while maintaining control over two ''trainable," female, mentally retarded children. An empirically determined reinforcement menu representing high probability behaviors, five for S1 and four for S2, was used in a contingency management system. Instructions were given concerning the contingencies for obtaining reinforcement. Subjects were allowed the opportunity to engage in a high probability behavior only after successful completion of fixed units of reading or arithmetic tasks. After stable performance was established, four additional menus were prepared to approximate in increasing degree, low probability behavior. Measurements were taken of task time and response duration, the time spent traveling to and from the reinforcement area. Task time and response duration reached asymptotic values and remained at baseline values throughout the menu fading procedures. At the completion of the menu fading, subjects were doing units of work involving reading and mathematics in order to have the opportunity to do some reinforcing arithmetic.

Recombinative generalization is a generative outcome that involves responding to novel stimulus combinations, and it can be facilitated through an instructional approach called matrix training. A learner's history with constituent stimuli and the arrangement of combination stimuli within the instructional matrix may affect the likelihood of recombinative generalization. To investigate this further, the current project assessed recombinative generalization with novel combinations of abstract stimuli by programming specific training histories for undergraduate student participants. The matrix training conditions were: (a) trained constituents with overlap training, (b) untrained constituents with overlap training, (c) trained constituents with nonoverlap training, and (d) untrained constituents with nonoverlap training. We evaluated whether and the extent to which recombinative generalization occurred in each matrix training condition in comparison to a condition that included training the constituents and providing a word-order rule. Finally, we compared the training trials in experimental conditions to directly training all constituents and combinations. The results suggested both overlap conditions and the trained constituents with nonoverlap condition produced recombinative generalization, and the trained constituents with nonoverlap condition was the most efficient. These results could inform the training order and stimulus arrangements practitioners employ to program for recombinative generalization.

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Made available in DSpace on 2014-12-17T13:53:28Z (GMT). No. of bitstreams: 1 JoaoMO_DISSERT.pdf: 668942 bytes, checksum: f54d85b828cc53f2dae477cc05bc9551 (MD5) Previous issue date: 2010-09-10 / Entrepreneurs are individuals who can transform economic and social realities by promoting development, so it became important tools in generating externalities in regions where they operate. In Brazil, 59.9% of new ventures do not reach the fourth year of life, the mortality rate of new ventures is high. The causes of mortality are numerous, and within the behavioral aspects, one is the locus of control. This study determines the degree of association between internal locus of control and achieving business success of entrepreneurs in Rio Grande do Norte who participated in the workshop EMPRETEC. The approach that studies the behavior entrepreneurs agreed that there are psychological characteristics associated with a set of values, attitudes and needs that determine the behavior and induce the entrepreneur to achieve success. Among these features is the locus of control, a skill that individuals must identify in their actions, or lack of them, the causes of their successes and failures. The locus is external when the individual attributes to factors outside themselves as causes of their results, and is built in when you can identify the actions that led to success. We surveyed 223 entrepreneurs statewide who answered the questionnaire for assessing the scale of locus of control, selfassessment questionnaire of entrepreneurial characteristics of EMPRETEC and a questionnaire assessing the business success. 71.9% were identified as having success. Among the behavioral characteristics strongest in the group of entrepreneurs are setting goals and commitment. Was found for locus of control mean value of 7.35, confidence interval between 7.05 and 7.66. Showing that the locus of control group is predominantly internal. We also found a correlation between the locus and commitment, between setting goals and commitment; calculated risks and information search; search of information and commitment, and between commitment and independence and self confidence. Dependence was not identified among the set of features and business success, determining the absence of an ideal profile. However, logistic regression significant association was found indicating that the smaller the individual's locus of control increased the likelihood of it achieving business success / Os empreendedores s?o indiv?duos que podem transformar realidades econ?micas e sociais promovendo desenvolvimento, por isto tornaram-se pe?as importantes na gera??o de externalidades nas regi?es onde atuam. No Brasil 59,9% dos novos empreendimentos n?o chegam ao quarto ano de vida, esta taxa de mortalidade de novos empreendimentos ? alta. As causas a mortalidade s?o in?meras, e dentro dos aspectos comportamentais, uma delas ? o locus de controle. Este estudo determina o grau de associa??o entre o locus de controle interno e a obten??o de efetividade empresarial em empreendedores do Rio Grande do Norte que participaram do workshop EMPRETEC. A abordagem que estuda os comportamentos empreendedores preconiza que existem caracter?sticas psicol?gicas associadas a um conjunto de valores, atitudes e necessidades que determinam o comportamento e induzem o empreendedor ? obten??o de efetividade. Dentre estas caracter?sticas est? o locus de controle, capacidade que os indiv?duos t?m de identificar em suas a??es, ou na aus?ncia delas, as causas de seus sucessos e fracassos. O locus ? externo quando o indiv?duo atribui a fatores fora de si como causas de seus resultados, e ? interno quando consegue identificar dentro si as a??es que o conduziram ao sucesso. Foram pesquisados 223 empreendedores em todo estado que responderam o question?rio de avalia??o da escala do locus de controle, o question?rio de autoavalia??o das caracter?sticas empreendedoras do EMPRETEC e um question?rio de avalia??o da efetividade empresarial. 71,9% deles foram identificados como tendo efetividade. Dentre as caracter?sticas comportamentais mais fortes no grupo de empreendedores est?o o estabelecimento de metas e o comprometimento. Foi encontrado para o locus de controle o valor m?dio de 7,35, com intervalo de confian?a entre 7,05 e 7,66. Mostrando que o locus de controle do grupo ? predominantemente interno. Tamb?m foi encontrada correla??o entre o locus e comprometimento; entre estabelecimento de metas e comprometimento; correr riscos calculados e busca de informa??es; busca de informa??es e comprometimento; e entre o comprometimento e independ?ncia e autoconfian?a. N?o foi identificada depend?ncia entre o conjunto das caracter?sticas e a efetividade empresarial, determinando assim a n?o exist?ncia de um perfil ideal. No entanto, atrav?s de regress?o log?stica significante foi encontrada associa??o que indica que quanto menor o locus de controle do individuo maior a probabilidade dele alcan?ar a efetividade empresarial

This master thesis aims to explore and predict counterproductive work behavior (CWB) targeted to the employer within a framework of the Theory of Planned Behavior (TPB). The question is examined by quantitative questionnaire survey, assessing attitudes, subjective norms, perceived behavioral control, intention and actual behavior. The aim of this study is to verify the psychometric properties of a non-standardized questionnaire designed in the theoretical framework of the Theory of Planned Behavior, analysis of functionality of the proposed model and the proposal of its possible improvements to be given. Unrepresentative sample (n = 71 in the first phase of research, n = 41 in the second phase) consists of working adults with a work history of at least one year. The proposed model of the Theory of Planned Behavior is analyzed using the method of multiple linear regression analysis, which shows a statistically significant relationship between the dependent variable and some of the independent variables in the first phase of the research. In the second phase, no significant relationships between variables are found. Since the psychometric properties of the measuring instrument are not satisfactory, the item analysis using principal component analysis is conducted, which identifies some problematic...