Contriving establishing operations: Responses of individuals with developmental disabilities during a learning task

The field of applied behavior analysis has utilized the ability to capture and contrive establishing operations in treating aberrant behavior in individuals with developmental disabilities. However, research on the use of establishing operations in the teaching of appropriate behavior is not as systematic. This study examined the effects of establishing operations on the responses of three males with mild to moderate intellectual disability during an incremental repeated acquisition procedure. Individuals responded more frequently and accurately during periods of longer deprivation (1 day and 2–3 days) than during shorter periods (15 min and 2 h). These results have implications for conducting preference assessments, scheduling daily activities, maximizing responding and teaching new skills.