Analysis and Instruction for Common Confusions of Basic Contingencies


	The natural contingencies may be involved in a more basic way in general when students simply fail to discriminate a difference between penalty and punishment by prevention—the difference between the reinforcer being in possession prior to the response and one that would have come if the response did not occur. This is a subtle discrimination that most students would not naturally see. Let’s discuss.
	We don’t think the natural competing contingency exists because it is a training problem and not a PM problem.

	THIS IS STILL A TOUGH ONE. MALOTT SAID THE INEFFECTIVE NATURAL CONTINGENCY FOR TRAINING PROBLEMS IS MORE LIKE A LACK OF RESPONSE OR BASELINE DESCRIPTION. I STILL THINK THE INEFFECTIVE NATURAL CONTINGENCY HAS RELAVENCE, BUT IT’S CONCEPTUAL TRAINING, SO IT’S THE SD (THAT’S INEFFECTIVE) THAT’S TOO INSIGNIFICANT. IN OTHER WORDS, THE DISTINCTION BETWEEN THE REINFORCER IN POSSESION DURING THE BEFORE CONDTION VS NOT IS TOO SMALL A DIFFERENCE TO NATURALLY EVOKE A RECOGNITION OR OBSERVING OR REFLECTING RESPONSE…DOES THIS MAKE SENCE? SO I GUESS WE REVISE SOMEHOW BECAUSE IF THE BEHAVIOR YOU WRITE UP HERE JUST OCCURRED WE’D BE FINE, BUT THEY DON’T, BUT AGAIN, IF THEY DID THE OUTCOME WOULDN’T BE A SMALL PROBABILITY, IT WOULD BE CLEAR—IF PROMPTED BY THE RULE. NOTE THIS IS COMPLETELY NEW ANALYSIS. THE 3 CON-MODEL (HENCE THE INEFFECTIVE NATURAL CONTIGENCY) DEALS WITH PERFORMANCE MANAGEMENT PROBLEMS, NOT TRAINING PROBLEMS; WON’T DO PROBLEMS RATHER THAN CAN’T DO PROBLEMS.

	Focus is going to be on the Sd (the behaver is in possession of the reinforcer) and will label it penalty and not punishment by prevention.
	There is no natural contingencies for training the subtle distinctions of discriminating. The natural environment does not have these contingencies. In the presence of person possessing reinforcer, behavior is considering whether person possess or will soon get the reinforcer.
	Natural: big Sd box; an Sd box with person will soon possess the reinforcer.
	The natural environment does not force the training of these discriminations. These are subtle Sds and unless we force the discrimination, the students will not notice them.