Overview
Hello classmates,
Cooper et al. (2020) reminds us that a behavior demonstrates generality only when it persists over time, functions effectively in new settings, and transfers to related behaviors. Stokes and Baer (1977) later warned that such outcomes rarely appear by accident; practitioners must “act as if there were no such animal as free generalization,” and build it deliberately into every plan. As illustrated in the course video Generalization and Maintenance (Walden University, 2019), effective programs embed common stimuli during instruction, so the skill transfers naturally. Below are the steps I would embed in Nicole’s intervention so her gains in English persist and migrate to mathematics and other classes.
Strengthen maintenance first
- Thin reinforcement schedules gradually. Transition Nicole from immediate, frequent teacher feedback to an intermittent schedule that mirrors typical classroom contingencies (e.g., after every third completed English assignment, then on a variable-ratio schedule).
- Teach self-management skills. Nicole can use a two-column checklist to record each finished homework item. Self-recording promotes private self-reinforcement and sustains performance when external prompts fade (Cooper et al., 2020).
- Probe without supports. Schedule weekly maintenance quizzes in which the checklist and praise are withheld; if accuracy dips, briefly reinstate supports and thin again (Foxx, 2013).
Program generalization across subjects
- Common stimuli. Use the same checklist template, color coding, and due-date tracker in English and mathematics so the stimuli that occasion homework completion travel with Nicole (Pratt et al., 2019).
- Train sufficient exemplars. Alternate English tasks (essays, vocabulary) with Math worksheets so Nicole practices the completion routine under multiple content conditions.
- Mediate with a self-instruction card. Teach her to cue herself silently with “Plan-Do-Check” whenever she begins an assignment. This portable mediator prompts the routine in any class.
- Recruit natural communities of reinforcement. Ask the math teacher to adopt the same brief praise statements used in English. When several adults reinforce one routine, maintenance in each setting improves (Stokes & Baer, 1977).
- Sequential modification. If homework fluency stabilizes in English but lags in math, replicate the checklist intervention in math until the same criterion is met, then fade supports.
Personal reflection
During my first year of undergraduate study, I struggled to keep up with weekly reading logs. A mentor taught me to calendar-block study sessions and check them off. Because the calendar lived in every course binder, the routine migrated naturally; by mid-semester I used it in other courses. Intermittent self-reward (a coffee with friends after three completed blocks) helped the habit persist when the original class ended. This experience mirrors the programmed stimuli and self-management elements recommended above, and still guides my graduate work today.
References
Cooper, J. O., Heron, T. E., & Heward, W. L. (2020). Applied behavior analysis (3rd ed.). Pearson.
Foxx, R. M. (2013). The maintenance of behavioral change: The case for long-term follow-ups. American Psychologist, 68(8), 728-736. https://doi.org/10.1037/a0033726Links to an external site.
Pratt, J. L., Wickerd, G. D., Steege, M. W. (2019) Generalization and maintenance. In S. G. Little & A. Akin-Little (Eds.), Behavioral interventions in schools: Evidence-based positive strategies (2nd ed., pp. 97-111). American Psychological Association.
Stokes, T. F., & Baer, D. M. (1977). An implicit technology of generalization. Journal of Applied Behavior Analysis, 10(2), 349-367. https://doi,org/10.1019/jaba.1977.10-349Links to an external site.
Walden University, LLC. (2019). Generalization and maintenance [Video]. Walden University Blackboard.