Differential ReinforcementDifferential Reinforcement is a behavior modification technique in which reinforcement is provided for responses that meet specific criteria, while other responses are not reinforced. T... More of Other BehaviorBehavior refers to any activity or action that living organisms engage in, which can be observed, measured, and analyzed. It encompasses all interactions an organism has with its environment, inc... More (DRO) is a technique used in AppliedApplied means that the behaviors targeted for change in ABA are important and meaningful in everyday life, helping to improve the person’s quality of life or social functioning. Example A ... More Behavior Analysis (ABA) where reinforcementReinforcement is a fundamental concept in Applied Behavior Analysis (ABA) and behavioral psychology. It refers to any consequence that follows a behavior and increases the likelihood that the behavior... More is delivered if the target (maladaptive) behavior does not occur during a specific time period. Any other behavior, as long as it is not the problem behavior, is reinforced. The goal of DRO is to reduce or eliminate the undesired behavior by reinforcing the absence of the behavior, rather than focusing on a specific replacement behavior.
Example
A child named Mia frequently engages in hand-biting during quiet activities. To reduce this behavior, her therapist implements a DRO strategy. Every 10 minutes, Mia receives praise and a small reward (e.g., a sticker) if she has not engaged in hand-biting during that interval. As Mia is consistently reinforced for the absence of hand-biting, the frequencyIn Applied Behavior Analysis (ABA), frequency refers to the number of times a specific behavior occurs during a given observation period. This is a basic measurement that tracks how often a behavior h... More of this behavior decreases over time. Mia can engage in any other behavior (as long as it’s appropriate) during the interval, and it will be reinforced as long as hand-biting does not occur.