This document discusses the importance of antecedent conditions and discriminative stimuli before discrete trial training sessions. It emphasizes selecting strong reinforcers through frequent preference assessments, gaining the child's attention, and delivering instructions consistently. The tutor is advised to monitor criteria like using appropriate materials, arranging them correctly, and presenting discriminative stimuli as written in a neutral tone of voice. Maintaining these before conditions is crucial for effective learning during the session.

1. BEFORE CONDITIONS
AND DISCRIMINATIVE
STIMULI(ANTECEDENTS)
PSY 3570: Practicum with Special Populations

2. Before the Trial
 In many cases, what happens before the
behavior is just as important as what happens
after
 Finding strong reinforcers, obtaining the child’s
attention, and delivering the SD all are crucial
aspects of the learning opportunity
 We will review why these things are important
and give you a few tips to improve your skills
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3. Monitoring Criteria
 Determine correct procedure and phase
 Develop rapport/positive mood
 Gather materials
 Preference Assessment
 Arrange Materials Appropriately
 Attending
 SD as written
 Intonation
 These are the areas listed on the monitoring form,
however, supervisors may give warnings or deduct
points for other actions or inactions during the
before condition
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4. Preference Assessments
 If you do not have an effective reinforcer, you
will probably not see good performance
 Just because a reinforcer has been working for
a few minutes doesn’t mean it will continue
working
 Therefore, it is crucial to frequently identify and
consistently use strong reinforcers
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5. Preference Assessments
 Reinforcer assessment versus Preference
assessment
A reinforcer assessment is when reinforcers are
selected in the playroom (WoodsEdge specific)
A preference assessment can be as simple as
“which one” before a trial begins
 Mix up the choices frequently
Even if your child is performing well, you should still
do a preference assessment every 4-5 trials
Using PECS or a choice board to perform
preference assessments can help you to identify
strong reinforcers
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6. Preference Assessments
 For token economies
Typically, one preference assessment per set of
trials will be sufficient
However, your child’s preferences may change,
and it is OK to switch icons during a procedure
 What to watch out for
Too many preference assessments in a row
Escape/attention/tangible maintained behavior
Running a preference assessment after problem
behavior has occurred
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7. Preference Assessments
 To be an effective tutor:
Use an effective reinforcer at all times
 If your child actively playing with the reinforcer or just
sitting there with it?
Run preference assessments every 4-5 trials
 Be careful of running them too frequently or too
infrequently
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8. Attending
 If the child does not attend to the SD, then
unfortunately, it is a missed learning opportunity
An SD signals the availability of reinforcement or
punishment for a certain response, but it can’t be a
signal if the organism doesn’t notice it
 Several things that the child may have to attend to
Materials
Auditory stimuli
Comparison/sample stimuli
Models
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9. Attending
 How to gain the child’s attention
Establishing Reinforcers
Reinforcing eye contact and other appropriate
behaviors when they occur
ELOs
Reducing extraneous distractions
 What NOT to do
Blinders
Excessive attention/showing reinforcers
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10. Attending
 Tips for effective teaching
Make sure the child is attending when you deliver
the SD
Keep a fast pace
Keep the amount of time with the reinforcer to 5
seconds (generally – use the smallest amount
that is reinforcing)
Make sure the inter-trial interval is 3-5 seconds
Deliver the tangible/edible reinforcer about every
3 trials
Refrain from reinforcing behaviors that are
incompatible with attending
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11. SD as Written
 Consistency is important when running
discrete trials
 With up to three different tutors on any given
day, it is important that the child is exposed to
consistent instructions
 It is important to be familiar with each phase of
each procedure when running them
BE CAREFUL! The SD may change from phase to
phase
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12. SD as Written
 Tips:
Use the correct topography of the SD
 Words
 Prompts
Refrain from delivering the SD at the wrong time
 i.e. The child is not attending
Refrain from delivering the SD too many or too
few times
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13. Intonation
 We try to deliver the SD in a neutral tone
 This should make it easier for the children to
discriminate between an SD and social
reinforcement
 The SD should not be too fast or too slow, too
high pitched or too low pitched
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14. Intonation
 REMEMBER:
Make the SD clear
Use a neutral tone of voice
Refrain from presenting the SD as a question
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15. Supervisor’s Discretion
 There are many other behaviors that happen
before the child’s response which you may
receive feedback on that may fall into this
category
 Your supervisor will warn you on the first
occurrence, and take points off for any
additional occurrences
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