J Appl Behav Anal. 1972;5(4):477-84. doi: 10.1901/jaba.1972.5-477.
Journal of applied behavior analysis
T Ayllon, K Kelly
PMID: 16795371 PMCID: PMC1310789 DOI: 10.1901/jaba.1972.5-477
The effects of two different motivational conditions upon standardized test performance were explored for two student populations. The first study involving 12 trainable retardates showed a significant increase in score on the Metropolitan Readiness Test given under reinforcement conditions when these results were compared with scores taken under standard testing conditions. In a second study, these same results were obtained with a group of 30 normal fourth-graders. An additional study was conducted to determine the effect of different experiences with token reinforcement procedures on test performance. It was found that a group of children with six weeks' exposure to reinforcement for daily academic performance scored higher under both conditions of test administration (standard and reinforcement) than a control group. However, in a single exposure to token reinforcement for correct performance on the Metropolitan Test, both the experimental group and its match control showed a parallel increase in test performance. These findings offer a procedure that yields a more representative assessment of a student's academic achievement than does testing under standard conditions.
