Using a Lag Schedule of Reinforcement to Increase Response Variability in Children With Autism Spectrum Disorders.

Lag reinforcement schedules have been shown in previous research to be an effective intervention for teaching verbal and nonverbal response variability to individuals with developmental disabilities. In more recent research, variability itself has been considered a reinforceable behavior in its own right (Susa & Schlinger, The Analysis of Verbal Behavior, 18, 125-130, 2012). Lag schedules of reinforcement can be used to teach variability by using contingencies that require responses to differ from previous responses.