Expectations of Behaviors of Mothers Preceding Initiation of Contact Comfort with Their Children

Abstract

Certain attentive behaviors (e.g., turning toward, speaking in a pleasant tone of voice) are probably social reinforcers. Responses to incomplete paragraphs indicated 32 male and 32 female students and 32 mothers expected that mothers' exhibition of certain attentive behaviors is followed by their initiating contact comfort with children relatively frequently. Ss also expected mothers would be less likely to deliver contact comfort if their children behaved inappropriately. These two results suggest that one reason attentive behaviors are social reinforcers is that they become associated with contact comfort and one way mothers socialize children is by making contact comfort contingent on children's exhibiting appropriate behavior.