When confronted with challenging externalizing behaviors—such as aggression, tantrumming, or other acts with the potential to cause harm or disrupt class—it can be tempting to prioritize stopping the behavior (Kauten & Barry, 2020). In addition to trying to decrease challenging behaviors, most comprehensive behavior interventions involve having the student use prosocial behaviors more frequently. Increasing appropriate behaviors is important because it ensures the intervention process is a learning experience that contributes to the continuing development of the student. Additionally, appropriate behaviors can be designed to replace challenging behaviors. This process usually involves the use of reinforcement—consequences that predictably follow a behavior that increase the occurrence of a behavior over time (Zaheer et al., 2019).
Reinforcement is a common element of many interventions used in schools, including point systems (e.g., Kim et al., 2022) and behavior contracts (e.g., Bowman-Perrott et al., 2015). Any educator who has attempted to use rewards in class has undoubtedly observed that these are not always effective at increasing appropriate behaviors, however.
The purpose of this brief is to provide guidance from the research on the appropriate use of reinforcement for children who exhibit externalizing behaviors. Specifically, the brief will address the importance of (a) identifying reinforcement, (b) providing reasonable expectations, (c) administering reinforcement frequently and immediately, and (d) considering context. Because these guidelines are not exhaustive, additional resources are provided following a discussion of implications for practice.