The Effects of Skill and Chance Instructional Sets, Schedule of Reinforcement, and Sex on Children's Temporal Persistence

The present experiment investigated the effects of skill and chance instructional sets, level of reinforcement (0%, 33%, 66%, and 100%), and sex on temporal persistence. Fifth-grade pupils worked on a task requiring the formation of words from letter sets. Following a timed 6-trial acquisition series, each child was given a "no time limit" persistence trial comprised of letters of low word-producing capability. It was hypothesized that (a) children given skill instructions would persist longer than children given chance instructions, and (b) under skill instructions persistence would be greatest for the continuously reinforced group whereas under chance instructions persistence would be greatest for the partially reinforced groups. Results supported both hypotheses and also showed an unexpected sex and reinforcement schedule interaction. Implications and suggestions for further research are given.