Sensory reinforcement: effects of response-contingent vestibular stimulation on multiply handicapped children.

The reinforcing properties of vestibular stimulation were investigated, including the relative preference for vestibular stimulation and food, praise, visual, and auditory stimulation. Five multiply handicapped, severely retarded young children were trained to operate a pressure-sensitive adaptive switch to gain access to a given reinforcer during successive intervention phases. The results suggest that vestibular stimulation was reinforcing to all subjects. Vestibular stimulation appeared to be the preferred reinforcer for 4 of the 5 children. Results were discussed relative to the movement deprivation experienced by nonambulatory children. Possible implications for programming efforts were described.