Delay Discounting and Teacher Decision-Making of Behavioral Interventions

Abstract

This paper presents two studies that used delay discounting to understand how teachers of students who engage in challenging behavior discount delays in behavioral treatment outcomes. In Experiment 1, the authors administered the monetary choice questionnaire (MCQ) to assess discounting of monetary rewards and a treatment choice questionnaire (TCQ) to assess discounting of treatment outcomes. Results of Experiment 1 indicate that teachers discounted monetary rewards and treatment outcomes, and the region of the U.S. where one teaches may impact discount rate. Experiment 2 extended the findings of Experiment 1 by evaluating if a specific variable—severity of behavior—impacted teachers' rate of discounting. The authors administered two TCQs to assess behavior severity as a state influence. Results of Experiment 2 indicate that teachers discount delays to both monetary outcomes and treatment outcomes, and teachers did have higher discount rates in the severe TCQ compared to the mild TCQ.