INFLUENCE OF DISCREPANCIES BETWEEN SUCCESSIVELY MODELED SELF-REWARD CRITERIA ON ADOPTION OF A SELF-IMPOSED STANDARD

48 4TH-GRADE CHILDREN WERE TRAINED TO EMPLOY A STRINGENT SELF-REWARD STANDARD BY AN AGENT WHO ADHERED TO OR DEVIATED FROM THIS STANDARD. SS SUBSEQUENTLY PERFORMED IN THE AGENT'S ABSENCE. THEREAFTER, THEY OBSERVED A 2ND AGENT EXHIBIT A SELF-REWARD PATTERN WHICH WAS CONSISTENT WITH OR DISCREPANT FROM THE STANDARD THEY HAD BEEN TAUGHT. FINALLY, SS AGAIN PERFORMED ALONE. THEIR SELF-IMPOSED CRITERIA DURING THE 1ST TEST WERE IN ACCORD WITH PREVIOUS FINDINGS. AS PREDICTED, SS WHO OBSERVED 2 DISCREPANT SOCIAL AGENTS WERE MORE SELF-LENIENT THAN THOSE WHO OBSERVED UNIFORMLY HIGH STANDARDS DISPLAYED. SS WHO OBSERVED 1 CONSISTENT AND 1 DISCREPANT AGENT WERE INTERMEDIATELY SELF-LENIENT. THIS LATTER FINDING WAS RELATED TO ORDER OF PRESENTATION. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2006 APA, all rights reserved). © 1968 American Psychological Association.