The Differential Effects of Three Verbal Punishers on the Disfluencies of Normal Speakers

Abstract

One hundred normal subjects, divided into five groups, read aloud for 40 minutes. For the first 10 minutes (Baserate), subjects read without interruption. For the next 20 minutes (Conditioning), verbal stimuli contingent upon disfluency were delivered to three groups. One group received “wrong”; the second, “no”; and the third “huh-uh” for disfluency. A fourth group received “wrong” on a random schedule during Conditioning, while the fifth (control) received no verbal stimuli. During the last 10 minutes (Extinction), no verbal stimuli were delivered to any group. Random and Control subjects did not change disfluency rates, while subjects in all contingent conditions decreased disfluency in Conditioning. Contingent “wrong” produced the greatest decrement in disfluency, “no” the least, and “huh-uh” occupied a midpoint.