Abstract
Study objectives : The present study examined the effect of goal setting and self-generated feedback on children's sitting behavior in a first grade classroom. Design : ABAB design. Setting : This study was conducted in a classroom in a public elementary school. Participants : 29 children (13 boys, 16 girls). Intervention : The target behavior was described as follows : "I will sit down as soon as the chime rings." The same target behavior was set for all children on a "Goal Setting and Feedback Card" which was placed on each child's desk. The children monitored their own sitting behavior and gave themselves self-generated feedback by recording the outcome on the card. Measures : Event recording was used to observe the frequency of sitting behavior and on-task behavior. The measures of social validity were (1) on-task behavior of the child after the first instruction by the teacher following sitting behavior, (2) the starting time of the class, and (3) the children's responses on a questionnaire. Results : The goal setting and feedback procedure was effective in increasing the children's sitting behavior. The results also demonstrated the social validity of the "Goal Setting and Feedback Card."
