Delay discounting preparations have been used across species to assess the degree to which delays devalue consequences, where the subjective value of a reward decreases with increasing time. Among the studies that use these preparations with humans, none assess indifference points when some form of instruction is not involved. In the current study, participants responded by circling one of twelve two-letter combinations on a piece of paper. The study included five delay phases, ranging from 60 sec to 10 sec, and three conditions. During the first condition, consequences were provided contingent on correct responding of the target response and no instructions were provided. During the second condition, instructions were given but no consequences were provided contingent on correct responding of the target response. During the final condition, instructions were given and consequences were provided contingent on correct responding of the target response. The purpose of the current study is the extend the results of the current literature by evaluating delay discounting outcomes with instructions and without instructions and to assess discounting curves across all three conditions.
Interagency Autism Coordinating Committee (IACC)
Autism Research Database (AFD)
