Mapping of the use of “natural reinforcer” in Brazilian behavior-analytic literature according to the national journals

Abstract

The term “reinforce” has subdivisions and changes its function according to the adjective that precedes it. One of these auxiliary terms is found in the literature as “natural reinforcement”. Seven journals were reviewed in order to map different functions of this con­cept’s use and to identify sources of control for its use. All articles containing at least one of the following keywords in the body of the texts were included: “reforço natural”, “reforçadores naturais”, “reforçador natural” or “reforçamento natural”. Seventy papers published between 1993 and 2020 were found from the mentioned keywords and were categorized into three different identified functions: 1) use as a phylogenetically established function; 2) direct and impossible relationship of social mediation between response and reinforcer; 3) current con­tingency (planned or not) as criterion of concept definition. Although most articles follow a trend in using definitions 2 and 3 for the term “natural reinforcer”, there are works that differ from this generalized definition. The aim of this study was to point out possible advances in the use of the concept of natural reinforcers and promoting a greater unification of the scien­tific language of the events that this term describes.