Do a Preference Assessment to Determine Motivation

Preferences change.  Think about your own preferences – do you ALWAYS get the same burger at your favourite restaurant? Or are you sometimes in the mood to try the chicken wings?  Our clients may also get bored of the same thing so being creative and constantly introducing new items and activities is important.  Some clients need daily (even hourly!) preference assessments while some might enjoy the same reinforcer for longer. 

There are many ways to do a preference assessment.  Formal, or trial-based methods usually involve presenting one (single stimuli), two (paired stimuli) or many (multiple stimuli) potential reinforcers and recording data on which item the child reached for or wanted.

Alternatively, you can also find preferences informally by asking the student (“What do you want to work for?”), asking a parent or caregiver, or just observing what the child likes to play with in the environment (Free operant observation).