ABSTRACT
People face goals that compete for attentional resources, physical energy, and time. The effect of contingently applied positive reinforcement on behavior is one of the most agreed-upon findings in the science of organizational behaviour. Since B. F. Skinner formulated the principles of operant conditioning, research in organizational behavior has accumulated support for the effects of contingently and consciously applied positive reinforcement. G. M. Fitzsimons and J. A. Bargh found that participants who read the first scenario were more likely to volunteer for a second study compared with those primed with a co-worker goal. In another study on interpersonal goal priming, J. Y. Shah informed participants they will complete an anagram task that relies on verbal fluency. Research indicates that money, social recognition, and feedback are each capable of becoming subconsciously associated with goals they reinforce and related behaviors.
