Chained Schedules involve two or more reinforcement schedules that are presented sequentially, with each schedule linked to a distinct discriminative stimulus (SD)Discriminative Stimulus (SD) is an antecedent stimulus th.... In this arrangement, the completion of one schedule is required before the next schedule begins. The individual must complete all the component schedules in a specific order to access reinforcement. The performance of behaviors may be the same or different across each component of the chain, and the reinforcement for one behaviorBehavior refers to any activity or action that living organ... signals the start of the next schedule.
Example
A student is being taught to clean up after snack time using a chained schedule. The first schedule (SD1) involves putting their plate in the sink, which operates on a fixed ratio (FR 1) schedule: the student must complete one instance of placing the plate in the sink before moving on to the next step. The second schedule (SD2) involves wiping the table (fixed interval schedule of 1 minute), followed by the third schedule (SD3) of putting their chair back in place (fixed ratio). Only after completing all three steps in sequence does the student receive reinforcement (e.g., praise or a small reward).