Establishing Operations
This refers to instances when something is made more valuable by deprivation―if you are hungry you are more likely to engage in food-seeking
behavior. The hunger or being deprived of food is the establishing operation. You can
increase the value of a reinforcer by depriving a client of the reinforcer prior to the start of therapy. For example, if you use an iPad as a reinforcer, have the caregivers of the
client not allow the client to have the iPad 24 hours prior to therapy starting.