During the past 10 years, the inclusion of the word ''quality'' in des
criptions of production methods, management approaches, educational sy
stems, service system changes, and so forth, has grown exponentially.
It appears that no new approach to any problem is likely to be given m
uch consideration today without overt acknowledgment that some improve
ment in quality must be the outcome. The origins of the importance of
quality are primarily rooted in the awakening recognition of the influ
ence of W. Edwards Deming in the post-World War II restoration of Japa
nese industry. We provide a brief overview of Deming's approach to mod
ernizing management methods and discuss recent criticisms from the fie
ld of organizational behavior management that his approach lacks empha
sis on the role of reinforcement. We offer a different analysis of Dem
ing's approach and relate its evolution to the contingencies of reinfo
rcement for the behavior of consulting. We also provide an example of
problem solving with Deming's approach in a social service setting fam
iliar to many behavior analysts.