bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025 huggingface dataset:
USING TIME DELAY TO PROMOTE SPONTANEOUS SPEECH IN AN AUTISTIC CHILD
Authors: Ingenmey Rita , Van Houten Ron
Published: March 2006

One of the frequently observed deficits in autistic children is their lack of spontaneous speech. We used a multiple baseline across behaviors to investigate the effectiveness of a time delay procedure for inducing spontaneous speech in a 10‐year‐old male autistic child during play. We first taught the child to imitate the experimenter's verbal prompts that described the child's motor response. Once the child reached criteria on imitation, we implemented baseline wherein an immediate verbal prompt for speech was provided after each of the child's motor responses. Intervention consisted of a gradual delay in the presentation of the verbal prompts. The time delay effectively increased the child's spontaneous speech on trained items; some generalization to untrained items also occurred, but only within the same behavioral class of car play. Generalization was also observed across settings. Spontaneous speech remained at high levels during the 4‐month maintenance for the behavior of car play but decreased for a second behavior. Decreases in the child's response latencies suggest that spontaneous speech may be an anticipatory verbal response.
SIDE EFFECTS OF THERAPEUTIC PUNISHMENT ON ACADEMIC PERFORMANCE AND EYE CONTACT
Authors: Rolider Ahmos , Cummings Anne , Van Houten Ron
Published: March 2006

The effects of therapeutic punishment delivered following inappropriate behavior on the academic responding and eye‐to‐face contact of 2 persons with developmental handicaps was examined using a counterbalanced alternating treatment design. Each subject was sequentially taught by two therapists each day. While one of the therapists taught the subject, the second therapist stood in close proximity directly behind the subject. During baseline, neither therapist delivered punishment following inappropriate behavior. During the treatment condition, one of the therapists delivered all punishment regardless of whether she was teaching or standing behind the subject. The therapist who delivered all punishment for 1 subject did not deliver any punishment for the other subject. During the last condition, the therapist delivering all punishment was reversed for 1 of the subjects. The results indicated that the task being taught was mastered by each subject only when the therapist delivering punishment was teaching. Data collected also indicated that each subject made more eye‐to‐face contact when the therapist delivering all punishment was teaching. Although neither therapist had to deliver punishers often, punishment had to be administered less often when the therapist teaching the subject was also the therapist delivering punishment.
A SIMPLE BASIC PROGRAM TO GENERATE VALUES FOR VARIABLE‐INTERVAL SCHEDULES OF REINFORCEMENT
Authors: Hantula Donald A.
Published: March 2006

A BASIC program to generate values for variable‐interval (VI) schedules of reinforcement is presented. A VI schedule should provide access to reinforcement with a constant probability over a time horizon. If the values in a VI schedule are calculated from an arithmetic progression, the probability of reinforcement is positively correlated with the time since the last reinforcer was delivered. Fleshler and Hoffman (1962) developed an iterative equation to calculate VI schedule values so that the probability of reinforcement remains constant. This easy‐to‐use program generates VI schedule values according to the Fleshler and Hoffman equation, randomizes the values, and saves the values in ASCII to a disk file.
PROMOTING RECIPROCAL INTERACTIONS VIA PEER INCIDENTAL TEACHING
Authors: McGee Gail G. , Almeida M. Connie , Sulzer‐Azaroff Beth , Feldman Robert S.
Published: March 2006

This study evaluated peer incidental teaching as a strategy for increasing reciprocal peer interactions by children with autism. Three typical preschoolers were trained as peer tutors for 3 young children with autism. During a classroom free‐play session, peer tutors used incidental teaching to obtain verbal labels of preferred toys by children with autism. A multiple baseline across the 3 target children showed replicated positive effects of the intervention. Adult supervision and assistance were then faded systematically, with resulting maintenance of increased reciprocal interactions. Multiple measures of the extent and limits of generalization suggested that 1 child increased interactions in free‐play periods throughout the day, but none of the children showed increases at lunch. Teacher and peer ratings supported the social validity of positive findings.
CHANGES IN STUDENT AND TEACHER RESPONSES IN OBSERVED AND GENERALIZED SETTINGS AS A FUNCTION OF SUPERVISOR OBSERVATIONS
Authors: Ingham Peggy , Greer R. Douglas
Published: March 2006

Two studies are reported in which the effects of supervisor observations of teachers' performance rate and accuracy on both teachers' and severely handicapped students' behaviors were compared with baseline supervisor observations that did not specify rate and accuracy feedback. The latter observation procedure (nonspecific feedback) was more typical of the existing practices of school supervisors. The dependent variables for the teachers were rate and accuracy of teacher behaviors to student responses in individualized instructional settings involving discrete trials or task‐analysis steps. The dependent variables for students were the rates of correct and incorrect responding to teacher presentations during the supervisor observation periods. Both studies used a multiple baseline design. The results of Study 1 showed that there were educationally significant changes in teacher and, in turn, student performance as a result of the use of the rate and accuracy procedure. The results of Study 2 replicated those of Study 1 while correcting limitations of Study 1. This latter study also demonstrated that the observation effects of the procedure generalized to teacher performance throughout the day. The results are discussed in terms of the efficiency and cost effectiveness of the procedure to train, monitor, and reinforce teacher effectiveness.
COMPARISON OF STAFF TRAINING STRATEGIES TO PROMOTE GENERALIZED TEACHING SKILLS
Authors: Ducharme Joseph M. , Feldman Maurice A.
Published: March 2006

Two studies compared the effectiveness of different strategies for promoting generalization of staff skills in teaching self‐care routines to clients with developmental disabilities. In Study 1, 9 direct‐care staff members of group homes were trained sequentially through four conditions: (a) the provision of written instructions, (b) performance‐based training using a single client program exemplar and simulated clients (single case training), (c) performance‐based training using actual developmentally delayed clients as trainees (common stimuli training), and (d) performance‐based training using multiple client program exemplars with simulated clients (general case training). The results indicated that staff members did not reach all generalization criteria until general case training was provided. Because staff members had been trained sequentially through several conditions in Study 1, a second study controlled for potential sequence effects. In Study 2, 7 staff members were trained using only the general case strategy after baseline. All staff members reached generalization criteria with only general case training, replicating the findings of Study 1. Together, the two studies demonstrated that the general case training strategy was more effective at promoting generalized training effects across clients, settings, and client programs than other commonly used staff training approaches.
TEACHING SAFETY SKILLS TO HIGH SCHOOL STUDENTS WITH MODERATE DISABILITIES
Authors: Winterling Vincent , Gast David L. , Wolery Mark , Farmer Jacqueline A.
Published: March 2006

Teaching students with disabilities to respond appropriately to potentially dangerous situations is a useful skill that has received little research attention. This investigation taught 3 students with moderate mental retardation to remove and discard broken materials (plates, glasses) safely from (a) a sink containing dishwater, (b) a countertop, and (c) a floor. A 4th student was instructed on the sink task only. A multicomponent treatment package was used to teach the skills. Simulated materials were used initially and were replaced with broken plates and glasses. A multiple probe design was used to evaluate the effectiveness of the treatment package. The results indicated that the treatment package was effective in teaching the skills. Data were collected 1 week and 1 month following the completion of training, and indicated mixed results. No student was injured during any phase of training. Issues pertinent to teaching safety skills to students with moderate disabilities are discussed.
TEACHING SOCIAL SKILLS TO STUDENTS WITH AUTISM TO INCREASE PEER INTERACTIONS IN AN INTEGRATED FIRST‐GRADE CLASSROOM
Authors: Kamps Debra M. , Leonard Betsy R. , Vernon Sue , Dugan Erin P. , Delquadri Joseph C. , Gershon Beth , Wade Linda , Folk Louise
Published: March 2006

We investigated the use of social skills groups to facilitate increased social interactions for students with autism and their nonhandicapped peers in an integrated first‐grade classroom. Social skills groups consisted of training students and peers in initiating, responding, and keeping interactions going; greeting others and conversing on a variety of topics; giving and accepting compliments; taking turns and sharing; asking for help and helping others; and including others in activities. Training occurred during the first 10 min of 20‐min play groups, four times per week. Using a multiple baseline across subjects design, results demonstrated increases in the frequency of, time engaged in, and duration of social interactions, as well as the responsivity of students and peers to each other. Results were maintained when students were monitored and given feedback on social performance in play groups and during follow‐up.
FADING TEACHER PROMPTS PROM PEER‐INITIATION INTERVENTIONS FOR YOUNG CHILDREN WITH DISABILITIES
Authors: Odom Samuel L. , Chandler Lynette K. , Ostrosky Michaelene , McConnell Scott R. , Reaney Susan
Published: March 2006

This study examined a system for fading teacher prompts to children who served as peers in peer‐initiation interventions for young children with disabilities. A teacher taught peers to direct social initiations to children with disabilities, provided verbal prompts for those initiations, and introduced a system that provided peers with visual feedback about the social interactions of the children with disabilities. She then systematically withdrew the verbal prompts to peers, and subsequently faded the visual feedback system. Peer initiations increased when the intervention began and resulted in increases in social interaction for the children with disabilities. As the teacher systematically faded the prompts and visual feedback to the peers, social interaction continued at the levels found during intervention and was maintained during a short maintenance period.
EFFECTS OF A VIDEOTAPE FEEDBACK PACKAGE ON THE PEER INTERACTIONS OF CHILDREN WITH SERIOUS BEHAVIORAL AND EMOTIONAL CHALLENGES
Authors: Kern‐Dunlap Lee , Dunlap Glen , Clarke Shelley , Childs Karen E. , White Ronnie L. , Stewart Mary Pat
Published: March 2006

Peer interactions are among the greatest challenges experienced by children who have severe emotional and behavioral problems. This study evaluated an intervention package designed to increase the ratio of these children's desirable to undesirable interactions. The package included three principal components: (a) observation of videotapes following regularly scheduled peer activity sessions; (b) self‐evaluation of the children's peer interactions observed on the videotapes; and (c) delayed feedback and reinforcement for desirable peer interactions. Five students from two elementary schools participated. Multiple baseline designs and one reversal were used to evaluate the effects of the intervention package. The results showed that the intervention produced lower levels of undesirable peer interactions and higher ratios of desirable to undesirable interactions for all participants. The results are discussed in regard to their conceptual and applied implications and in terms of specific directions for future research.
TRAINING SUPERVISORS IN A COLLABORATIVE TEAM APPROACH TO PROMOTE PEER INTERACTION OF CHILDREN WITH DISABILITIES IN INTEGRATED PRESCHOOLS
Authors: Hundert Joel , Hopkins Benita
Published: March 2006

Three supervisors of integrated preschools were trained in a collaborative team approach to encourage resource and classroom teachers to develop strategies that promote peer interaction of all children, including children with disabilities. The focus of classroom teachers' behaviors and the interactive play of children with disabilities were measured daily in both a training (indoor play period) and a generalization (outdoor play period) setting. In a multiple baseline design, supervisors were individually trained in a collaborative team approach using a manual, modeling, and role playing; then they implemented the approach with classroom and resource teachers. We found that after supervisor training, classroom teachers increased their behaviors directed towards children with disabilities and decreased their behaviors directed towards nondisabled children. Moreover, we found a doubling of the interactive play of children with disabilities and, for two of the three classes, an increase in the interactive play of comparison children, randomly selected by the classroom teachers. Changes in both teachers' and children's behaviors were also found in the generalization setting. The implications of the results for interventions in community settings are discussed.
EFFECTS OF COMMUNITY‐BASED, VIDEOTAPE, AND FLASH CARD INSTRUCTION OF COMMUNITY‐REFERENCED SIGHT WORDS ON STUDENTS WITH MENTAL RETARDATION
Authors: Cuvo Anthony J. , Klatt Kevin P.
Published: March 2006

Community‐referenced sight words and phrases were taught to adolescents with mild and moderate mental retardation using three instructional methods in two locations. Words were presented on flash cards in a school setting, on videotape recordings in a school setting, and on naturally occurring signs in the community. During each session, participants were taught one third of the words in each of these conditions and were then tested at the community sites. A constant prompt delay procedure was used to promote stimulus control to the experimenter's cue initially and then to transfer control to the textual stimuli used for training. A multiple baseline across participants design was employed. Results showed rapid acquisition of the community‐referenced sight words in all three training conditions and generalization from the flash card and videotape conditions to the community sites.
RECIPROCAL PEER MANAGEMENT: IMPROVING STAFF INSTRUCTION IN A VOCATIONAL TRAINING PROGRAM
Authors: Fleming Richard , Sulzer‐Azaroff Beth
Published: March 2006

To test the feasibility and utility of involving peers as sources of feedback, 6 subjects, instructors in a vocational program for adults with mental retardation, participated in a staff training and management program. Subjects' teaching interactions were assessed during baseline, in‐service training (on effective teaching), return‐to‐baseline, peer management, and follow‐up phases. Peer management was introduced in multiple baseline fashion across pairs of subjects. Members of each pair were trained to monitor peer teaching, to record and graph data, to provide feedback, and to set goals with the peer. Each pair then performed these procedures on the job for several weeks, during which time 4 of the 6 subjects increased their use of effective teaching methods (over baseline). However, inconsistencies in the magnitude and durability of these increases require that the study be viewed as inconclusive, although it has heuristic value as a promising model for involving co‐workers in staff management programs.
BEHAVIORAL MOMENTUM IN COLLEGE BASKETBALL
Authors: Mace F. Charles , Lalli Joseph S. , Shea Michael C. , Nevin John A.
Published: March 2006

Three classes of events were scored from videotapes of 14 college basketball games during the 1989 National Collegiate Athletic Association tournament: reinforcers (such as points and favorable turnovers), adversities (such as missed shots, unfavorable turnovers, and fouls), and responses to adversities (favorable or unfavorable outcomes of the first possession of the ball following an adversity). Within‐game and within‐team analyses of these data supported three findings. First, a team's favorable response to an adversity generally increased as the rate of reinforcement increased 3 min preceding the adversity. Second, basketball coaches called time‐out from play when being outscored by their opponents an average of 2.63 to 1.0. Third, calling time‐outs from play appeared to be an effective intervention for reducing an opponent's rate of reinforcement. Rates of reinforcement during the 3 min immediately after a time‐out were nearly equal for both teams. Results are discussed within a behavioral momentum framework.
EFFECTS OF REINFORCER RATE AND REINFORCER QUALITY ON TIME ALLOCATION: EXTENSIONS OF MATCHING THEORY TO EDUCATIONAL SETTINGS
Authors: Neef Nancy A. , Mace F. Charles , Shea Michael C. , Shade Doran
Published: March 2006

We examined how 3 special education students allocated their responding across two concurrently available tasks associated with unequal rates and equal versus unequal qualities of reinforcement. The students completed math problems from two alternative sets on concurrent variable‐interval (VI) 30‐s VI 120‐s schedules of reinforcement. During the equal‐quality reinforcer condition, high‐quality (nickels) and low‐quality items (“program money” in the school's token economy) were alternated across sessions as the reinforcer for both sets of problems. During the unequal‐quality reinforcer condition, the low‐quality reinforcer was used for the set of problems on the VI 30‐s schedule, and the high‐quality reinforcer was used for the set of problems on the VI 120‐s schedule. Equal‐ and unequal‐quality reinforcer conditions were alternated using a reversal design. Results showed that sensitivity to the features of the VI reinforcement schedules developed only after the reinforcement intervals were signaled through countdown timers. Thereafter, when reinforcer quality was equal, the time allocated to concurrent response alternatives was approximately proportional to obtained reinforcement, as predicted by the matching law. However the matching relation was disrupted when, as occurs in most natural choice situations, the quality of the reinforcers differed across the response options.
BRIEF FUNCTIONAL ASSESSMENT TECHNIQUES TO EVALUATE ABERRANT BEHAVIOR IN AN OUTPATIENT SETTING: A SUMMARY OF 79 CASES
Authors: Derby K. Mark , Wacker David P. , Sasso Gary , Steege Mark , Northup John , Cigrand Karla , Asmus Jennifer
Published: March 2006

Previous investigators have analyzed the maintaining conditions for aberrant behaviors using brief functional assessment procedures. These assessment procedures have been used in one of our outpatient clinics, the Self‐Injurious and Aggressive Behavior Service. This study presents a descriptive summary of the results from 79 cases during a 3‐year period. The outcomes of the brief assessment were evaluated across three variables: (a) referring topography, (b) control over behavior as evaluated through brief multielement designs, and (c) the identified maintaining conditions for aberrant behavior. The limitations and future utility of brief functional assessments for identifying distinct maintaining contingencies are discussed.
AN ANALYSIS OF MAINTENANCE FOLLOWING FUNCTIONAL COMMUNICATION TRAINING
Authors: Durand V. Mark , Carr Edward G.
Published: March 2006

The multiple and long‐term effects of functional communication training relative to a common reductive procedure (time‐out from positive reinforcement) were evaluated. Twelve children participated in a functional analysis of their challenging behaviors (Study 1), which implicated adult attention as a maintaining variable. The children were then matched for chronological age, mental age, and language age and assigned to two groups. One group received functional communication training as an intervention for their challenging behavior, and the second group received time‐out as a contrast. Both interventions were initially successful (Study 2), but durable results were achieved only with the group that received functional communication training across different stimulus conditions (Study 3). Students whose challenging behaviors were previously reduced with time‐out resumed these behaviors in the presence of naive teachers unaware of the children's intervention history. The value of teaching communicative responses to promote maintenance is discussed as it relates to the concept of functional equivalence.
TOO MUCH REINFORCEMENT, TOO LITTLE BEHAVIOR: ASSESSING TASK INTERSPERSAL PROCEDURES IN CONJUNCTION WITH DIFFERENT REINFORCEMENT SCHEDULES WITH AUTISTIC CHILDREN
Authors: Charlop Marjorie H. , Kurtz Patricia F. , Milstein Janice P.
Published: March 2006

Task interspersal procedures have been quite effective in increasing autistic children's motivation to learn. These procedures have typically demonstrated that the inclusion of reinforced maintenance tasks (previously learned tasks) increases responding to new acquisition tasks because more reinforcers, in general, are available. However, studies have not specifically addressed the effects of various schedules of reinforcement, used in conjunction with task interspersal procedures, upon response acquisition. In the present study, a multiple baseline design across subjects was used to assess different reinforcement schedules. Five autistic children participated in learning sessions, during which trials of an acquisition task were interspersed with trials of three maintenance tasks. Correct responses to acquisition tasks were continuously reinforced throughout all conditions, while the reinforcement schedule for competent performance of maintenance tasks differed systematically. Results indicated that all children learned the new tasks when food reinforcers were presented only for acquisition tasks. Results are discussed in terms of behavioral contrast and improving the effectiveness of motivation‐enhancing procedures for autistic children.
GENTLE TEACHING AND APPLIED BEHAVIOR ANALYSIS: A CRITICAL REVIEW
Authors: Jones Robert S. P. , McCaughey Renee E.
Published: March 2006

In recent years, there has been a growing controversy surrounding gentle teaching. This paper explores the nature of this controversy with particular reference to the relationship between gentle teaching and applied behavior analysis. Advantages and disadvantages of this approach are discussed, and it is suggested that gentle teaching and applied behavior analysis need not be regarded as mutually exclusive approaches to working with persons with mental retardation.
SPELLING AND EMERGENT PICTURE‐PRINTED WORD RELATIONS ESTABLISHED WITH DELAYED IDENTITY MATCHING TO COMPLEX SAMPLES
Authors: Stromer Robert , Mackay Harry A.
Published: March 2006

Students with academic deficits learned delayed matching‐to‐sample tasks that used complex sample stimuli, each consisting of a picture and a printed word. A touch to the sample complex removed it from the computer display and produced either picture comparisons or a choice pool of letters. If the comparisons were pictures, selecting the picture identical to the preceding sample was reinforced. If the letters appeared, letter‐by‐letter construction of the preceding printed word sample was reinforced. The procedure engendered new constructed‐response spelling performances and arbitrary relations among pictures and printed words in matching to sample. The emergence of relations among different sets of printed words (paired with the same pictures) suggested classes of equivalent stimuli. Outcome tests involving spoken words as sample stimuli suggested expansion of subjects' spelling repertoires and stimulus classes.
FUNCTIONAL ANALYSIS AND TREATMENT OF ESCAPE‐MAINTAINED AGGRESSION CORRELATED WITH SLEEP DEPRIVATION
Authors: O'Reilly Mark F.
Published: March 2006

Functional analysis identified the consequences that maintained aggressive behavior and the relationship between those consequences and sleep deprivation for an individual with severe mental retardation. Results showed that aggression was maintained by negative reinforcement contingencies (escape from demand) and that aggression was more severe when sleep deprivation was present. A multicomponent intervention resulted in reductions of aggression for up to 7 months.
INCREASING COMPLEX SOCIAL BEHAVIORS IN CHILDREN WITH AUTISM: EFFECTS OF PEER‐IMPLEMENTED PIVOTAL RESPONSE TRAINING
Authors: Pierce Karen , Schreibman Laura
Published: March 2006

Two children with autism were taught to engage in a variety of complex social behaviors using peer‐implemented pivotal response training (PRT), a set of procedures designed to increase motivation and promote generalization. Typical peers were taught to implement PRT strategies by modeling, role playing, and didactic instruction. After training, peers implemented the procedures in the absence of direct supervision in a classroom environment. After the intervention, both children with autism maintained prolonged interactions with the peer, initiated play and conversations, and increased engagement in language and joint attention behaviors. In addition, teachers reported positive changes in social behavior, with the largest increases in peer‐preferred social behavior. Further, these effects showed generality and maintenance. Implications of these findings are discussed.
COMPETENCE IN ASPECTS OF BEHAVIORAL TREATMENT AND CONSULTATION: IMPLICATIONS FOR SERVICE DELIVERY AND GRADUATE TRAINING
Authors: McGimsey James F. , Greene Brandon F. , Lutzker John R.
Published: March 2006

This study examined the extent to which competence in applying behavioral procedures (timeout from positive reinforcement) was sufficient to establish competence in teaching others to apply the same procedures. During baseline, graduate students attempted to instruct parents with a history of child abuse and neglect in the use of time‐out. Students were then instructed in the use of time‐out until they achieved proficiency in a role‐play context. They then reattempted to instruct the parents. Finally, the students were instructed in certain consultation skills (i.e., teaching others to apply behavioral procedures) and again attempted to instruct parents in the application of time‐out. Observations of students' consultation skills, parents' proficiency at administering time‐out, and children's compliance to parental instructions revealed that explicit training in behavioral consulting skills was necessary to produce improvements in these behaviors. Students' proficiency at administering time‐out was insufficient to enable them to instruct others in its application. These results were corroborated by surveys of both students and staff. The implications for graduate training and service delivery are discussed.
PYRAMIDAL PARENT TRAINING BY PEERS
Authors: Neef Nancy A.
Published: March 2006

This study replicated a pyramidal model of parent training by peers and compared its effects with training by a professional with 26 parents of children with disabilities. A multiple probe design across 3 tiers of parents showed that both types of training produced acquisition, maintenance, and to varying extents, generalization of parents' teaching skills, with concomitant increases in the children's performance in most cases. Improvements were comparable for parents trained by a professional or by peers, and for parents who did and did not serve as peer trainers.
EFFECTS OF RESPONSE AND TRIAL REPETITION ON SIGHT‐WORD TRAINING FOR STUDENTS WITH LEARNING DISABILITIES
Authors: Belfiore Phillip J. , Skinner Christopher H. , Ferkis Mary Ann
Published: March 2006

Alternating treatments designs were used to compare the effects of trial repetition (one response within five trials per word) versus response repetition (five response repetitions within one trial per word) on sight‐word acquisition for 3 elementary students diagnosed with specific learning disabilities in reading. Although both interventions occasioned the same number of accurate responses per word during training, the trial‐repetition condition, which involved complete antecedent‐response‐feedback sequences, resulted in more words mastered for all 3 students.
USING PUBLIC FEEDBACK TO INCREASE CONTRIBUTIONS TO A MULTIPURPOSE SENIOR CENTER
Authors: Jackson Nick C. , Mathews R. Mark
Published: March 2006

Multipurpose senior centers are expanding their services to meet the demands of a growing population. Unfortunately, federal agencies have not matched this expansion with monetary support. Many senior centers hold fund‐raisers to supplement their budgets, but the impact of these projects is rarely evaluated. This study assessed the effectiveness of a public posting strategy designed to increase donations to an ongoing fund‐raiser for a multipurpose senior center. The fund‐raiser, “Coupons for Caring,” consisted of senior volunteers clipping grocery coupons from newspapers, sorting them, and attaching them to their respective products in local grocery stores. Grocery store customers were given the option of donating the coupons to the senior center or redeeming them when they purchased the products to which the coupons were attached. In the experimental condition, signs were posted that included visual and written instructions, feedback on the value of coupons donated by customers the previous week, and feedback on the overall amount of money donated to the senior center. The signs were posted near each cashier stand and at the front entrances of the grocery stores in a multiple baseline across grocery stores. The percentage of coupons donated to the senior center increased at each store after the signs were posted.
PREVENTING ANTISOCIAL BEHAVIOR IN THE SCHOOLS
Authors: Mayer G. Roy
Published: March 2006

Multiple correlates and determinants of antisocial behavior within the home, community, and school are reviewed. Due to the school's pivotal role in our society, an emphasis is placed on how our schools contribute to antisocial behavior, and what educators can do to prevent antisocial behavior and related attendance problems. A variety of contextual factors and setting events within our schools appear to be major contributors to antisocial behavior, and some of the same factors identified within the schools also have been identified within the home. These setting events, rather than quick restrictive fixes, must be given more attention if we are to provide safe school environments—environments that durably prevent antisocial behavior and related attendance problems.
MAKING LIFE EASIER WITH EFFORT: BASIC FINDINGS AND APPLIED RESEARCH ON RESPONSE EFFORT
Authors: Friman Patrick C. , Poling Alan
Published: March 2006

Early basic research showed that increases in required response effort (or force) produced effects that resembled those produced by punishment. A recent study by Ailing and Poling determined some subtle differences between the two behavior‐change strategies, but also confirmed that increasing required effort is an effective response‐reduction procedure with enduring effects. In this paper we summarize basic research on response effort and explore the role of effort in diverse applied areas including deceleration of aberrant behavior, attention deficit hyperactivity disorder, oral habits, health care appointment keeping, littering, indexes of functional disability, and problem solving. We conclude that renewed interest in response effort as an independent variable is justified because of its potent effects and because the political constraints imposed on punishment‐ and reinforcement‐based procedures have yet to be imposed on procedures that entail manipulations of response effort.
EFFECTS OF A VOICE OUTPUT COMMUNICATION AID ON INTERACTIONS BETWEEN SUPPORT PERSONNEL AND AN INDIVIDUAL WITH MULTIPLE DISABILITIES
Authors: Schepis Maureen M. , Reid Dennis H.
Published: March 2006

We evaluated a means of increasing staff members' interactions with an individual with multiple disabilities through use of a voice output communication aid (VOCA). When activated, the VOCA allowed the individual to communicate through synthesized speech. Results indicated that staff members interacted with the individual more frequently when she had access to the VOCA, suggesting that VOCAs may represent an alternative to more traditional staff management programs for increasing interactions.
A COMPARISON OF PACING CONTINGENCIES IN CLASSES USING A PERSONALIZED SYSTEM OF INSTRUCTION
Authors: Ross Linda L. , McBean David
Published: March 2006

This study compared the effects of multiple versus single deadline contingencies on distribution of unit‐mastery test taking by students in four university classes taught using the personalized system of instruction. Rate of test taking was most uniform when multiple deadlines were imposed throughout the course. When deadlines were infrequent, a scalloped pattern of test taking developed.
COMPARING CHOICE AND QUESTIONNAIRE MEASURES OF THE ACCEPTABILITY OF A STAFF TRAINING PROCEDURE
Authors: Reid Dennis H. , Parsons Marsha B.
Published: March 2006

We compared questionnaire and choice measures of acceptability while evaluating effects of staff familiarity versus unfamiliarity with the system used to monitor performance during a training program. Staff members rated both monitoring formats equally favorably on the questionnaire, whereas when given a choice, they frequently chose the familiar format and never chose the unfamiliar format. These results suggest that traditional questionnaire evaluations may not be sufficiently sensitive measures of acceptability relative to choice measures.
EFFECTS OF PROBLEM DIFFICULTY AND REINFORCER QUALITY ON TIME ALLOCATED TO CONCURRENT ARITHMETIC PROBLEMS
Authors: Mace E Charles , Neef Nancy A. , Shade Doran , Mauro Benjamin C.
Published: March 2006

Students with learning difficulties participated in two studies that analyzed the effects of problem difficulty and reinforcer quality upon time allocated to two sets of arithmetic problems reinforced according to a concurrent variable‐interval 30‐s variable‐interval 120‐s schedule. In Study 1, high‐ and low‐difficulty arithmetic problems were systematically combined with rich and lean concurrent schedules (nickels used as reinforcers) across conditions using a single‐subject design. The pairing of the high‐difficulty problems with the richer schedule failed to offset time allocated to that alternative. Study 2 investigated the interactive effects of problem difficulty and reinforcer quality (nickels vs. program money) upon time allocation to arithmetic problems maintained by the concurrent schedules of reinforcement. Unlike problem difficulty, the pairing of the lesser quality reinforcer (program money) with the richer schedule reduced the time allocated to that alternative. The magnitude of this effect was greatest when combined with the low‐difficulty problems. These studies have important implications for a matching law analysis of asymmetrical reinforcement variables that influence time allocation.
EFFECTS OF EQUAL AND UNEQUAL REINFORCER DURATION DURING FUNCTIONAL ANALYSIS
Authors: Fisher Wayne W. , Piazza Cathleen C. , Chiang Christy L.
Published: March 2006

In the functional analysis described by Iwata, Dorsey, Slifer, Bauman, and Richman (1982/1994), reinforcer duration varied across conditions (e.g., brief attention vs. 30 s of escape); this may result in unequal exposure to the establishing operations for aberrant behavior. In this study, we compared the effects of unequal and equal reinforcer duration during a functional analysis. The results showed that reinforcer duration affects the rate of aberrant behavior and may potentially alter functional analysis interpretation.
A PROMPT PLUS DELAYED CONTINGENCY PROCEDURE FOR REDUCING BATHROOM GRAFFITI
Authors: Watson T. Steuart
Published: March 2006

This study assessed the effectiveness of posting signs for reducing graffiti in three men's restrooms on a college campus using a multiple baseline across settings design. During baseline, graffiti increased almost daily in each of the three settings. Immediately following the intervention, no marks were made on any of the three walls. Results were maintained at 3‐month follow‐up. A possible explanation for the results is that the signs specified an altruistic contingency.
FUNCTIONAL ANALYSIS AND TREATMENT OF EYE POKING WITH RESPONSE BLOCKING
Authors: Lalli Joseph S. , Livezey Kimberley , Kates Kelly
Published: March 2006

A functional analysis of eye poking by a 4‐year‐old female with severe disabilities and visual impairments showed that high rates occurred in all conditions. We conducted a series of probes to identify the maintaining variable for eye poking following an undifferentiated functional analysis. Results showed that eye poking decreased only when we interrupted finger‐eye contact by blocking the response.
A METHODOLOGY FOR DISTINGUISHING BETWEEN EXTINCTION AND PUNISHMENT EFFECTS ASSOCIATED WITH RESPONSE BLOCKING
Authors: Lerman Dorothea C. , Iwata Brian A.
Published: March 2006

We present one method for distinguishing between extinction and punishment effects. The proportion of responses that produced a consequence (blocking) was varied while hand mouthing was treated in a man diagnosed with profound mental retardation. Response patterns across the schedule changes suggested that the blocking procedure functioned as a punishing event.
A COMPARISON OF SIMULTANEOUS AND DELAYED REINFORCEMENT AS TREATMENTS FOR FOOD SELECTIVITY
Authors: Kern Lee , Marder Tamara J.
Published: March 2006

This study compared the relative efficacy of providing simultaneous or delayed reinforcement on food acceptance during meals. The participant was a 7‐year‐old boy with pervasive developmental disorder and a history of food selectivity. Results indicated that both procedures were effective in increasing acceptance; however, the simultaneous reinforcement procedure produced more rapid behavior change and a higher overall percentage of food acceptance.
ANALYSIS OF FREE‐TIME CONTINGENCIES AS POSITIVE VERSUS NEGATIVE REINFORCEMENT
Authors: Zarcone Jennifer R. , Fisher Wayne W. , Piazza Cathleen C.
Published: March 2006

Providing a short break contingent on completed work may increase responding through positive reinforcement (e.g., access to preferred activities) or negative reinforcement (e.g., escape from work). In this investigation, three analyses conducted with a boy with profound mental retardation showed that (a) a 20‐s break increased responding more than a positive reinforcer (cola) did, and (b) the reinforcing effects of a 20‐s break were affected by the availability of positive reinforcers during the break.
TEACHING COMPUTER‐BASED SPELLING TO INDIVIDUALS WITH DEVELOPMENTAL AND HEARING DISABILITIES: TRANSFER OF STIMULUS CONTROL TO WRITING TASKS
Authors: Stromer Robert , Mackay Harry A. , Howell Sarah R. , McVay Alison A. , Flusser Debbie
Published: March 2006

Computer‐based instruction may yield widely useful handwritten spelling. Illustrative cases involved individuals with mental retardation and hearing impairments. The participant in Study 1 matched computer pictures and printed words to one another but did not spell the words to pictures. Spelling was then taught using a computerized procedure. In general, increases in the accuracy of computer spelling were accompanied by improvements in written spelling to pictures. Study 2 extended these results with a 2nd participant. After initial training, spelling improved in the context of a retrieval task in which the participant (a) wrote a list of the names of objects displayed on a table, (b) selected the objects from a shelf, and (c) returned the objects to the table. Nearly perfect accuracy scores declined on some retrieval trials conducted without a list, suggesting that the list may have served a mediating function during retrieval. Transfer of stimulus control of computer‐based teaching to the retrieval task may have been attributable to the existence of stimulus classes involving pictures, objects, and printed words.
ARE PERSONS WITH NERVOUS HABITS NERVOUS? A PRELIMINARY EXAMINATION OF HABIT FUNCTION IN A NONREFERRED POPULATION
Authors: Woods Douglas W. , Miltenberger Raymond G.
Published: March 2006

In this study, 44 individuals were exposed to three conditions (anxiety, bored, and neutral) while being covertly videotaped. The videotapes were then scored for the occurrence of five classes of habits including hair, face, and object manipulation; object mouthing; and repetitive movement of the limbs. Results showed that hair and face manipulation increased during the anxiety condition, whereas object manipulation increased in the bored condition. The implications of this research are discussed.
CHOICE‐MAKING TREATMENT OF YOUNG CHILDREN'S SEVERE BEHAVIOR PROBLEMS
Authors: Peck Stephanie M. , Wacker David P. , Berg Wendy K. , Cooper Linda J. , Brown Kimberly A. , Richman David , McComas Jennifer J. , Frischmeyer Pamela , Millard Thomas
Published: March 2006

The choice‐making behavior of 5 young children with developmental disabilities who engaged in aberrant behavior was studied within a concurrent operants framework. Experimental analyses were conducted to identify reinforcers that maintained aberrant behavior, and functional communication training packages were implemented to teach the participants to gain reinforcement using mands. Next, a choice‐making analysis, in which the participants chose one of two responses (either a mand or an alternative neutral response) to obtain different durations and qualities of reinforcement, was conducted. Finally, treatment packages involving choice making via manding were implemented to decrease inappropriate behavior and to increase mands. The results extended previous applications of choice making to severe behavior disorders and across behaviors maintained by positive and negative reinforcement.
REDUCING THE ILLEGAL SALES OF CIGARETTES TO MINORS: ANALYSIS OF ALTERNATIVE ENFORCEMENT SCHEDULES
Authors: Jason Leonard , Billows William , Schnopp‐Wyatt Daniel , King Caroline
Published: March 2006

The majority of adolescent smokers are able to purchase cigarettes even though laws prohibit the sale of cigarettes to minors (Radecki & Zdunich, 1993). The present study focused on merchant licensing, civil penalties, and monitoring of merchant behavior. Several different schedules of enforcement in the city of Chicago were evaluated to determine the optimal schedules to reduce the sale of cigarettes to minors in a major metropolitan area. Schedules of 2, 4, and 6 months were effective in reducing illegal sales, from 86% to 19%, 87% to 34%, and 87% to 42%, respectively. In a control condition, illegal sales remained high (approximately 84%). Cigarette control laws that regularly enforce civil penalties for tobacco sales violations can successfully reduce minors' access to cigarettes.
DEVELOPING A TECHNOLOGY FOR THE USE OF OPERANT EXTINCTION IN CLINICAL SETTINGS: AN EXAMINATION OF BASIC AND APPLIED RESEARCH
Authors: Lerman Dorothea C. , Iwata Brian A.
Published: March 2006

Extinction of operant behavior, which involves terminating the reinforcement contingency that maintains a response, is important to the development, generalization, and reduction of behavior in clinical settings. We review basic and applied research findings on variables that influence the direct and indirect effects of extinction and discuss the potential value of a general technology for the use of extinction. We suggest that current research findings are not sufficient for the development of a comprehensive, applied technology of extinction and provide extensive guidelines for further studies on factors that may affect the course of extinction in clinical settings.
BRIEF EXPERIMENTAL ANALYSIS OF STIMULUS PROMPTS FOR ACCURATE RESPONDING ON ACADEMIC TASKS IN AN OUTPATIENT CLINIC
Authors: McComas Jennifer J. , Wacker David P. , Cooper Linda J. , Asmus Jennifer M. , Richman David , Stoner Beth
Published: March 2006

Brief multielement designs were used to examine the effects of specific instructional strategies on accuracy of academic performance during outpatient evaluations of 4 children with learning disorders. Instructional strategies that improved accuracy on academic tasks were identified for all participants. These results suggest that the application of experimental analysis methodologies to instructional variables may facilitate the identification of stimulus prompts that are associated with enhanced academic performance.
COMBINING NONCONTINGENT REINFORCEMENT AND DIFFERENTIAL REINFORCEMENT SCHEDULES AS TREATMENT FOR ABERRANT BEHAVIOR
Authors: Marcus Bethany A. , Vollmer Timothy R.
Published: March 2006

Research has shown that noncontingent reinforcement (NCR) can be an effective behavior‐reduction procedure when based on a functional analysis. The effects of NCR may be a result of elimination of the contingency between aberrant behavior and reinforcing consequences (extinction) or frequent and free access to reinforcers that may reduce the participant's motivation to engage in aberrant behaviors or mands. If motivation is momentarily reduced, behavior such as mands may not be sensitive to positive reinforcement. In this study, for 3 children with aberrant behavior maintained by tangible positive reinforcement, differential‐reinforcement‐of‐alternative‐behavior schedules were superimposed on NCR schedules to determine if mands could be strengthened. Results for the participants indicated that NCR did not preclude reinforcement of mands.
SEQUENTIAL APPLICATION OF MAJOR HABIT‐REVERSAL COMPONENTS TO TREAT MOTOR TICS IN CHILDREN
Authors: Woods Douglas W. , Miltenberger Raymond G. , Lumley Vicki A.
Published: March 2006

In this study, we sequentially administered up to four components of the habit‐reversal treatment to 4 children with motor tics within a multiple baseline design. The habit‐reversal components included (a) awareness training; (b) awareness training and self‐monitoring; (c) awareness training, self‐monitoring, and social support; and (d) awareness training, social support, and the use of a competing response. Results demonstrated that the combined use of awareness training, social support, and competing response training was effective in eliminating motor tics in 2 of 4 children, that awareness training alone was effective for 1 child, and that a combination of awareness training and self‐monitoring was effective for the 4th child. The treatment and ensuing improvement were found to be socially valid. We discuss possible explanations for these results and recommend directions for future research.
PEER MODELING OF RESPONSE CHAINS: OBSERVATIONAL LEARNING BY STUDENTS WITH DISABILITIES
Authors: Werts Margaret Gessler , Caldwell Nicola K. , Wolery Mark
Published: March 2006

Peer models (classmates without disabilities) who were proficient in performing a task completed one response chain each day and described the steps they performed while their classmates with disabilities observed. Three students with disabilities participated, and their performance of the response chains was assessed immediately prior to and following the peer modeling each day. A multiple probe design across response chains, replicated across children with disabilities, was used. In addition, participation and social interactions of children with disabilities and their peer models were assessed in classroom activities after daily modeling sessions. The results indicate that the peer models performed the response chains accurately and quickly, and students with disabilities acquired the response chains. Across the study, participation in classroom activities was high, social interactions were low, and neither was affected by the peer modeling intervention.