Search

We examined whether the results of a response-restriction analysis (RRA) could be predicted on the basis of response distribution in early sessions, when these sessions indicated interaction with multiple items. Four preschool-aged children participated. For 3 of the 4 participants, the results from sessions conducted prior to restriction of the first item corresponded closely with results of the full RRA.

If the members of a functional response class occur in a predictable order, a response-class hierarchy is said to exist. Although this topic has received some attention in the applied literature, it remains relatively understudied. The purpose of the current investigation was to develop an analogue model of a response-class hierarchy. Children with and without developmental disabilities were first taught three responses in an attempt to develop a functional response class ordered along the dimension of response effort (Experiment 1). Following response-class development, an extinction analysis was used to determine whether the responses were hierarchically related (Experiment 2). Results of Experiment 1 indicated that a functional response class was developed, and that there was a relation between response rate and effort for the established response class. Results of Experiment 2 indicated that a response-class hierarchy existed within the previously developed response classes for 3 of 4 participants.

B. F. Skinner's (1957) "Verbal Behavior" had a limited influence on empirical research in the first few decades following its publication, but an increase in empirical activity has been evident in recent years. The purpose of this article is to update previous analyses that have quantified the influence of "Verbal Behavior" on the scholarly literature, with an emphasis on its impact on empirical research. Study 1 was a citation analysis that showed an increase in citations to "Verbal Behavior" from 2005 to 2016 relative to earlier time periods. In particular, there was a large increase in citations from empirical articles. Study 2 identified empirical studies in which a verbal operant was manipulated or measured, regardless of whether or not "Verbal Behavior" was cited, and demonstrated a large increase in publication rate, with an increasing trend in the publication of both basic and applied experimental analyses throughout the review period. A majority of the studies were concerned with teaching verbal behavior to children with autism spectrum disorder and other developmental disabilities, but a variety of other basic and applied research topics were also represented. The results suggest a clearly increasing impact of "Verbal Behavior" on the experimental analysis of behavior on the 60th anniversary of the book's publication.

An archival study was conducted to document (a) types of challenging behavior, and (b) functional assessment outcomes, for a sample of persons with developmental disabilities who were referred to community-practicing behavior analysts for assessment and treatment of challenging behavior. Functional assessment reports, prepared by 17 behavior analysts, were obtained on 174 individuals who presented with total of 536 challenging behaviors that were assessed separately. The most frequent topographical class of behavior was physical aggression, followed by verbal aggression, noncompliance, property destruction, inappropriate verbal and social behavior, and self-injury. Functional assessment yielded a single hypothesized function for 53.2% of all behaviors, but multiple functions for 41.0%. Attention was the most commonly hypothesized function for most topographies of behavior. This finding may be attributable to sample characteristics, or to the use of informant-based functional assessment methods for a majority of sample cases. (Contains 5 tables and 1 figure.)

Abstract: Early and intensive behavioral intervention (EIBI) has been demonstrated to be a highly effective treatment for early childhood autism. As EIBI programs have proliferated, they have also begun to mutate and evolve such that between-program differences in specific practices are quite common. Unfortunately, the extent of this procedural variability is unknown. The purpose of the present investigation was to begin documenting the specific practices of EIBI programs. A 43-question Internet survey was distributed to professional supervisors of EIBI programs who provided information regarding their program’s characteristics and practices. A total of 211 program supervisors provided information on a number of practices, including curriculum, program size, therapist expertise and training, supervision, data collection, trial interspersal, consequence delivery, prompt fading, skill maintenance, and problem behavior assessment and treatment. The results indicate considerable variation in a number of EIBI practices. The implications of these findings are discussed. [Copyright &y& Elsevier]