A retrospective analysis of stereotypy: Applicability of the behavioral subtyping model.

Recent research on automatically reinforced self-injurious behavior (ASIB) has identified specific patterns of responding in functional analyses that correlate with intervention efficacy (Hagopian et al., 2015; Hagopian et al., 2017). Whereas research by Hagopian et al. (2015, 2017) points to an important development in the assessment and treatment of ASIB, it is unclear if the applicability extends to automatically reinforced noninjurious behaviors, including stereotypy. Therefore, the current study replicated the methods of Hagopian et al. (2017), extending this research to published cases of stereotypy and related behavior. The behavioral subtype for each case was identified, and where applicable, the subtype was compared to intervention outcome data. The categorization of data sets as either Subtype 1 or Subtype 2 did not correspond with specific treatment outcomes. Unlike the results of Hagopian et al. (2015, 2017), reinforcement-based interventions were not more likely to be effective for Subtype 1 stereotypy than for Subtype 2 stereotypy.

Behavior Momentum Theory and Humans: A Review of the Literature.

Behavioral Momentum Theory (BMT) is often described as analogous to Newton's (1687) laws of motion. That is to say, similar to an object in motion continuing in motion unless acted upon by a force, responses occurring in a static environment will continue to occur at the same rate, unless presented with a disruptor (Nevin, Tota, Torquato, & Shull, Journal of the Experimental Analysis of Behavior, 53, 359-379, 1990). When evaluating response rates through a behavioral momentum framework, responding continuing after a change in reinforcer conditions is said to persist. Previous research conducted with nonhuman animals indicates greater response persistence following conditions with either higher reinforcer rates or higher reinforcer magnitudes (Nevin, Journal of the Experimental Analysis of Behavior, 21(3), 389-408, 1974; Nevin et al., Journal of the Experimental Analysis of Behavior, 53, 359-379, 1990). Although BMT's implications extend across human and nonhuman species, this literature review attempts to provide practitioners and researchers information regarding response persistence across various conditions with human participants.

Transfer of function and prior derived-relations testing.

This experiment assessed transfer of function through equivalence relations with and without prior derived-stimulus-relations (DSR) testing. In a DSR-Testing Group, eight college students learned A-B and A-C discriminations in baseline. They then derived the B-C and C-B equivalence relations before being exposed to a transfer-of-function manipulation and test. Eight participants in a No-DSR Testing Group were exposed to the transfer-of-function manipulation and test immediately after learning the baseline discriminations (i.e., B-C and C-B testing were omitted). In the transfer-of-function manipulation, participants learned to respond differently in the presence of B1 and B2 to avoid money loss. In the transfer-of-function test, responding in the presence of C1 and C2 was measured in the absence of differential consequences. Transfer of function occurred reliably only in the DSR-Testing Group (i.e., participants responding to C1 and C2 in the manner they learned to respond to B1 and B2, respectively). These findings support the notion that prior DSR testing can be critical to observing transfer of function.