How to Administer the Performance Diagnostic Checklist-Human Services.

The Performance Diagnostic Checklist-Human Services (PDC-HS) is a performance analysis tool used to identify barriers to performance in human-service settings. Multiple published studies have used the PDC-HS to determine effective interventions (Wilder et al. Journal of Applied Behavior Analysis 53(2), 1170-1176, 2020). However, in a recent discussion article proposing guidelines for administering the PDC-HS, Brand et al. Behavior Analysis in Practice, 1-7 (2022) noted that procedural descriptions provided for administering the PDC-HS are somewhat ambiguous in the published literature. The purpose of the current systematic review was to compare methods used to administer the PDC-HS. Fifteen articles met inclusion criteria and were coded to evaluate commonalities among PDC-HS components. Authors generally agreed on how the outcomes of the PDC-HS were depicted and discussed but varied in their descriptions of methods used to administer the PDC-HS. Results are discussed in terms of the importance of technological descriptions and directions for future research towards the development of a more standardized tool. Supplementary Information: The online version contains supplementary material available at 10.1007/s40617-023-00848-3.

Caregiver involvement in applied behavior-analytic research: A scoping review and discussion.

We conducted a scoping review to characterize the role of caregiver involvement in behavior-analytic research. We reviewed eight behavioral-learning journals from 2011-2022 for works that included children or caregivers as participants and characterized caregiver involvement as passive (implications for caregivers, input, social validity) and active (implementation, caregiver behavior, training, caregiver-collected data). The review identified 228 studies, and almost all (96.1%; n = 219) involved caregivers in some capacity; 94.3% (n = 215) had passive involvement (26.8% had only passive involvement; n = 61), 69.3% (n = 158) had active involvement (1.8% had only active involvement; n = 4), and 3.9% (n = 9) had neither passive nor active involvement. Involvement generally increased over publication years. The most common types of involvement were implications for caregivers, implementation, and input; caregiver-collected data were rare. We propose considerations when engaging caregivers in research and suggest new avenues of inquiry related to caregivers' treatment objectives and social validity, treatment implementers, and caregiver-collected data.

Assessing Parameters of Reinforcement on Efficiency of Acquisition: A Systematic Review.

Discrete-trial training (DTT) is a common method of instruction used in early intervention amongindividuals with autism spectrum disorder and related neurodevelopmental disorders and is an effective method of teaching different skills such as tacting, listener responding, and matching. Delivery of effective reinforcers is a key component of DTT. Although general recommendations have been made for effective reinforcement delivery in DTT, no review has synthesized the available research on the efficiency of various reinforcer parameters on efficiency of acquisition. The current systematic review assessed the efficiency of various reinforcer parameters on acquisition in DTT. Results were idiosyncratic, and a general paucity of repeated measures examining specific reinforcer parameters within and across studies was observed. In general, (1) maintaining high levels of treatment integrity, (2) delivery of tangible (i.e. leisure items) or edible reinforcers in comparison with contingent praise as a reinforcer, and (3) delivery of edible reinforcers in comparison with other topographies of reinforcement were the most successful reinforcer parameter manipulations and always resulted in more efficient skill acquisition. The results of this review provide clinicians with information regarding what reinforcer parameter manipulations may be more or less likely to support efficient acquisition. The present review also provides considerations and makes recommendations for future research.

Increasing selection of and engagement in physical activity in children with autism spectrum disorder.

Children with autism spectrum disorder (ASD) engage in reduced levels of physical activity relative to neurotypical children. Researchers conducted 2 studies to 1) evaluate the influence of the number of physical activity options and effort on choice and 2) develop a token-based intervention to increase physical activity engagement and evaluate whether the opportunity to access the intervention supported responding similar to physical or sedentary activity alone. Four children with ASD participated. Additional physical activity options alone did not increase physical activity selection, but increased effort reduced selection of sedentary activity. Tokens increased physical activity for 2 participants. A combination of physical and sedentary activities maintained as much as or more responding than either activity in isolation for all participants. Limitations and potential areas of future research on choice and physical activity are discussed.

A Review on Functional Analyses of Tics.

Tic disorders are characterized by a class of responses assumed to be neurobiological in origin. Still, several studies have shown that tic frequency can be influenced by antecedent environmental events and social consequences. Prior reviews have summarized the effects of environmental events but have not examined relations between tic diagnosis, behavioral deficits (e.g., intellectual disability), tic topography, and the consequences observed to maintain tics. These variables might be important when attempting to predict or identify relevant consequences. A more thorough understanding of the variables that maintain and give rise to tics might also be useful in predicting responsiveness to treatment and intervention refinement. We reviewed and summarized results from the 13 attempts to experimentally identify maintaining consequences for tics (i.e., functional analyses) that have been published to date. We examined patterns of functions across tic diagnoses (i.e., Tourette's syndrome or not), communication impairments (i.e., an intellectual disability or reported language difficulty), and tic topography. Results suggested that individuals with Tourette's syndrome and those without communication impairments are more likely to have functional analysis outcomes consistent with automatic reinforcement, but exceptions in both directions highlight the utility of functional analysis in treating tics.

The effects of exercise and calm interactions on in-kennel behavior of shelter dogs.

Over-activity, or excessive locomotion and barking in the kennel, may be unattractive to adopters and an indicator of poor welfare of kenneled dogs. The study assessed the efficacy of two common enrichment strategies, providing calm interaction and additional exercise, on in-kennel behavior in 16 shelter dogs. Both interventions resulted in appropriate behavior just prior to the sessions (t=2.10, df=7, p=0.03 and F [2216]=7.58, p=0.0007, respectively), but both also resulted in an increase of some undesirable behaviors immediately after the dogs were taken back to their kennels (F [3216]=7.77, p=0.0001 and F (5216)=10.1, p<0.0001 respectively). Right after receiving additional exercise, the dogs spent more time in back and forth motion in the kennel. Right after receiving the calm interaction, the dogs spent less time in the front of the kennel, less time facing forward, and more time engaging in back and forth motion. However, dogs also spent less time barking and jumping on the kennel door right after the calm interaction. The results suggest that both interventions may be useful, but shelter administrators and volunteers must take all of the behavioral changes into account when administering these interventions.