Applying signal-detection theory to the study of observer accuracy and bias in behavioral assessment.

We evaluated the feasibility and utility of a laboratory model for examining observer accuracy within the framework of signal-detection theory (SDT). Sixty-one individuals collected data on aggression while viewing videotaped segments of simulated teacher-child interactions. The purpose of Experiment 1 was to determine if brief feedback and contingencies for scoring accurately would bias responding reliably. Experiment 2 focused on one variable (specificity of the operational definition) that we hypothesized might decrease the likelihood of bias. The effects of social consequences and information about expected behavior change were examined in Experiment 3. Results indicated that feedback and contingencies reliably biased responding and that the clarity of the definition only moderately affected this outcome.

Separate and combined effects of visual schedules and extinction plus differential reinforcement on problem behavior occasioned by transitions.

The separate and combined effects of visual schedules and extinction plus differential reinforcement of other behavior (DRO) were evaluated to decrease transition-related problem behavior of 2 children diagnosed with autism. Visual schedules alone were ineffective in reducing problem behavior when transitioning from preferred to nonpreferred activities. Problem behavior decreased for both participants when extinction and DRO were introduced, regardless of whether visual schedules were also used.

Further evaluation of a brief, intensive teacher-training model.

The purpose of this study was to further evaluate the outcomes of a model program that was designed to train current teachers of children with autism. Nine certified special education teachers participating in an intensive 5-day summer training program were taught a relatively large number of specific skills in two areas (preference assessment and direct teaching). The teachers met the mastery criteria for all of the skills during the summer training. Follow-up observations up to 6 months after training suggested that the skills generalized to their classrooms and were maintained for most teachers with brief feedback only.

Using behavior analysis to examine the outcomes of unproven therapies: an evaluation of hyperbaric oxygen therapy for children with autism.

It has become increasingly common for parents of children with autism to supplement behavior analytic interventions with therapies that have not yet been subjected to adequate scientific scrutiny. When caregivers elect to use unproven therapies despite advice to the contrary, practitioners should employ the methods of applied behavior analysis to experimentally evaluate the outcomes. Controlled evaluations of unproven therapies can be challenging, however, particularly when ongoing behavioral services are supplemented with biomedical interventions. This paper describes the methods and results of a behavior analytic evaluation of hyperbaric oxygen therapy, an unproven intervention that has been growing in popularity over the past several years. Three young children with autism participated. No benefits of the therapy were evident beyond those obtained through the behavioral intervention alone. Considerations for conducting this type of research are highlighted, along with suggestions for practitioners.

Assessing preferences for positive and negative reinforcement during treatment of destructive behavior with functional communication training.

Results of prior studies (e.g. [J. Appl. Behav. Anal. 32 (1999) 285]) showing that participants chose alternative behavior (compliance) over escape-reinforced destructive behavior when this latter response produced escape and the former response produced positive reinforcement may have been due to (a) the value of the positive reinforcer overriding the value of the negative reinforcer or (b) the presence of the positive reinforcer altering the value of the negative reinforcer (i.e., lessening the aversiveness of the demands). In this investigation we evaluated the relative contributions of these alternative mechanisms with two girls with autism. We compared the relative effects of positive and negative reinforcement using equivalent communication responses under both a restricted-choice condition (in which participants could choose positive or negative reinforcement, but not both) and an unrestricted-choice condition (in which participants could choose one or both reinforcers). Both participants often chose positive over negative reinforcement in the restricted-choice condition. However, in the unrestricted-choice condition (in which participants could choose one or both reinforcers), one participant consistently chose both reinforcers by the end of the analysis whereas the other primarily chose only positive reinforcement. Results suggested that for one participant the value of the positive reinforcer overrode the value of the negative reinforcer, whereas for the other participant, the presence of the positive reinforcer in the demand context lessened the aversiveness of the demands.

An evaluation of response cost in the treatment of inappropriate vocalizations maintained by automatic reinforcement.

In the current study, we examined the utility of a procedure consisting of noncontingent reinforcement with and without response cost in the treatment of inappropriate vocalizations maintained by automatic reinforcement. Results are discussed in terms of examining the variables that contribute to the effectiveness of response cost as treatment for problem behavior maintained by automatic reinforcement.