Early identification of social-emotional behavioral problems in infants and preschoolers is critical. Nine parent-report and caregiver/teacher-report instruments measuring preschool social-emotional behavioral problems and strengths are reviewed. Advantages to the use of parent-report and caregiver/teacher-report instruments are that they are easy…

Community coalitions (CCs) have labored with some difficulty to demonstrate empirical evidence of effectiveness in preventing a wide range of adolescent problem behaviors. Training and technical assistance (TA) have been identified as important elements in promoting improved functioning of CCs. A reliable, valid, and inexpensive method to assess…

Procedures are proposed for increasing the accuracy of generalization assessment in applied behavior analysis with behavior problem populations by accounting for the degree of natural covariation between treated and untreated behaviors. (Author/DB)

Functional assessment is redefining the standards for clinical interventions with problem behavior and reemphasizing the importance of basic behavioral mechanisms. It has shown the importance of complex patterns of behavioral control, functional assessment as an ongoing process, and the importance of attention to antecedent variables. Future…

This commentary outlines considerations in assessing (and programing for) social validity to attain results that are valued by client audiences. It discusses the objectives and contexts of several types of social validation, procedures for conducting a social validation, and questions addressed by researchers in assessing social validity. (JDD)

Seven parents conducted assessments in an outpatient clinic using a prescribed hierarchy of antecedent and consequence treatment components for their children's problem behavior. Brief assessment of potential treatment components identified variables controlling children's appropriate behavior. Experimental control was achieved for six of the…

This commentary summarizes methodological and conceptual issues in functional analysis methodologies and offers some suggestions for their resolution. Considered are increasing complexity, absence of contingencies during assessment, use of subtle manipulations, alternative assessment strategies, analysis of antecedent influences on behavior,…

In this study, interrater reliability of the Motivation Assessment Scale (MAS) was investigated utilizing 84 direct-care staff members familiar with 42 adults with moderate to profound mental retardation. Problematic overt behaviors were evaluated using the MAS. MAS items were found to be moderately but significantly reliable across raters.…

Functional analysis conducted during a 90-minute evaluation session identified maintaining variables for aggressive behavior and an alternative replacement response in 3 individuals with severe handicaps. During a subsequent contingency reversal phase, aggressive behavior was substantially reduced and alternative behavior increased. Results…

A behavioral assessment procedure was evaluated with five children with severe/profound mental retardation who exhibited feeding problems of limited intake. Subjects were fed various types of foods. Results indicated each subject fit into one of four categories: (1) total food refusal, (2) food type selectivity, (3) food texture selectivity, or…

This study evaluated a method for assessing the behavioral function of severe self-injury in four adults with severe/profound mental retardation. Initial assessment included analyzing within-session trends and fluctuations in rates of self-injury by plotting the frequency within each minute of the session. (DB)

This study developed an experimental analysis procedure based on the results of a descriptive assessment, involving five parents and their children with problem behaviors. The experimental analysis required only four sessions to demonstrate a function for each subject's problem behaviors. Interventions involving functional communication training…

Time-based lag sequential analyses were conducted on 23 topographies of challenging behavior shown by 5 young people with severe mental retardation across 2 settings. Potential behavioral functions were identified for 21 of the 23 behaviors. Response classes were identified for four participants. Cross-validation with brief experimental analyses…

Four staff members completed 3 questionnaires evaluating quantitative and qualitative aspects of compulsive and autistic behaviors of 17 young autistic adults in a farmstead residential facility. Results affirmed the utility and applicability of obsessive-compulsive assessment devices in evaluating behavior of autistic adults. (Author/DB)

This paper reports on a study designed to assess the impact of problems in the system for the evaluation of student performance on student disengagement from high school. The study is guided by the theory of evaluation and authority developed by Dornbusch and Scott. Surveys administered to a 5 percent sample of students (N=293) in four suburban…