This review of 50 social validation research studies involving persons with handicaps concludes that social validation procedures are an appropriate and important component of applied behavior analysis. Discussed are methodological issues, social importance of effects, social significance of goals, social appropriateness of procedures, and…

A review of 158 applied behavior analysis studies with children as subjects, published in the "Journal of Applied Behavior Analysis" between 1980 and 1990, found that (1) 16% measured the accuracy of independent variable implementation, and (2) two-thirds did not operationally define components of the independent variable. Specific recommendations…

Criticizes an earlier essay that questioned the validity of contemporary educational research practices, especially those involving experimentation. Argues that research using experimentation is valid and can lead to new and generalizable knowledge. (FMW)

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…

An endless debate in social science research focuses on whether or not there is a philosophical basis for justifying the application of scientific methods to social inquiry. A review of the philosophies of various scholars in the field indicates that there is no single procedure for arriving at a valid statement in a scientific inquiry. Natural…

This paper discusses the practice of social validity assessment in applied behavior analysis, proposes elements that should be included in state-of-the art assessment procedures, offers a taxonomy of consumers to guide the construction and circulation of assessments, and suggests strategies to improve social validity assessment. (JDD)

This paper argues that many social validity processes in applied behavior analysis are actually measuring consumer satisfaction and not the habilitative validity of goals, procedures, or outcomes. The term "habilitative validation" is proposed to replace social validity, and use of more objective assessment methods is encouraged.…