This conceptual paper considers the role of culture in shaping family, professional, and community understanding of developmental disabilities and their treatments. The meanings of health, illness, and disability vary greatly across cultures and across time. We use Bronfenbrenner's ecological model to provide a theoretical framework for examining…

This commentary on the use of gentle teaching with individuals with developmental disabilities examines the method's assumptions, describes its use of behavioral techniques, and criticizes its ineffectiveness. (JDD)

This paper reviews the functional properties and procedural variations of differential reinforcement for the reduction of behavior disorders in individuals with developmental disabilities. The paper proposes that limited success may be a result of the arbitrary relationship that exists between reinforcers and target behaviors when behavioral…

This commentary on EC 608 302, which discusses behavioral research methodology involving individuals with developmental disabilities, argues that a clear distinction must be made between methods and models, there is a need for more broadly focused intervention studies considering the body of applied practical knowledge, and differences in research…

This commentary on EC 608 301, a paper on behavioral research methodology used with individuals with developmental disabilities, argues that the paper does not portray behavior analysis accurately, advances arguments that may not be reliably enough agreed upon, and seeks to modify reader behavior without sufficiently addressing the variables of…

This paper explores the reasonableness of expecting conventional experimental methodologies and research reports on behavioral interventions for persons with developmental disabilities to both support the validity of promising practices and guide the efforts of practitioners to implement those practices. New directions for research and practice…

This article discusses the successes of behavior analysts in affecting challenging behaviors in persons with developmental disabilities. Three future issues are then addressed: the development of challenging behaviors, the role of rule-governance in challenging behavior, and the behavior of persons who directly apply functional assessment and…

Although the past decade produced great strides in rights protection for developmentally disabled youngsters, they may not be sufficient to the adequate safeguarding of children's rights. This article examines several program components that help to ensure children's rights through effective teaching and treatment methods, emphasizing training and…

This commentary on EC 608 301 points out that devotion to the natural science canon of experimental proof in the area of generality testing requires proof procedures that are difficult, expensive, or impossible, but adopting a different canon of proof will not produce the desired certainty about the accuracy of the answer. (JDD)

This article makes the case for early intervention with young children with both developmental and behavioral problems. It cites intervention research that supports the effectiveness of parent management training and the use of applied behavior analysis, but recognizes the need for randomized controlled trials with adequate follow-up and…

This article reviews the most frequent causes of seizure disorders in young children and the classification of different seizure types. It discusses current therapies, including alternatives to medication. Emergency response to seizures is covered a well as non-epileptic episodes that may resemble seizures. Epilepsy's potential impact on the…