A number of cognitive-behavior therapies now strongly emphasize particular behavioral processes as mediators of clinical change specific to that therapy. This shift in emphasis calls for the development of measures sensitive to changes in the therapies' processes. Among these is acceptance and commitment therapy (ACT), which posits valued living…

Assessment and identification of children with emotional and behavioral disorders (EBD) is complex and involves multiple techniques, levels, and participants. While federal law sets the general parameters for identification in school settings, these criteria are vague and may lead to inconsistencies in selection and interpretation of assessment…

A controversy has emerged about the relationship between positive behavior support and applied behavior analysis. Some behavior analysts suggest that positive behavior support and applied behavior analysis are the same (e.g., Carr & Sidener, 2002). Others argue that positive behavior support is harmful to applied behavior analysis (e.g., Johnston,…

Positive behavior support (PBS) emerged in the mid-1980s as an approach for understanding and addressing problem behaviors. PBS was derived primarily from applied behavior analysis (ABA). Over time, however, PBS research and practice has incorporated evaluative methods, assessment and intervention procedures, and conceptual perspectives associated…

Many researchers and clinicians believe that the therapeutic relationship is essential in bringing about clinical change. Empirical research to support this contention is scarce in part due to the difficulty of specifying and measuring theoretically derived mechanisms of change and the important dimensions of the client-therapist relationship.…

The authors describe the development and validation of the Avoidance and Fusion Questionnaire for Youth (AFQ-Y), a child-report measure of psychological inflexibility engendered by high levels of cognitive fusion and experiential avoidance. Consistent with the theory underlying acceptance and commitment therapy (ACT), items converged into a…

Data suggesting that cognitive-behavioral therapy (CBT) is efficacious for late-life anxiety are accumulating; however, effectiveness has not been well established. Incorporating CBT for anxiety into home care is needed to facilitate access to evidenced-based treatment for a growing population of community-dwelling, functionally impaired elderly…

Care managers, including nurses and social workers, often lack information that would help them more effectively target services to caregivers' needs. Useful information includes the type of services that will be most helpful for caregivers and the best time to start using these services. Generally, caregivers are simply told what services they…

This article describes two models for thinking about the purposes of health education--a medical model and an education model--and traces how concerns about the validity of research have driven preference for the medical model. In the medical model, the purpose of health education is to develop effective interventions that will prevent people from…

The 3-year project developed self-instructional programs and evaluated parent use of these programs (approximately 185 families) to improve behavior problems of their handicapped children, aged 3 to 9. The project's format included five goals (e.g., determination of the degree to which parents can treat behavioral problems without professional…