Maintenance and generalization have been inconsistently defined in the behavior analytic literature. The term "treatment relapse" is used commonly in the medical and mental health literature to refer to the return of a condition that was previously considered successfully treated. Basic behavioral researchers have studied relapse related…

This study provides an in-depth examination of the understanding and implementation of cognitive-- behavioural approaches (CBA) by Australian teachers of students with both autism spectrum disorder and intellectual disability. Semistructured interviews were completed with 13 New South Wales teachers and several themes emerged. Interviewed teachers…

A functional approach to intervention planning has been shown to be effective in reducing problem behaviors and promoting appropriate behaviors in children and youth with behavior disorders. When function-based intervention plans are not successful, it is often due to issues of treatment integrity in which teachers omit or do not sufficiently…

California's state youth correctional system, the Division of Juvenile Justice (DJJ), is violent, isolated, and lacks accountability. Fights and riots are a part of daily life and create a culture of fear. DJJ's violent conditions are concealed by an absence of state oversight and the facilities' long distances from youths' families and…

This study aimed to examine the effectiveness of a simplified habit reversal procedure (SHR) using differential reinforcement of incompatible behaviour (DRI) and a stimulus prompt (GaitSpot Auditory Squeakers) to reduce the frequency of idiopathic toe-walking (ITW) and increase the frequency of correct heel-to-toe-walking in three children with…

Cummings and Carr (2009) compared two methods of data collection in a behavioral intervention program for children with pervasive developmental disorders: collecting data on all trials versus only the first trial in a session. Results showed that basing a child's progress on first-trial data resulted in identifying mastery-level responding…

We evaluated the influence of two different frequencies of data collection on skill acquisition and maintenance within behavioral treatment programs for children with autism spectrum disorders. Six children were taught multiple skills in up to four different behavioral programs. Half of the skills were measured continuously (i.e., trial by trial),…

This bridge study evaluated the effects of contingency-specifying instructions (CSIs) and incomplete instructions (IIs) in terms of establishing instructional control of appropriate behavior. Results suggested that instructional control and maintenance were achieved with CSIs but not with IIs. Results are discussed in terms of the potential use of…

Behavioral treatments are perhaps the cornerstone of modern obesity treatment. Maintenance of weight lost via behavioral treatments has been less than hoped for, however. Weight regain is the result of complex interactions between physiological, behavioral, cognitive, and environmental factors; in this paper we review some of these factors and…

The generality and long-term maintenance of a pairing procedure designed to improve the efficacy of less intrusive procedures were evaluated for the treatment of problem behavior maintained by automatic reinforcement exhibited by 2 individuals with developmental disabilities. Results suggested that a less intrusive procedure could be established…

This study evaluated the effectiveness of a reinforcement-based toilet training intervention with three children with autism. Procedures included positive reinforcement, graduated guidance, scheduled practice trials, and forward prompting. All three children reduced urination accidents to zero and learned to request bathroom use spontaneously…

Seventeen convicted male child sexual offenders underwent brief structured group treatment to reduce denial of sexual offenses. Treatment consisted of victim empathy, cognitive restructuring, assertiveness and social skills, education about sex offender therapy, and other elements. Following treatment, the majority of offenders came out of denial…

This replication study found that only 16 of 55 raters agreed on the category of reinforcement maintaining a disabled individual's self-injurious behavior after using the Motivation Assessment Scale. Additionally, only 15 percent of the correlation coefficients obtained were above 80 percent, and none of the reliability scores was above 80…

The study evaluated a positive behavior therapy approach to managing disruptive screaming and crying in a classroom setting by a ten-year-old female with severe retardation, visual impairment, and physical disabilities. Auditory stimulation decreased disruptive behavior to zero levels, and gains were maintained at five-month followup. (Author/DB)

This study examined the effect of a social-behavioral learning strategy intervention (SODA) on the social interaction skills of 4 elementary school children with Asperger syndrome (AS). More specifically, the study investigated the effect of SODA training on the abilities of 4 children with AS to participate in cooperative learning activities,…