The Good Behavior Game (GBG) is an effective intervention to reduce disruptive behavior. The GBG typically involves immediate stimulus presentation (e.g., delivery of a token) following disruptions; however, experimenters have also removed tokens contingent upon disruptions. In the present study, we compared the effects of the GBG-stimulus…

Successful conversation requires that the speaker's behavior is sensitive to nonvocal listener responses. We observed children with autism spectrum disorder during conversation probes in which a listener periodically displayed nonvocal cues that she was uninterested in the conversation. We used behavioral skills training to teach conversation…

This experiment investigated the combined use of visual prompts, daily feedback, and rewards to reduce electricity consumption in a university residential hall. After a 17-day baseline period, the experimental intervention was introduced in the intervention hall, and no change was made in the control hall. Energy usage decreased in the…

Bruxism, forceful grinding of one's teeth together, can produce destructive outcomes such as wear on the teeth and damaged gums and bone structures. The current study implemented a multicomponent intervention that consisted of vocal and physical cues to decrease rates of bruxism. A partial component analysis suggested that the vocal cue was only…

The effects of providing descriptive prompts to increase activity attendance and engagement in 6 individuals with dementia were evaluated using a reversal design. The results showed that providing descriptive prompts increased activity attendance and engagement for all participants. The results support the use of antecedent interventions for…

Behavioral procedures were used to modify the food choices of eight preschoolers (ages 3 to 6) during a snack period at school (training setting) and at home (generalization setting). Results showed an increase in healthy snack choices in the training setting. Generalization to home was achieved only with specific implementation procedures.…

The escape-maintained destructive behavior of an 8-year-old girl with mental retardation persisted during hygiene routines with directive prompting, differential reinforcement for compliance, and extinction as treatment. Using nondirective prompting and noncontingent reinforcement, destructive behavior was reduced to near-zero levels during the…

A systematic sequence of prompt and probe trials was used to teach picture names to three severely retarded children (aged 4). For all children the fixed ratio schedule for correct responses to prompts, combined with the every correct response reinforced schedule for correct responses to probes, generated the best results. (Author/PHR)

Effects of using dashboard stickers and signature sheets providing information on safety belt regulations were evaluated among 893 occupants of state-owned vehicles in three Florida agencies. Safety belt use increased significantly during the intervention phase in all three agencies and maintained variable but high levels for five months. (JW)

Three children (ages 4-5) with autism and mental retardation were treated for deficits in self-initiated speech. A treatment package employing visual cue fading was compared with a graduated time-delay procedure. Both treatments included training multiple self-initiated verbalizations using multiple therapists and settings. Both treatments were…

Prompting, positive and negative reinforcement, and a gradually extended reinforcement schedule were used with three autistic clients (two six-year-olds and one adolescent) to teach them to maintain on-task behaviors without constant supervision. Results indicated that appropriate behavior could be successfully maintained with only infrequent and…

This study assessed the effectiveness of posting signs for reducing graffiti in three men's restrooms on a college campus. Immediately following the intervention, no marks were made, and results were maintained at three-month follow-up. A possible explanation for the results is that the signs specified an altruistic contingency. (Author/DB)

A brief inservice program followed by supervisory prompts and feedback provided to 39 education staff in 21 classrooms serving 152 severely handicapped students was consistently accompanied by increased student involvement in functional educational tasks. Improved services continued throughout a two-year follow-up period. (Author/JW)