The study evaluated a reinforcement theory of stereotyped behavior with six autistic students (ages 9-16). Three students evidenced decreases in stereotypy and increases in responding in the presence of usual reinforcers, while the other three students required external suppression of stereotypy before increases in responding were shown.…

The effects of two levels of exercise (walking versus jogging) in suppressing the self-stimulatory behavior during academic programming of a 5-year-old boy with autism were examined. Decreased physical self-stimulation and "out of seat" behavior were found only for the jogging condition. Sharp reductions in these behaviors did not return…

This study evaluated use of the interpolation of reinforcement effect, which combines intermittent (INT) and continuous reinforcement (CRF) schedules, with four young children with autism using a free-operant preparation. Results suggest that responding may be less resistant to extinction following interpolated CRF reinforcement than following INT…

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…

Level of spontaneous social initiating by three adult caregivers toward a youth with autism was studied during a program to increase the youth's level of social initiating. The youth's social initiations toward each adult were systematically reinforced. Frequency of spontaneous initiating toward the youth increased for each adult as the youth's…

In this preliminary study, three parents who requested outpatient services for treatment of developmentally disabled children's problem behavior were taught to implement multiple treatment components. Therapists employed the most cost-efficient method first (i.e., written and verbal instructions) to teach prescribed behavior management strategies.…

A brief functional analysis indicated that the object mouthing of a young girl diagnosed with autism was maintained independent of social consequences. Separate and combined effects of response blocking and non-contingent reinforcement were then evaluated as treatments. Although both interventions were unsuccessful when implemented separately,…

Twelve individuals (ages 3-43) with severe/profound mental retardation and life-threatening self-injurious behaviors were exposed to electrical aversion treatment using a remotely controlled device. With seven individuals, suppression of the behavior was nearly complete in that physical restraints were no longer necessary. With three individuals,…

Analysis of 117 research articles reporting use of behavioral interventions with single subjects with autism concluded that behavioral treatments are effective in reducing problematic behaviors. Type of target behavior and type of treatment did not moderate average treatment effect. Reliability of observation, number of treatment data points, and…

This paper reviews the literature on functional assessment in the behavioral treatment of aggression in persons with mental retardation or developmental delays. Increased use of functional assessment and skill training is noted but no concomitant decrease in the use of intrusive procedures. (Author/DB)

Eighty-five British mothers of children with autism who were acting as therapists for their child's program completed a questionnaire. Results indicated that, although program variables were unrelated to maternal therapeutic self-efficacy, support received from the program, the severity of the child's autism, and maternal stress were significant…

The rate of self-injurious head hitting in an eight-year old with severe/profound mental retardation was reduced using contingent electric shock delivered via the Self Injurious Behavior Inhibiting System. An improved affective state and increased interaction with the environment were documented. Treatment gains were maintained at one-year…

A content analysis, consisting of 24 items covering behavior specification, objectives, program procedures, data collection, and quality assurance, was applied to 141 written behavior reduction programs of 2 large residential institutions for individuals with developmental disabilities. Use of the content analysis is recommended for program…

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…

This study evaluated a multicomponent treatment package with three adults having profound mental retardation who engaged in self-injurious hand mouthing. The intervention, which involved brief response interruption followed by the introduction of a preferred leisure item, was successfully implemented during both individual and small group…