Purpose: This article provides benchmark data on within-group effect sizes from published randomized clinical trials supporting the efficacy of dialectical behavioral therapy (DBT) for borderline personality disorder (BPD) in adults aged 18-65 years. Method: Within-group effect sizes were calculated via the Glass approach and adjusted for sample…

Results and a case study for a DBT-enhanced habit reversal treatment (HRT) for adult trichotillomania (TTM) (Keuthen & Sprich, 2012) is adapted for use with adolescents. Trichotillomania in adolescence is a very important but understudied problem. Onset often occurs in adolescence, and yet very little treatment research exists. DBT-enhanced habit…

An experiment with adult humans investigated the effects of response-contingent money loss (response-cost punishment) on monetary-reinforced responding. A yoked-control procedure was used to separate the effects on responding of the response-cost contingency from the effects of reduced reinforcement density. Eight adults pressed buttons for money…

Investigated determinants and predictive utility of client's perception of therapuetic relationship (CPTR) in context of behavior therapy research. CPTR was an effective predictor of dropping out when measured early in therapy, of immediate posttherapy client gains when measured in mid- to late therapy, but not of long-term maintenance.…

This paper presents a method for distinguishing between extinction and punishment effects. In extinction and punishment, different schedules of reinforcement or punishment are in effect when a given proportion of responses is blocked. Response patterns in treatment of hand mouthing in an adult with profound mental retardation suggest that a…

Presents one-year follow-up of clients completing a behavioral weight reduction program at Stanford University's Eating Disorders Clinic. Clients maintained in-treatment weight loss over the follow-up period, but there was marked variability and a low correlation between in-treatment and posttreatment performance. Clients reported significant…

The self-injurious escape behavior of an adult with developmental disabilities was treated with extinction. Results of a reversal design showed substantial bursts of responding when extinction was introduced and reintroduced: self-injury remained at a variable and elevated rate for some time before stable, low rates were observed. (Author/DB)

Generalization across three stimulus parameters (therapist, setting, and demands) was examined for five men with severe/profound mental retardation whose self-injurious behavior was maintained by escape from task demands. Variables were held constant during the escape extinction treatment. Full or partial generalization to novel situations was…

This newsletter, focusing on literature and research on cognitive behavior modification (CBM), reviews articles and research on CBM with children. Works on retarded children, deaf children and children with learning disabilities are presented, with critical analyses. A parallel section on CBM with adults follows. Problem areas of phobias, anxiety,…

Results of a functional analysis indicted that the hand mouthing of a woman with profound mental retardation was maintained by multiple sources of control (sensory stimulation and access to a leisure item). Hand mouthing, though maintained by automatic reinforcement, was also susceptible to social contingencies when exposed to them during…

This paper summarizes basic research on response effort in diverse applied areas including deceleration of aberrant behavior, attention deficit-hyperactivity disorder, oral habits, littering, and problem solving. The paper concludes that response effort as an independent variable has potent effects, and research exploring the applied benefits of…

Commitment is a self-control technique to induce weight loss. Tow targets of commitment contingencies, completion of the study and behavior change, were examined among 42 female and 3 male subjects who made a monetary deposit to enroll in the 10-week program. The treatment consisted of self-monitoring of eating and exercise behavior. Subjects were…

Depression has been one of the last categories of psychopathology to be seriously investigated. A self-control behavior therapy program for depression was evaluated against a therapist-control behavior therapy program in an attempt to isolate the effects of control on alleviation of depression and to improve research designs. Clinically depressed…

Three individuals with multiple severe disabilities were taught an appropriate response to problem behaviors, but the response was less efficient than the problem behavior on physical effort, schedule of reinforcement, or stimulus-reinforcer time delay. The response did not compete successfully with the problem behaviors until a new, more…

Four papers address issues related to behavioral training approaches to help mentally retarded persons secure competitive employment. In the first, a combination of role-playing, modeling, and response feedback was systematically applied to accelerate appropriate responses of a 33-year old moderately retarded male to criticism, humor, and…