More is known about how to reduce challenging behavior with functional communication training (FCT) than how to mitigate its resurgence during or following a course of treatment. Research suggests reinforcing mand variability during FCT may mitigate the resurgence of challenging behavior, but validated procedures for reinforcing mand variability…

Manding for preferred items and activities is a critical skill for young children with autism spectrum disorder (ASD). However, little research has evaluated procedures to teach children with ASD to mand with their peers. This study evaluated the effects of a teaching package involving least-to-most prompting to increase peer-directed vocal…

Skinner's conceptual analysis of language has influenced one model of early and intensive behavioral intervention with children, which incorporates verbal operants including mands, tacts, intraverbals, etc. Many studies have examined the mand and tact relations, with little focus on teaching intraverbal behavior. In the present experiment,…

The investigation sought to teach a sequence of arrival behaviors to a severely mentally retarded 12-year-old child living in an institution. Withdrawal and reintroduction of the pacing prompts established that increases in independent arrival behavior were attributed to the pacing prompts. (Author/SB)

A multiply-handicapped totally dependent young adult exhibited a steadily increasing rate of response in learning to turn her radio on and off by moving her head to activate a controlling device mounted on the headrest of her wheelchair. Positive reinforcement, prompting, and fading were employed during the intervention (Author/JW)

Two experiments to replicate P. E. Touchette's findings on the delayed prompt effect, with 34 subjects having mental retardation, found more variable results, with all five of the possible outcomes occurring with some subjects. The paper concludes that successful use of the delayed prompt technique depends on such factors as difficulty of target…