Restricted and repetitive behaviors (RRB) are observed in young children with intellectual and developmental delays or disabilities (DD) including autism spectrum disorders (ASD). Self-injurious behavior is often considered an extreme form of RRB, but the nature of the relation between SIB and other forms of RRBs is not completely understood.…

Background: There is a need for a more accurate characterisation of higher level restricted and repetitive behaviour (RRB) in autism spectrum disorder (ASD), including why it might be considered problematic and events associated with its occurrence. Method: We selected one form of higher level RRB--arranging and ordering--that was rated as severe…

Sensory processing (SP) difficulties have been reported in as many as 95% of children with autism, however, empirical research examining the existence of specific patterns of SP difficulties within this population is scarce. Furthermore, little attention has been given to examining the relationship between SP and either the core symptoms or…

A sequence of behaviors consisting of appropriate responses, inappropriate responses, or a combination of both can be linked together in a behavior chain. Several operant processes may disrupt behavior chains. For example, one or more members of the behavior chain may be affected when reinforcement is withheld for the last response in the chain…

Behaviors that are appropriate, inappropriate, or a combination of both can be linked together in a behavior chain. When the contingencies for one response change (e.g., reinforcement is withheld for the last response in the chain; the last response is reinforced even if it occurs without the other responses in the chain) or the environmental…

The relationship between abnormal stereotyped behaviors and abnormal focused affections was examined in 20 children (ages 7-13) with developmental disabilities. Results include all children with abnormal focused affections exhibited stereotypes; abnormal focused affects could be studied reliably in this population through several methodologies;…

Relative prevalence of stereotyped behaviors was studied with 246 children and adults with developmental disabilities. Two staff members completed a 54-item checklist assessing stereotyped behaviors, abnormal focused affections, compulsions, rigidity, savant skills, and defensiveness. Factor analyses produced weak evidence for a general stereotypy…

This study examined structural characteristics and environmental variables in the stereotypic behaviors of eight individuals with developmental disabilities. Findings indicated that structural characteristics (percentage of time, bout length, and bout length variability) were highly correlated. Also, stereotyped behaviors were more likely to occur…

The role of sensory reinforcement was examined in programing multiple treatment gains in self-stimulation and spontaneous play for four developmentally disabled children (eight to ten years old). (Author/SBH)

This investigation analyzed information pertaining to behavior states and their relationship to numerous environmental, physiological, and demographic variables and events. The 66 participants ranged in age from 1 to 21 years and were classified as having profound and multiple disabilities, with developmental ages that ranged to 24 months.…

This paper summarizes brief functional assessments of 79 cases of people with developmental disabilities and self-injurious, aggressive, stereotypic, or other aberrant behavior. Outcomes were evaluated across three variables: (1) referring topography, (2) control over behavior, and (3) the identified maintaining conditions for aberrant behavior.…

This article discusses the successes of behavior analysts in affecting challenging behaviors in persons with developmental disabilities. Three future issues are then addressed: the development of challenging behaviors, the role of rule-governance in challenging behavior, and the behavior of persons who directly apply functional assessment and…

This final report reviews the second phase of a life-span study of boys with fragile X syndrome (FSX), the most common known inherited cause of mental retardation. Males with the syndrome are more severely affected than females and in males, delays are usually evident in all the developmental domains, although cognitive and communication skills…