Millions of Americans are diagnosed with dementia, and that number is only expected to rise. The diagnosis of dementia comes with impairments, especially in language. Furthermore, dementia-related functional declines appear to be moderated by environmental variables (Alzheimer's Association, "Alzheimer's & Dementia: The Journal of the…

Skinner's 1957 analysis of verbal behavior has demonstrated a fair amount of utility to teach language to children with autism and other various disorders. However, the learning of language can be forgotten, as is the case for many elderly suffering from dementia or other degenerative diseases. It appears possible that Skinner's operants may…

Wandering is a difficult-to-manage behavior problem for individuals with cognitive impairments that can jeopardize safety if an individual enters a hazardous area or becomes lost. This study investigated the effects of a cloth barrier on entry into an unsafe area. The cloth barrier reduced entry into the restricted area and had high treatment…

In the current study, nursing home staff were taught to administer functional analyses to determine the variables maintaining aggression by an elder with dementia. The results indicated that aggression was evoked during bathroom routines and that escape maintained aggression. Staff then reduced aggression to near-zero levels with noncontingent…