Students with behavioral and emotional disabilities spend less time on academic instruction due to their behavioral disruptions, contributing to the academic difficulties these students face. Classroom management strategies, in the form of positive behavioral interventions and supports (PBIS), incorporate principles of applied behavior analysis to…

In addressing positive general education teaching practices for use with students with or at risk for emotional and behavioral disorders (EBD), the chapter emphasizes teacher behavior change research that has been informed by applied behavior analytic (ABA) principles. Its central theme is that general education teachers can access research…

Recent mandates related to the implementation of evidence-based practices for individuals with autism spectrum disorder (ASD) require that autism professionals both understand and are able to implement practices based on the science of applied behavior analysis (ABA). The use of the term "applied behavior analysis" and its related concepts…

This article describes a manualized-group treatment of eating disorders, the attunement in mind, body, and relationship (AMBR) program. The cognitive behavioral and dialectic behavioral research as well as the innovative prevention interventions upon which the program is based (e.g., interactive discourse, yoga, and mediation) are introduced. The…

In the past two decades, positive behavior support (PBS) has emerged from applied behavior analysis (ABA) as a newly fashioned approach to problems of behavioral adaptation. ABA was established in the 1960s as a science in which learning principles are systematically applied to produce socially important changes in behavior, whereas PBS was…

The articles in this special Practitioner's Edition of "Psychology in the Schools" share the application of sound educational and behavioral practices in real school and classroom contexts. Given this emphasis in these articles on the applied use of behavioral practices, the purpose of this brief commentary is to highlight and comment on some of…

The field of behavior analysis has not learned how to develop interventions that rely on positive reinforcement for all participants, including the normal adults who implement them. Thus, the field has not learned how to avoid evoking countercontrol. Establishment of collaborative relationships with the people targeted for help is suggested. (JDD)

The purpose of this study was to critically examine the positive approaches to behavioral intervention research and young children demonstrating challenging behavior. The authors conducted a comprehensive review of articles published between 1984 and 2003 across 23 peer-reviewed journals. Each article that met the criteria for inclusion in the…

This study analyzed specific stimuli reinforcing destructive behavior in two 11-year-olds males with mental retardation and severe destructive behavior problems maintained by attention. The use of concurrent schedules of reinforcement identified alternatives to the reinforcing verbal reprimands and led to development of effective treatments to…

This study reports a successful classroom intervention program which was designed to curb encopresis. It used positive consequences in combination with negative consequences, rather than negative consequences alone. Also it utilized a reversal strategy to evalulate the efficacy of the treatment variables. (Author)

This paper describes research activities of the Positive Teaching Project, focusing on the nature of classroom behavior problems viewed by teachers as particularly troublesome, teachers' typical responses to classroom behavior, classroom behavior management strategies based on manipulation of antecedents and natural consequences, and training…

A functional analysis involving antecedent events was conducted with four students identified as having behavior problems. Off-task behavior was measured while task difficulty and level of adult attention was manipulated during analog sessions. Results revealed higher rates of off-task behavior during difficult tasks and improved behavior when…

Three kindergartens and one prekindergarten, totaling 213 children, participated in a Behavior Modification program during the 1971-72 school year. A research assistant in each location worked directly with the teacher in measuring and evaluating teaching methods and in developing alternative procedures as needed to teach the same skills or…