Demand fading involves the removal and gradual reintroduction of demands and has been shown to effectively reduce escape-maintained challenging behavior. However, it is currently unclear if there are common demand fading practices when demand fading is used as an initial intervention rather than as a method for schedule thinning after another…

In the context of problem behavior, treatment integrity refers to the extent to which a behavioral intervention is implemented as intended. Treatment-integrity errors may lead to relapse of problem behavior. For example, omitting reinforcers can lead to increases in problem behavior called resurgence. Researchers have previously described the…

Behavioral assessment allows a clinician to identify environmental events that are contributing to challenging behavior to inform effective treatment. Recent developments in behavioral assessment and treatment have been devoted to creating practical procedures that can be conducted by clinicians in socially relevant settings. However, the extent…

The current study conducted a comparative analysis of the effects of select components of Parent-Child Interaction Therapy, labeled praise, behavior descriptions, and reflections on child vocalizations in two children with autism spectrum disorder and accompanying language delays using a concurrent multiple baseline across participants design. The…

As a treatment for escape-maintained problem behavior, differential reinforcement of alternative behavior (DRA) is typically initiated by reinforcing compliance on a dense reinforcement schedule. This work schedule is then progressively thinned such that the individual is required to complete more work, up to some socially acceptable terminal…

Although common among children learning to walk, persistent toe walking can cause physical harm due to inefficient gate, and, in some cases, result in negative social interactions such as teasing and bullying. In addition, although toe walking is often associated with a variety of neurological and developmental conditions, toe walking also occurs…

Functional communication training (FCT) reduces escape-maintained challenging behavior but can result in time away from instruction. Instructional time could be maintained if interventions incorporated academic interventions like curricular revision. We compared FCT with extinction to a curricular-revision treatment package involving antecedent…

Students with emotional and behavioral disorders often need behavioral supports to facilitate their success in the classroom. One commonly used intervention involves taking brief breaks at targeted times during the day to return to the classroom better prepared for participation. However, research is limited on what should happen while a student…

This study provides the results of a meta-analysis of 31 single-case design studies on safety skills interventions for individuals with intellectual disabilities (ID). Results indicate that individuals who have mild to moderate ID, in particular school-age children, have benefited most from the safety skills interventions. In addition, the…

Inappropriate behavior on school buses is a safety issue that concerns students, parents, and educators. There is potential for traffic-related injury, and the limited adult supervision on school buses often facilitates bullying and other infractions. This review identified peer-reviewed articles and dissertations evaluating behavioral…

Maintenance and generalization have been inconsistently defined in the behavior analytic literature. The term "treatment relapse" is used commonly in the medical and mental health literature to refer to the return of a condition that was previously considered successfully treated. Basic behavioral researchers have studied relapse related…

One measure of success for interventions treating problem behavior is the effects achieved in the face of a challenge (e.g., changes in reinforcement schedules, lapses in treatment integrity); one hopes to demonstrate persistence of appropriate alternatives and the absence of resurgence of target behaviors. The present study successfully treated…

Students with emotional and behavioral disorders (EBD) often receive low rates of positive attention in the classroom. Further, students with EBD may receive attention from teachers and peers contingent on disruptive behavior, which may reinforce disruption. In our study, we conducted two experiments, involving one special education teacher, one…

Researchers, teachers, practitioners, and parents are often concerned with how to program for and achieve the maintenance of appropriate behavior. The unintended maintenance of problem behavior is less often evaluated. This article describes a behavioral phenomenon, resurgence, that may result in the unintended maintenance of problem behavior.…

Individuals diagnosed with intellectual disabilities often suffer from concomitant visual and hearing impairments (Kiani & Miller, 2010; Nielsen, Skov, & Jensen, 2007). This population may also refuse to wear the prescribed prosthetic devices that would improve visual and hearing impairments (Haugen, Aasved, & Bertelsen, 1995). This…