Deficits in communicating one's wants and needs can have significant and detrimental effects on quality of life. Particularly for individuals with autism spectrum disorder (ASD) and other related disabilities, manding is a pivotal skill that influences long-term prognosis. Mand training is complex and relies on several components to facilitate…

In the current investigation, we reviewed the literature on mand training for individuals with intellectual and developmental disabilities (IDD) in schools. Ninety-three studies met our inclusion criteria including 225 individual participants. Data were extracted related to participant demographics (e.g., age, disability, response form) and study…

Augmentative and alternative communication (AAC) refers to a wide range of aided and unaided modes that are employed with a diverse group of people to support a range of language and communication outcomes. Children whose comprehension of spoken language greatly exceeds their ability to express themselves within that modality can be described as…

Sundberg and Michael (2011) reviewed the contributions of Skinner's (1957) "Verbal Behavior" to the treatment of language delays in children with autism spectrum disorder (ASD) and discussed several aspects of interventions, including mand training, intraverbal repertoire development, and the importance of using Skinner's taxonomy of…

Recently, there has been a proliferation of research on the functional independence of two of Skinner's (1957) verbal operants, the mand, and the tact. This research has produced highly variable results. In this article, we provide a critical review of the literature on mand-tact independence, a literature that has implications for both theory and…

A literature review was conducted to describe important concepts involved in functional analysis of verbal behavior as well as to evaluate empirical research findings on acquisition of picture exchange-based vs. signed mands to suggest instructional implications for teachers and therapists to teach functional communication skills to children with…

Excessively devaluing delayed reinforcers co-occurs with a wide variety of clinical conditions such as drug dependence, obesity, and excessive gambling. If excessive delay discounting is a trans-disease process that underlies the choice behavior leading to these and other negative health conditions, efforts to change an individual's discount rate…

Provides the counselor a current survey of behavior therapy procedures as well as information concerning their applicability and validity. Reviews procedures based on operant learning principles, classical learning principles, and social psychological principles. Examples and case presentations are included. (Author/RC)

The notion of differentially reinforcing low rates of undesirable behavior (DRL) is examined. Further, the status of the full session DRL strategy as alternative to punishment is questioned in context of a strictly operant definition of punishment. A reexamination of the data from some studies reveals the possibility that Ss respond to said DRL…

Analyzes associative structures underlying goal-directed behavior using well-developed techniques for studying Pavlovian conditioning. Identifies the roles of the stimulus, response, and reinforcer in instrumental learning. A response and its reinforcer must be associated for acquisition and maintenance of instrumental behavior. (Author/LHW)

This report reviews current literature on feedback and suggests practical implications of feedback research for educators. A definition of feedback is offered, and past definitions in prior research are noted. An analysis of the current state of knowledge of feedback discusses the historical development of feedback theory and suggests that…

Suggests that the use of the operant conditioning paradigm, as it has been applied to infant social, vocal behavior, fails to take into account the social nature of human infants over and above the rigid theoretical rationale of the Paradigm. (MP)

This article discusses problems inherent in the analysis of automatically reinforced behaviors, which are behaviors that are maintained by operant mechanisms independent of the social environment. Four classes of treatment that are compatible with automatic reinforcement are reviewed, including manipulations of establishing operations, sensory…

A detailed hypothesis of the acquisition and maintenance of self-stimulatory behavior is offered, proposing that such behaviors are operant responses whose reinforcers are automatically produced perceptual consequences. Related concepts are discussed, and support for the hypothesis from the areas of sensory reinforcement and sensory deprivation is…

Reviews studies involving noncontingent reinforcement (NCR) for the treatment of challenging behavior such as aggression, self-injury, and extreme tantrums in persons with developmental disabilities. A clinical guide for implementation is delineated. Among the advantages of NCR is ease of implementation. NCR appears particularly relevant for…