This commentary responds to a critique (EC 610 642) of a study on professional acceptability of various treatment procedures for challenging behaviors exhibited by individuals with disabilities. The commentary asserts that treatment options should be evaluated in terms of probability of success, time factors, distress caused by the procedure, and…

Work behaviors that prevent an individual with disabilities from getting and keeping a job are considered, along with ways to change behaviors. Nine ways to change negative work behaviors are addressed, including teaching/training, goal-setting, motivating, counseling, role-playing, and social reinforcement and behavior modification. (SW)

Examined usefulness of independent group contingency system for decreasing inappropriate behaviors. Twenty-five fourth graders in regular classrooms participated in intervention, which involved public posting system using positive reinforcement for desired behaviors. Targeted behaviors showed marked decreases across eight-week treatment period and…

Data were summarized from 1,841 sessions involving 10 subjects with mental retardation who participated in a number of experiments over a 10-year research program concerning dietary influences on ruminating. Relationships were found between amount of food consumed and rumination. Satiation feeding resulted in substantial decreases in postmeal…

A review of 19 studies on Native Americans examined 12 focused on chronic conditions (diabetes, heart disease, substance abuse, fetal alcohol syndrome) and 7 on prevention (dental disease, prenatal/infant health, nutrition, HIV prevention, health promotion). Results showed Native Americans particularly at risk for diabetes and alcohol abuse and…

Conceptualizes separation-individuation conflicts in caregivers as behavior under dual control of nonverbal and verbal antecedents and consequences of others and dysfunctional self-rules of caregiver. Describes two types of treatment in context of case study: changing caregiver's problem behaviors by training nursing home staff and teaching…

A group of 88 physicians and 126 diabetic patients were surveyed before and 6 and 12 months after doctors' participation in the Office Practice Environment Negotiations Program. Results showed that teaching physicians how to reorganize their practice environment increased adoption of case management strategies. (SK)

Effective strategies include (1) helping consumers see how lifestyles and consumer behavior are related; (2) limiting amount of new terminology used; (3) dispelling myths and misperceptions; (4) doing product life-cycle analysis; and (5) emphasizing long-term goals for behavior change. (JOW)

Surveyed national stratified random sample of 228 regular and special education teachers to examine what methods were used to remediate behavior problems in their classrooms. Data were analyzed to determine types of interventions used and relationships to gender, degree, type of school (elementary, middle, or high school), grade taught, type of…

Presents retrospective analysis of cognitive behavior modification which reveals that three major metaphors have been offered to explain the role that cognitions play in behavior change; these metaphors include cognition as form of conditioning, information processing, and, currently, narrative construction. Discusses implications of using each of…

Offers 12 suggestions for teachers who want to develop some new behaviors at the beginning of a new school year. Suggests that such introspection can lead to a cycle of reflecting, monitoring, and growing. Includes changes of attitude, behavior, and personal goals through reassessment. (DK)

Effects of supplementary peanut butter on rumination behavior among five institutionalized mentally retarded adults were studied, by independently manipulating caloric density versus consistency of the peanut butter. Results showed an inverse relationship between rates of rumination and amount of peanut butter consumed, an effect primarily…

This article reviews general classes of variables which help to maintain aberrant behavior including attention seeking, sensory and perceptual consequences, and access to materials or activities. Suggestions for a methodology providing a comprehensive functional analysis are offered which include descriptive analysis, hypothesis forming,…

Discussed are the determinants of environmentally responsible behavior, the attitude-behavior discrepancy problem, how environmental attitudes are formed and changed, and the effects of individual differences on appropriateness of educational techniques. (CW)

Four adults with severe/profound mental retardation and self-injurious behavior (SIB) received naltrexone in a double-blind procedure. All patients exhibited decreased SIB when treated with naltrexone; three patients decreased SIB as naltrexone dose increased. There were no consistent effects of naltrexone on stereotypy, activity, or performance…