Association for Behavior Analysis International

Treatment relapse refers to the recurrence of previously extinguished behavior when changes to treatment occur. To date, behavior analytic research has provided an understanding of the basic behavioral processes that may predict treatment relapse; however, additional research is warranted regarding procedures for preventing relapse of targeted behavior. This symposium will present applications of translational and applied studies to the mitigation of treatment relapse. Andrew Craig and colleagues will present data on the evaluation of the influence of reinforcement of alternative behavior in the same and separate discriminative-stimulus situations on mitigating resurgence of targeted behavior in Pigeons. Valdeep Saini and colleagues will describe a human-laboratory preparation and clinical application of resurgence to demonstrate the relevance of including inactive control responses within a resurgence paradigm to differentiate between resurgence of targeted behavior and extinction-induced variability. The presentation by Henry Roane and colleagues will describe a reverse-translational evaluation of context renewal implemented first within a functional communication training intervention for individuals diagnosed with autism across home and clinic settings, and second within a human-operant arrangement. Michael Kelley and colleagues will present data on the demonstration of an ABA renewal paradigm with children diagnosed with autism followed by the implementation of a renewal mitigation procedure to reduce the recurrence of targeted behavior during the return to the A phase. Finally, Timothy Shahan will serve as the discussant to integrate the findings of these presentations into the broad theme of treatment relapse.

Basic and translational research on context renewal provides a model for studying treatment relapse following successful response to treatment in clinic settings. Two studies were conducted to evaluate context renewal under naturalistic conditions. In study one, context renewal using functional communication training was evaluated across home and clinic settings. The reemergence of destructive behavior, consistent with operant context renewal, was observed. A limitation was that during treatment at clinic, the children returned home before treatment was completed and taken into the home. To evaluate this limitation a reverse translational, human operant study was conducted. A concurrent-operant arrangement was used to simultaneously evaluate and compare ABA and ACA renewal, in which Context C consisted of Context B with brief returns to Context A. ABA renewal was observed, whereas under the ACA arrangement the target response persisted throughout the evaluation. The implications of these findings with respect to basic and translational studies of operant renewal and the treatment of severe destructive behavior will be discussed.

Renewal is a type of treatment relapse in which problem behavior reemerges after successful treatment. Renewal is characterized by the three-phase arrangement in which problem behavior is reinforced in Phase 1, extinguished in Phase 2, and extinction is continued in Phase 3. However, the contexts associated with Phases 1, 2, and 3 are manipulated to assess the extent to which stimulus condition affect responding, despite the continuation of extinction, in Phase 3. In the current study, 3 children diagnosed with Autism were exposed to ABA renewal, in which therapists exposed participants behavior to (1) reinforcement, extinction, and extinction and (2) contexts A, B, and a return to A. Results suggested that behavior reemerged in Phase 3, despite the continuation of the extinction procedure. Next, we assessed a renewal mitigation procedure to reduce the occurrence of problem behavior during reexposure to the A context.