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| TBA Monday Poster Session |
| Monday, May 28, 2018 |
| 1:00 PM–3:00 PM |
| Marriott Marquis, Grand Ballroom 1-6 |
| Chair: Scott A. Miller (University of Nebraska Medical Center) |
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| 57. A Hybrid Model of Behavior Consultation and Professional Development for Building Capacity Across School Teams |
| Area: TBA; Domain: Service Delivery |
| AISLYNN KISER (Vanderbilt University Medical Center, TRIAD), John E. Staubitz (Vanderbilt University Medical Center, TRIAD), William Martin (Vanderbilt University Medical Center, TRIAD), Michelle Mahoney Hopton (Vanderbilt University Medical Center, TRIAD), Lauren A. Weaver (Vanderbilt University Medical Center, TRIAD), A. Pablo Juarez (Vanderbilt University Medical Center, TRIAD) |
| Discussant: Rocio Rosales (University of Massachusetts Lowell) |
| Abstract: While evidence suggests behavior analytic professional development workshops for educators can increase knowledge of those skills, there is additionally interesting evidence, which supports the pairing of live professional development with ongoing coaching as essential to increasing skills for application and generalization of behavior analytic procedures. Within a professional development partnership, six Board Certified Behavior Analysts trained 60 educators across 12 school sites. The partnership consisted of a three-day workshop embedded within a behavior analytic consultation model, which included recurring on-campus and remote tele-health consultation/coaching sessions. The workshop and sessions focused on the implementation of strategies to increase educators' capacity in delivering evidence-based interventions to increase functional skills and decrease problem behavior within the school setting. Throughout the partnership, educators self-reported their knowledge, skills, and barriers encountered relative to the implementation of strategies taught. During on-campus and remote tele-health sessions, BCBAs collected procedural fidelity data on trainee implementation and provided feedback. Educators reported daily implementation of strategies along with time-sampling data and direct behavior ratings on engagement and problem behavior for target students. Analysis will be provided regarding the additive effects of coaching sessions on fidelity and quantity of strategy implementation, student performance outcomes, and educators' self-reported skills and confidence for application. |
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| 58. Using Goldfish to Teach Learning in Behavior Analysis |
| Area: TBA; Domain: Service Delivery |
| MARISSA STIUSO (Monmouth University), Lindsay Renee Mehrkam (Monmouth University) |
| Discussant: Rocio Rosales (University of Massachusetts Lowell) |
| Abstract: Although commonly owned as household pets with few expectations, goldfish can engage in learning and perform complex behaviors despite popular opinion of their capabilities. At Monmouth University, an undergraduate psychology of learning class employed hands-on behavior analysis procedures to demonstrate a variety of learning processes in seven goldfish. All learning objectives, task analyses, and procedures performed by the students were designed and supervised by a doctoral-level board-certified behavior analyst. During on campus classes, 35 students successfully conducted experiments and directly observed the processes of habituation, counterconditioning, matching law, and operant conditioning (specifically, shaping) while simultaneously collecting behavioral data. In addition, students conducted a paired-stimulus preference assessment to determine each goldfish's most preferred food (see example data provided in Figure 1). Finally, students shaped each goldfish to perform unique behaviors through various discriminative stimuli and reinforcement schedules. Behavioral and self-report results from students collectively suggest that the use of goldfish can effectively be used as a convenient and relevant animal model to teach basic and applied behavior analysis concepts and principles. Directions for future research in teaching behavior analysis are discussed as well. |
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| 59. Teaching Behavior Technicians to Create Single-Case Designs Using GraphPad Prism |
| Area: TBA; Domain: Applied Research |
| MALIKA JADE MCPHETERS (University of Nebraska Medical Center's Munroe-Meyer Institute ), Daniel R. Mitteer (University of Nebraska Medical Center's Munroe-Meyer Institute ), Kayla Rechelle Randall (University of Nebraska Medical Center's Munroe-Meyer Institute ), Brian D. Greer (University of Nebraska Medical Center's Munroe-Meyer Institute), Adam M. Briggs (University of Nebraska Medical Center's Munroe-Meyer Institute ), Wayne W. Fisher (University of Nebraska Medical Center's Munroe-Meyer Institute ), Victoria Cohrs (University of Nebraska Medical Center's Munroe-Meyer Institute ) |
| Discussant: Rocio Rosales (University of Massachusetts Lowell) |
| Abstract: Visual representation and inspection of data are important aspects of behavior-analytic research and practice. They are the primary means of examining relations between environmental variables and behavior (Bourret & Pietras, 2012). GraphPad Prism is a premium graphing program used to analyze, graph, and present scientific data and is a popular alternative to Microsoft Excel (Haddock & Iwata, in press). The purpose of the current study was to evaluate the use of video models to teach behavior technicians to create high-quality single-subject graphs using Prism. In Study 1, we taught technicians to create publication-quality graphs from pre-entered data tables. In Study 2, we addressed limitations of Study 1 by evaluating (a) data input in addition to graphing, (b) maintenance of skills without access to video models or identical graph models, and (c) generalization to novel data sets derived from publications in the Journal of Applied Behavior Analysis. Our results indicate that the video models can be an efficient and effective method for teaching bachelor-level technicians to input and graph behavior-analytic data to presentation and publication standards. |
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| 61. Evaluating Functional Analysis and Choice Analysis Outcomes of Students Through a Challenging Behavior Training Project |
| Area: TBA; Domain: Applied Research |
| JAYME MEWS (The University of Iowa Children's Hospital ), Brenda J. Bassingthwaite (The University of Iowa Children's Hospital) |
| Discussant: Rocio Rosales (University of Massachusetts Lowell) |
| Abstract: The University of Iowa Children's Hospital has collaborated with the Iowa Department of Education since 2009 to support an initiative to increase the use of experimental analyses within a functional behavior assessment by providing training to specialty teams. Through training, specialty teams learn how to design and conduct choice analyses and functional analyses. A functional analysis is commonly used to identify the consequences reinforcing problem behavior (e.g., Iwata et al., 1994); whereas the choice analysis is often used to identify the consequences that reinforce appropriate behavior (e.g., Harding et al., 1999). The purpose of the current study is twofold. First, we evaluated what type of reinforcement that each assessment is likely to identify. Second, we compared the results when both assessments were completed with the same student. A review of assessments completed between 2013 and 2017 was conducted. Twenty-one cases (students between the ages of 3 and 12 years of age) were identified meeting inclusion criteria. Different patterns emerged between the two assessments, with agreement of function occurring in only 23% of the cases. This suggests that what reinforces problem behavior may not always align with what reinforces appropriate behavior. Implications will be discussed in the poster. |
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| 62. Utilizing Behavior Skills Training to Teach Skill Acquisition Programs in an Adult Residential Facility |
| Area: TBA; Domain: Applied Research |
| Javid Rahaman (Bancroft), VICTOR CHIN (Bancroft) |
| Discussant: Rocio Rosales (University of Massachusetts Lowell) |
| Abstract: Acquisition of vocational and daily living skills is a focus of many adult residential programs. Extensive research has supported the use of teaching procedures such as chaining (Jerome, Frantoni, & Sturmey, 2007; Luyben et al., 1986), prompt fading (MacDuff, Krantz, & McClannahan, 2001), and time-delay prompting (Charlop, Schreibman, & Thibodeau, 1985). In an adult residential facility, resources allocated to training are often limited, which may influence the quality of training provided to direct support professionals (DSPs) which may force clinicians to select less complex and less effective teaching procedures. Though the effectiveness of the teaching procedures themselves has been demonstrated, there is little research exploring how to teach DSPs to run skill acquisition programs involving best-practice teaching procedures. Organizations often use a "train-and-hope" approach, which frequently fails to prepare DSPs to perform prescribed programming (Sturmey, 1998). Behavioral Skills Training (BST) is a competency-based approach to training that has been effective in teaching a variety of skills (Van Den Pol, Reid, & Fuqua, 1983; Ducharme & Feldman, 1992; Johnson et al., 2006). The present study will utilize BST to teach advanced skill acquisition techniques to various groups of direct support professionals using a multiple probe across participants design (Horner & Baer, 1978). |
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| 63. Can Recording Procedural Integrity of a Behavioral Procedure Result in Gaining Implementation Skills? |
| Area: TBA; Domain: Applied Research |
| Brianna Herrera (California State University, Northridge), Ellie Kazemi (California State University, Northridge), DIANA PEREZ (California State University, Northridge) |
| Discussant: Rocio Rosales (University of Massachusetts Lowell) |
| Abstract: Training staff to conduct behavioral procedures with high procedural integrity (PI) can be very costly. There is some research evidence that participants may learn performance-based skills through Observer Effects, which is the effect of rating other individuals' PI on one's own PI. However, few researchers have looked into capitalizing on the Observer Effect for cost-efficient staff training. Therefore, the purpose of our study was to assess if a video training that has been efficacious in teaching PI recording of Paired Stimulus Preference Assessments (PSPA) would have ancillary effects on participants' implementation skills. We conducted a multiple baseline design across 5 undergraduate students and found that watching a video model, accessing a Performance Monitoring Tool (PMT), and undergoing the video training were not enough to bring participants' implementation skills to mastery. However, two participants reached mastery after engaging in the interactive portion of the training, which involved observing and rating an individual's PI (i.e., Observer Effect). Three participants required additional verbal feedback on implementation to reach mastery. Our findings suggest that trainees benefit from observing and recording video models' PI and trainers may be able to capitalize on observer effects for more cost-efficient training. |
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| 64. Teacher-Conducted Trial-Based Functional Analysis |
| Area: TBA; Domain: Applied Research |
| KRISTIN LEFEVRE (Melmark; Temple University), Matthew Tincani (Temple University), Elizabeth Dayton (Melmark) |
| Discussant: Rocio Rosales (University of Massachusetts Lowell) |
| Abstract: Problem behavior often occurs in individuals with autism spectrum disorder (ASD). Functional Analysis (FA) is a method used to identify the function of challenging behavior. Preliminary research has demonstrated that results from Trial Based Function Analysis (TBFA) conducted in natural settings often match the results obtained when conducting standard FAs in analogue settings. This study expanded previous findings from Rispoli et al., 2015, on the effects of a training package on teacher TBFA implementation in classroom settings. A multiple baseline design across teachers was used to measure the effectiveness of the of the TBFA training on teacher implementation fidelity. Three teachers in a special education setting were trained to implement the TBFA during role-plays and classroom probes with the students. All three teachers maintained high fidelity across each condition and over time. The results of one TBFA were then used to developed an individualized function-based treatment plan to examine the effects of the plan on reducing problem behavior of one individual with ASD. Results indicated a decrease in challenging behavior when the function-based intervention was implemented. |
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| 65. Training Public School Educators to Teach Children With Autism |
| Area: TBA; Domain: Applied Research |
| WILLIAM J. CALDERHEAD (Sam Houston State University), Jordan Kulaga (Sam Houston State University) |
| Discussant: Rocio Rosales (University of Massachusetts Lowell) |
| Abstract: Public schools face a critical shortage of educators with expertise in behavioral approaches to teaching children with autism. This poster reports pre- and posttest Behavioral Implementation of Skills for Work Activities (Fisher et al., 2014) results for 10 paraprofessionals and one special education teacher enrolled in a 48-hour, face-to-face Registered Behavior Technician course, emphasizing Behavioral Skills Training. Skills taught included use of contingencies of reinforcement, discrete-trial teaching, naturalistic teaching, task-analyzed chaining procedures, discrimination training, stimulus control transfer, prompting, and prompt fading. Using a two-tailed paired-samples t-test, the difference score mean 4.09 (standard deviation = 1.42) was statistically significant at the .05 level, t = 2.89, p = 0.016197. These results suggest that face-to-face courses emphasizing skill acquisition should include opportunities to practice and role play skills. |
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| 66. Challenging Concepts and Terms as Viewed by Students in an Applied Behavior Analysis Preparation Program |
| Area: TBA; Domain: Theory |
| KEREN ENGLANDER (Kibbutzim College, Israel), Racheli Mazor (Kibbutzim College, Israel), Shay Menashe Shir (Kibbutzim College, Israel), Nitzan Ram (Kibbutzim College, Israel), Eitan Eldar (Kibbutzim College, Israel) |
| Discussant: Rocio Rosales (University of Massachusetts Lowell) |
| Abstract: The Applied Behavior Analysis Program, currently at the Kibbutzim College, Israel, has been initiated in 1990. The program includes sixteen courses and a comprehensive field experience, all based on the BACB task list. The diagram presented in this poster portrays the variety of courses offered and the tasks they cover. To improve their knowledge base, we asked forty students in their second year of study to rate their comprehension degree relating to all items listed in Task List IV. High comprehension rated three, medium comprehension rated two and low comprehension rated one. Preliminary analysis of the results suggests that high scored items were related to practical experiences while low rated items were related to theoretical, philosophical and to verbal behavior concepts. Data were collected in the midst of the third semester out of four, allowing enough time for remedial assignments and academic experiences. Those will be adapted to meet the challenge of linking practical knowledge to theoretical understanding of behavioral principles and procedures. A table classifying the rating of the task list items will be presented, followed by recommendations for curriculum adaptation. |
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