Association for Behavior Analysis International

Elopement is an extremely dangerous behavior that can and does lead to serious harm and death. Moreover, elopement has a high incidence among individuals with developmental disabilities. Although previous research has demonstrated effective interventions to reduce elopement in individuals with developmental disabilities, the strategies have been effortful, cumbersome, inappropriate for some settings, and inaccessible to caregivers with mobility challenges. The present research advances the body of empirically supported treatments for elopement among individuals with developmental disabilities by integrating remote signaling devices with operant training procedures. The results of this research support the use of modern technology as a way to treat elopement in a way that allows for greater ranges of distance from caregivers than previously published treatments and provides an option for caregivers physically incapable of administering other protocols. The present research also includes data on treatment acceptability and parental self-efficacy that supports the social validity of this procedure.

Study objective: To evaluate the effect of using Visual Timer to children with neurodevelopmental disabilities and typical development who often have stagnation and deviation in order to promote their behavior in kindergarten. Design: A combination of multiple baseline across subjects and a changing criterion design was used. Setting: Preparation after arriving and before leaving in kindergarten Participant: A girl (4 years old) with neurodevelopmental disorders and a boy (4 years old) with typical development Measure: The required times of preparation after arriving and before leaving in kindergarten were measured. Intervention: Based on the baseline data, each Visual Time was set at the time when the target child succeeded 50% or more, and placed in the preparation area. When the child could finish within the time limit, gave a sticker or confection. With steady success, the criterion time was reduced based on the last 10 days. Results: In both children, after using of the Visual Timer, the preparation times were reduced. Conclusion: Indicating the time with the Visual Timer and changing the criteria based on the data was effective in promoting the preparation behavior of both children with neurodevelopmental disabilities and typical development.

DiGeorge syndrome (DGS; 22q11.2 deletion syndrome) is a multiple anomaly syndrome that affects approximately one in 1-4000 individuals (Botto et al., 2003; Grati et al., 2015). Although associated with a number of diverse medical and physical complications, the presence of developmental delays, social impairments, and behavioral disorders similar to autism spectrum disorder (ASD) are the most common symptoms (Hoeffding et al., 2017; Kates et al., 2015). To date, few studies have reported on behavioral intervention for individuals with DGS. This study presents the functional and treatment analysis of problem behavior in an 8-yr-old boy and an 11-yr-old girl with DGS. Both children had comorbid mild intellectual disability (ID), and presented with aggression, disruptive behavior, and verbal aggression (e.g., threats of violence towards others). Initial staff-conducted functional analyses (FA) yielded near zero problem behaviors for both children. Subsequent parent-conducted FA results indicated access to tangibles for both children, along with escape from demands for the girl, and access to attention for the boy. Treatment analyses showed that function-based interventions resulted in more than 90% reduction in problem behavior. Overall, results suggested that functional analysis and corresponding behavioral intervention appear to be effective for treating problem behavior in children with DGS and mild ID. Discussion will focus on exploring potential functional behavioral phenotypes in DGS with respect to a) ID and ASD symptoms, b) medical and physical problems, and c) the prevailing pharmacotherapy approach, as well as the implications of accessing behavioral intervention for children with DGS who have social and behavioral problems.

Challenging behavior tends to increase in levels during adolescence for individuals with developmental disabilities (DD). If not addressed, this may lead to negative post-school outcomes for adolescents with DD. The purposes of this meta-analysis are to examine the effects of behavioral intervention in reducing challenging behaviors of adolescents with DD and identify the variables that could potentially moderate these effects. This meta-analysis included twenty-six single-case design studies that met standards for methodological rigor and experimental control. Overall, behavioral interventions were found to yield moderate effects for adolescents with DD (overall Tau-U = .73, SD = .04, [.67, .79]) across settings and types of challenging behaviors. With regards to participant and setting characteristics, verbal ability and classroom setting were found to moderate the effects of intervention outcomes with statistical significance. No other variables produced similar findings. Furthermore, statistically significant differences were found between interventions that included or did not include planned reinforcement as an intervention component. Several implications for research and practice are discussed.

The occurrence of sexual behavior in prepubescence is considered developmentally normative; however, sexual behavior may become problematic when occurring in inappropriate settings (e.g., school) or at an increased frequency that impedes functioning. Response interruption and redirection (RIRD) has been demonstrated to reduce specific forms of problematic self-stimulatory behaviors and therefore the current study sought to examine the effectiveness of applying RIRD to reduce the occurrence of inappropriate sexual behavior (ISB) in a preschool-aged male with expressive-receptive language delays. The current study applied two treatment conditions, including immediate physical interruption and delayed physical interruption imbedded within RIRB. The immediate physical interruption condition consisted of moving the child’s arm away from his body, followed by a one-step gross motor instruction (e.g., clap your hands) using a guided compliance procedure. The delayed physical interruption condition consisted of stating the child’s name, followed by a one-step gross motor instruction using a guided compliance procedure. Results indicated both treatments effectively reduced ISB, which implicates that RIRD may be efficacious at reducing ISB, despite the immediate physical proximity of the practitioner to the individual.

Daily Behavior Report Cards (DBRCs) have shown to be a successful intervention for improving classroom behavior for students considered to display challenging behaviors. DBRCs have mostly been used for students with emotional/behavioral disorder (EBD) in an effort to improve academic and social outcomes. Few studies have examined the use of DBRCs for students with developmental disabilities (DD). Even fewer studies have examined the intersection of young (i.e., early childhood) students with DD in extended school year settings (ESY). The authors examined the effectiveness of DBRCs for young students with DD in ESY settings. Four elementary students (ages 6-7) with DD and behavior challenges who were receiving ESY services as mandated by their respective Individualized Education Plan (IEP) participated in the current study. The researchers used a changing criterion single case research design with visual analyses and Tau-U statistical analyses to determine the impact of the intervention. Each student demonstrated progress as a result of intervention.

Liquid avoidance or refusal is a feeding disorder that is observed in some children with developmental disabilities (Kirkland, 1994). Inadequate liquid intake can lead to a number of health concerns, including diarrhea, vomiting, and constipation (Luiselli, Ricciardi, & Gilligan, 2005). Specialized intervention is often required among children who display feeding disorders; however, limited research has been conducted evaluating treatments targeting liquid consumption. Yet, there are a number of well-supported interventions to decrease food refusal (e.g., reinforcement, jaw prompt; Ahearn, Kerwin, Eicher, Shantz, & Swearingin, 1996; Kerwin, 1999; Piazza, 2008) and increase solids acceptance (e.g., reinforcement, nonremoval of the spoon with physical guidance; Ahearn, Kerwin, Eicher, & Lukens, 2001). The current study presents data on a treatment evaluation conducted to increase liquid consumption from a developmentally appropriate cup and improve efficiency (i.e., decrease latency to acceptance), as well as decrease inappropriate mealtime behavior (IMB), for a child participating in a day treatment feeding program. The final treatment package consisted of a jaw prompt with differential reinforcement (DRA) and a response cost. The jaw prompt was effective at increasing consumption and decreasing latency to acceptance while the DRA and response cost were effective at decreasing IMB with water and Carnation Breakfast Essentials.

Food selectivity is often observed in children with autism spectrum disorder and can lead to severe nutritional deficiencies. A preference assessment was conducted in eight sessions to determine the child’s preferred and non- preferred food items, and the assessment included the following items (snacker crackers, crispy chicken strips, vanilla wafers, animal crackers, hot dog, mini bear grahams, apple sauce, jell o, cereal, waffles). Three baseline sessions were conducted so far where five food items were presented to the child, and the number of bites swallowed was counted. Data from preference assessment and baseline are consistent. The data shows that the child selects food items based on their texture. Less preferred food items were (apple sauce, jell o, and animal crackers), and the child did not consume these items during baseline sessions. A stimulus fading intervention is implemented to increase food consumption for non- preferred food items such as apple sauce and jell o. The researcher will provide the child with a very preferred food item (chips) together with non- preferred food items (apple sauce); then, the preferred food item will be fad gradually.

Train generalization of self-control choice is necessary when providing services to children with Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder (ADHD). Although some studies have shown increments in self-control choice, few studies had examined its generalization. The purpose of the study was to evaluate multiple-exemplar training in the generalization of self-control choice in two 5-year-old children with ADHD. Multiple baseline across settings design were used. Settings changed by reinforcers, discriminative stimuli, researchers, and alternative activity. Conditions were directly trained in three settings and in a fourth setting, probes without direct training were conducted. In baseline, participants chose between sooner-immediate reinforcer or larger-delayed reinforcer. Training consisted of delay fading, an alternative activity during the delay, and signal the delay. Relative to baseline, self-control choice increased during all training settings, from <50% to >80% for one participant and for the other participant from <4% to >60%. Multiple-exemplar training resulted in the generalization of self-control choice across settings, behaviors and time. During probe setting, for a participant, self-control choice increased from 0% to 80% after training, and 100% in the follow-up. Further research is needed to show that generalization has to be directly trained and the clinic implications of self-control generalized choice for ADHD children.

A web-based multiple-stimulus-without-replacement preference assessment and a concurrent-operants reinforcer assessment were implemented to identify video preference hierarchies and their reinforcing status. Assessments were conducted with four middle school students with intellectual disabilities. Three participants allocated longer durations of behavior to access their high-preferred stimulus, as compared to the lowest-preferred and control option. One participant engaged in switching responses between the stimuli. Findings and future considerations are discussed.

The purpose of this study was to determine the efficacy of a modified preference assessment for edible items. The assessment took place in an adult day support setting, where 1:1 time with a client and the data collection skills of staff members are limited. Researchers combined Free Operant and Multiple Stimulus with Replacement strategies to test the latency of approach to food items as well as the rate of consumption. This twelve-item assessment was completed in 45 minutes (15 minute chunks across three days). The resulting hierarchy was compared to that of a paired stimulus assessment to examine reliability.

Functional communication training (FCT) has been proven to be an effective intervention for decreasing problem behaviors and increasing communicative repertoires for individuals with IDD. However, little is known about the preferences for communication topographies of individuals benefiting from FCT and how quickly different topographies are mastered. The present study sought to extend previous research on communication preferences through answering the following research questions: 1) Can communication preferences be determined between multiple communication modalities? 2) What is the predictive validity of a preference assessment for communication modality as it relates to allocation of responding during FCT? The participant was a 16 year-old female with autism spectrum disorder, severe intellectual disability, and no formal communication system, who was referred for the assessment and treatment of self-injurious and aggressive behaviors. Functional analysis results indicated that problem behavior was maintained by access to tangible items. Mand topographies trained via FCT included touching a picture, pressing a switch, and sign-language. Results indicated significant reductions in problem behaviors. Also, communication preference assessments conducted concurrently predicted response allocation during a post-treatment mand topography analysis. Consistent with previous research, communication preferences may change over time. Future directions for assessing for communication preference during FCT are explored.

Competing-response (CR) training is a critical component of comprehensive behavioral intervention for tics in which an individual is taught to engage in an alternative response instead of a tic. CRs are recommended to be less conspicuous than the tic to reduce social stigma, which may increase their use. Although several studies have examined the conspicuity or social acceptability of tics (e.g., Finney, Rapoff, Hall, & Christophersen, 1983; Woods et al., 1996), none have evaluated these measures with CRs. Therefore, we asked 60 undergraduate students to watch video recordings of several individuals with tics using either a) no CR, b) a CR which was incompatible with a tic, or c) CRs which were designed to be both compatible with tics and inconspicuous and evaluate the relative unusualness, social acceptability, and distractibility of both tics and CRs. Participants were divided pseudo-randomly into groups that received information regarding tics and CRs or no information. We observed that all CRs were generally rated as less unusual than tics. At least one CR designed to be inconspicuous and compatible with tics was rated more favorably than the incompatible CRs for most participants, especially among participants provided information regarding tics and CRs.

Children and young people who reside in out of home care have regularly experienced traumatic events such as child abuse, neglect and domestic violence (Holstead & Dalton, 2013). There are several evidence-based programs and clinical interventions that are specific to addressing trauma symptoms such as trauma informed cognitive behavior therapy (TF-CBT) and eye movement desensitisation reprocessing (EMDR) (Wigham & Emerson, 2015) yet the application of applied behavior analysis (ABA) has historically been absent in this cohort. This poster will present a case discussion of a non-vocal adolescent male with intellectual disability and significant violent behaviours, who has experienced trauma. Specifically, how we can recognise our client’s trauma, how trauma has influenced their learning history and it’s impact on their current presentation will be discussed as will our own competency to work as clinicians in this area. This poster highlights that expanding ABA into areas traditionally occupied by psychologists and social workers is not only possible, but essential to streamline what can be multifaceted complex service delivery, for the benefit of our clients.