Association for Behavior Analysis International

Automatically maintained behaviors, which persist in the absence of socially-mediated consequences, present a significant challenge in applied behavior analysis. Historically, these behaviors have been misunderstood and misclassified, leading to ineffective interventions. The complexity of identifying their functions complicates both assessment and treatment. This symposium will discuss recent advancements in functional analysis methodologies and evidence-based interventions aimed at more effectively addressing these persistent behaviors. Aaron Sanchez will present a study which compared functional communication training and time-based reinforcement to reduce operant and respondent biting. Kira Flynn will present a study which evaluated the use of haptic feedback delivered via a bracelet to reduce idiopathic toe walking across two individuals. Kayleigh Norton will present a study which analyzed the effect of session duration on the detection of automatically maintained behavior during repeated alone or no-interaction screens. Last, Brittany Repak will describe the results of a study which compared the effects of blocking and self-restraint on the occurrence of self-injurious behavior in a functional analysis.

Presentations in this symposium will be delivered at an intermediate instruction level. Target audience members should have education in behavioral interventions for learners with autism and other developmental disabilities to maximize learning during this symposium.

Haptic feedback involves the delivery of a vibratory stimulus contingent upon a target behavior. Among other applications, it has been used to prompt initiation of social interactions and increase on-task time in children with disabilities. In the current study, we used a combination reversal and nonconcurrent multiple baseline design across participants to evaluate haptic feedback delivered via a bracelet to reduce idiopathic toe walking exhibited by an adolescent male with autism and a typically developing young adult woman. After informing participants about the device and the feedback it produced, the experimenter delivered private haptic feedback contingent upon each participants’ steps on toes. The feedback was effective to reduce toe walking to low levels for both participants. In addition, in a social validity measure, participants reported that the bracelet was helpful to improve their gait. Participants also noted that they would be willing to wear the device outside of research sessions. The authors also discuss the use of technology to address challenging behaviors.

Repeated alone or no-interaction screens may be used to rule out the possibility that behavior is maintained by socially mediated consequences (Querim et al., 2013; Slanzi et al., 2022; Vollmer et al., 1995). Previous studies have used blocks of three 5-min sessions or a single 15-min session plotted as fifteen 1-min bins. Our goal is to minimize a client’s time in austere environments while still maintaining the informative value of the alone screen. In the present paper, we re-analyzed data from multiple datasets of previously conducted alone or no-interaction screens to determine whether session duration impacts the interpretability of the data. Participants engaged in disruptive behavior, self-injurious behavior, or destruction. Initial analyses were conducted using 5- or 10-min sessions and were re-analyzed using 5-, 2.5-, and 1-min bins, and data were summarized as responses per min. Data from a single participant are included in this abstract, and data collection is ongoing. Additional data analysis, such as the presence or absence of renewal marked by social breaks in or out of the session room, will also be included. An independent observer collected data for at least 30% of sessions with at least 80% reliability for all target responses.

Automatically reinforced self-injurious behavior (SIB) has previously been delineated into three subtypes established by the pattern of responding and presence of self-restraint in the ignore/alone and toy play conditions of the traditional functional analysis. Subtype three is classified by the presence of self-restraint; however, recent research questions whether subtype three is a distinct subtype or rather a variant of subtype one or two (Hagopian et al., 2015). Furthermore, it has been suggested that different patterns of responding may occur when self-restraint is blocked compared to when it is allowed. The purpose of the current study was to (1) compare functional analysis results when SIB is blocked to when SIB is allowed and (2) utilize a pairwise functional analysis methodology to determine if responding is more characteristic of subtype one or subtype two in cases of subtype three automatically reinforced SIB demonstrated by two adults with autism spectrum disorder. Results indicated differentiated responding when self-restraint was allowed compared to when it was blocked. Future research should explore similar techniques to determine if subtype three is a unique subtype of automatically reinforced behavior or if it can resemble subtype one or two.