Association for Behavior Analysis International

Stimulus preference assessments are used to assess preference for stimuli and determine potential reinforcers. The current study investigates if Madagascar Hissing Cockroaches develop a preference for a food stimulus, and what factors influence that preference, such as exposure to the stimuli and its location. Four female Madagascar Hissing Cockroaches were used in a single subject analysis of food preference through a multiple stimulus without replacement preference assessment. Only Roach One had a consistent preference for a stimulus throughout the study. The other three roaches frequently switched between stimuli, and had highly variable results. The current study also evaluated if the cockroaches display a place preference for any one location in the apparatus. These results may indicate that Madagascar Hissing Cockroaches require specific environmental conditions to develop a steady preference. Future research could better evaluate if cockroaches develop a place preference or not. The results may also indicate that methodological changes could be made to better determine preference.

The current study was designed to investigate generalization of the activity anorexia model to different subjects and variables, as few studies have explored generalization in this area. This study was used to determine if deprivation of water affects animals activity similarly to deprivation of food as seen in the activity anorexia model. The effects of water deprivation on the physical activity in four adult female Madagascar Hissing Cockroaches was examined using an ABC single case experimental design. The three phases included a baseline phase with free access to food and water, an experimental phase with no access to water in their individual containers but access during sessions, and lastly an altered experimental phase with access to water every three days. Two subjects went through phases A, B, and C and two subjects went through an extended A phase leading into the C phase. Data showed minimal differences between activity level in water deprived subjects and subjects in the baseline phase. Altering levels of water deprivation in the C phase showed more variety in subjects responses. The results of this study are inconclusive and do not support the activity anorexia hypothesis.

Researchers have indicated that eye contact is important for typically developing infants. A lack of, or an avoidance of eye contact in infants can indicate developmental problems; one disorder particularly noted for this lack of eye contact is Autism Spectrum Disorder (ASD). Infant eye contact is examined in an effective manner, in the context of the duration of the behavior and what stimulation is best for maintaining the behavior. Motherese speech and touch as well as motherese speech alone were used at the onset and off set of eye engagement and continued with the most effective stimulation. This study demonstrated how typically developing infants effectively engage in prolonged eye contact in contingency of motherese speech alone.

Many graduate students fail to run spelling/grammar checks in Microsoft Word prior to submitting their assignments to their professor. Running a spelling/grammar check is a simple way to limit the number of errors in a document and improve students overall writing. Interventions that increase this behavior would be beneficial to students; particularly those who will go onto careers in which writing is involved (e.g., report writing). The current study used a multiple baseline design across course sections to evaluate the effects of written reminders and written feedback. When initial data indicated that reminders and feedback had little effect on behavior, a reinforcement contingency was added. Results suggested that the reinforcer contingency enhanced the effects of reminders and feedback increased the total number of students who ran spelling/grammar checks prior to submitting their assignments. However, for some students the treatment package was not effective. Upon completion of the study, a survey was administered to evaluate students perspectives on the interventions. The implications of these findings for professors, including the role of students learning histories in maintaining error patterns, are discussed.

The participation of women in applied behavior analysis has been a topic examined by researchers since the introduction of the field. Many have discussed the glass ceiling," limiting the ability of women to perform at the highest levels of the applied behavior analysis field. This poster will examine the participation of women in the field with regards to the prevalence of women registered with Association for Behavior Analysis International over the past decade and the locations with the highest prevalence within the United States. This data will be displayed using geospatial image mapping, providing a visual data set across the United States. This study hypothesizes that the prevalence of women has increased by no less than 25% over the past decade, and continues in an upward trend. The highest prevalence of women in the field of applied behavior analysis is presumed to have location in the New England area of the United States proportional to population.

The present study evaluated the effects of restricted vs unrestricted intra-team communication on performance in a computerized task. Participants scored points by clicking on a resource block and dragging it across a field into a target zone. Hidden barriers were randomly located throughout the field. Participants earned one point for each block scored and lost one point if a block contacted a barrier. Each participant was assigned three barriers that only s/he could see; participants could reveal a barrier to teammates as desired. Thus, participants could allocate time toward scoring points or assisting teammates. Three-person teams were assigned to an unrestricted (communication allowed throughout the experiment) or restricted (no communication allowed during trials) condition. Teams completed the task in 3-min trials for one of three monetary incentives presented in a pseudo-random order: (a) fixed incentive, where each member earns $1.00 independent of performance; (b) individual incentive, where each team member earns $0.10 per point for his/her respective score; and (c) collective incentive, where all members points are summed, multiplied by $0.10, and divided equally amongst the team. Relative to the restricted communication group, participants in the unrestricted communication group scored more points and revealed more barriers across all incentive types.

High-probability (high-p) instructional sequences have been used to treat food selectivity exhibited by individuals with developmental disabilities (Patel et al, 2007; Penrod, Gardella, Fernand, 2012). However, the effects of similar strategies on generalization have yet to be studied and they have yet to be employed with children without developmental disabilities. The purpose of the current project was to examine the effects of delivering a high-probability (high-p) instructional sequence on generalized consumption of non-preferred foods with a typically developing 5-year-old boy who had a history of food selectivity. The high-p instructional sequence entailed a series of demands similar to Penrod et al. (2012) in which the final step was to consume the food. Praise was delivered after execution of each instruction and a preferred food was delivered if consumption occurred. Consumption increased for treatment foods and its effects generalized to foods with similar properties without the use of escape extinction. The importance of modifying behavioral feeding procedures developed with children with developmental disabilities to treat problems displayed by typically developing children will be discussed.

The standard functional analysis methodology (Iwata et al 1982/1994) is an effective tool for identifying the maintaining variables for problem behavior. However, additional assessments may be required to determine the specific reinforcing qualities of an identified reinforcer to inform the development of an effective function-based treatment. Previous research examined different types specific sensory components for automatically maintained behavior (Patel et al 2000) and treatment based on matched stimulation (Piazza et al., 2000). Kodak and colleagues (2007) evaluated various forms of attention as maintaining reinforcers for problem behavior. In the current study an initial functional analysis of aggressive behavior identified attention as a maintaining function. An additional assessment was conducted to examine the specific reinforcing characteristics of different types of attention. The assessment successfully identified a specific form of physical attention as the maintaining reinforcer for aggressive behavior. Matched stimuli were assessed for possible treatment components to compete with the sensory aspect of the physical attention. This study will also discuss the results implication for the development of a function-based treatment for aggressive behavior.

Assessing the verbal operant behavioral repertoire of individuals with autism is crucial due to the language and cognitive deficits experienced by this population, and the need for data-driven and individualized treatment. Although several assessments of verbal behavior are available to behavior analysts, few have demonstrated evidence of validity or reliability, and fewer still go beyond elementary forms of verbal operant behavior (e.g., tacts and mands) to complex higher-order relational verbal behavior (e.g., frames of comparison and hierarchy) as described in stimulus equivalence and Relational Frame Theory. The PEAK Relational Training System contains two pre-assessments (PEAK-E-PA, PEAK-T-PA) that are used provide a metric for evaluating participants abilities to respond relationally to stimuli in their environment cross-modally, and across each of the relational frame families. Because of the apparent correspondence between relational verbal operants and skills a) demonstrated by typically developing peers, and b) evaluated in contemporary assessments of intellectual functioning, there is a need to evaluate the validity of the PEAK pre-assessments in terms of these common measures. We will present data correlating the PEAK-E-PA and the PEAK-T-PA with common assessments of IQ (e.g., WISC-V, WPPSI-IV) with 40 children and adolescents with autism, and compare this relationship to data correlating common verbal behavior measures (VB-MAPP, PEAK-DT, PEAK-G) and IQ.

McCord, Iwata, Galensky, Ellingson, and Thomson (2001) stated that various types of noise may function as an establishing operation for problem behavior in individuals with developmental disabilities. In the current study, an individual admitted to an inpatient hospital for severe problem was reported to engage in aggressive and disruptive behavior when demands were presented and in the presence of loud environments. The results from the initial functional analysis were inconclusive. Therefore, we conducted a stimulus avoidance assessment with a variety of noises to identify which evoked the highest rates of avoidant and target problem behaviors. The participant engaged in the highest rate of avoidant behavior during the group conversation condition (i.e., more than three individuals talking near the participant). This stimulus was included in a subsequent evaluation to determine if problem behavior is maintained by escape from noise, demands, or both. The escape conditions were compared to a control condition, during which no demands were presented and there was limited noise. Results of this study were inconclusive, but this assessment extended the procedures of previous research by further evaluating the participants avoidant behaviors in the presence of noise to identify an establishing operation for problem behavior.

Differential reinforcement of incompatible behavior (DRI) is a positive reductive procedure wherein a response that is physically incompatible with a second response (i.e., mutually exclusive) is reinforced (Cooper, Heron, & Heward, 2007). In the design of function-based treatments, DRI procedures may be particularly valuable when extinction is indicated, but physically dangerous; that is, to attenuate anticipated extinction bursts while providing an opportunity for reinforcement. The purpose of the current study was to evaluate the effectiveness of a DRI procedure to decrease the frequency and duration of behavioral outbursts in a child with multiply maintained problem behavior. Implementation of the DRI procedure included presenting the SD (i.e., a picture of the child engaging in the calm posture with verbal prompt to “calm down”) and providing verbal praise for compliance with remaining calm for at least 5 s. If compliance was not immediately observed, extinction was implemented except that the SD continued to be presented every 30s until compliance was observed. The effectiveness of the DRI procedure was evaluated using a multiple baseline design across three topographies of destructive behavior (i.e., aggressive behavior, disruptive behavior, and property destruction). Data were collected on child compliance with DRI prompts, in addition to levels of destructive behavior.

The field of behavior analysis has done an increasingly impressive job at remediation of poor employee performances using techniques such as behavioral skills training. However, less is known about factors which may a priori predict such poor performances before actual employment occurs. Additionally, there may be certain factors which also may be able to detect outstanding employees as well. The purpose of this presentation is to describe an investigation into a wide range of potential factors impacting BCBA employee performance in a large multi-state organization serving individuals with disabilities. We examined age, years since graduation, stress indices, mindfulness levels and related these to job burnout, turnover and behavioral performance reviews. We will show results of this analysis including an extremely powerful relationship between mindfulness and job burnout as well as self-reports of personal accomplishment. Additional relationships between these factors and performance reviews will also be discussed. Finally a behavioral interpretation of these seemingly cognitive sounding predictors will be presented.

Training in Applied Behavior Analysis (ABA) for parents of children with autism spectrum disorders (ASD) can be a critical support for both parents and their children (Bearss, Johnson, Smith, Lecavalier, & Swiezy, 2015). Unfortunately, these trainings are not often well attended, and programs in Spanish have been even less frequently examined. The current study seeks to compare two methods for engaging participants in a parent training intervention program conducted in Spanish, for Spanish-speaking parents of school-aged children with ASD. This study was conducted at a clinical site where 75% of families were exclusively Spanish-speaking. Twenty families were recruited who had at least one child with ASD, aged 6-8 years old. Seventeen families ultimately participated in the training program in two separate group models (n=9 in model 1 and n=8 in model 2). In the first model, the interventionist assessed all families, and the intervention included 6 group sessions, followed by 4 individual sessions. In the second model, separate staff assessed families, and the intervention included 4 group sessions, followed by 4 individual sessions. Content was the same in both models, and focused on teaching ABA terms, strategies, and application for issues with their own children. Families completed both parent and child measures before the training began, including a diagnostic evaluation with their child. Parent engagement was significantly higher in the first model (6 group and 4 individual sessions) at 84.6% than in the second model (4 group and 4 individual sessions) at 43.8%. Cultural adaptations to the intervention were needed to increase participation in both models, including offering childcare, dinner for participants and children, and extending time for social engagement, but more relationship building opportunities were included in the first model.

With the emergence of young adults diagnosed with autism spectrum disorder (ASD) attending college, some support recommendations for these students have been reported. However, standardized, evidence-based models of formal support programs for college students with ASD have not yet been developed or described. This exploratory study is a retrospective reflection on the methods, outcomes and insight gleaned over three years of a service-based social group for college students with ASD. More than 20 students have been served through the group over six long semesters (spring and fall). This interdisciplinary effort was created in response to student need and recognition of the lack of research and resources available for this population. Evidence-based intervention methods including Pivotal Response Training (PRT) and Person-Centered Planning (PCP) driven by student interest and participation are utilized through a non curriculum-based group in a naturalistic setting. Topics and guests are selected based on student input. Attendance is voluntary, but consistent. Students are provided with guidance and assistance in accessing both on and off-campus resources, and individual intervention efforts conducted outside the group format are described. Behavioral trends, impact of the group on campus awareness and service requirements, student retention, graduation outcomes and recommendations for replication efforts are explained.

Parents are children's first teachers. When working with toddlers, especially toddlers with autism, it is essential to ensure that interventions are both effective and acceptable to all members of the family. It has been repeatedly demonstrated that parents of children with disabilities report higher levels of stress than parents of typically developing children. Parents of children with autism report stress levels even higher than those of parents of children with other disabilities. The purpose of the data that will be presented in this symposium will demonstrate that the Project DATA model was acceptable to families and that families were pleased with the range of outcomes achieved by their children. We will also discuss the impact that this intervention had on the family life. Implications for practice, including issues of where the intervention was provided, will be discussed.

Reinforcement thinning involves the gradual introduction of periods of time in which the reinforcers are unavailable. The return of the reinforcers following a delay can either be time-based (e.g., multiple or mixed schedule) or contingency-based (i.e., chained-schedule). Ghaemmaghami, Hanley, and Jessel (2016) compared the utility of time-based and contingency-based progressive delays with four individuals who exhibited problem behavior. Larger reductions in problem behavior during reinforcement thinning were consistently obtained in the contingency-based conditions. We extended this research with two children with autism who exhibited problem behavior by comparing two forms of contingency-based reinforcement thinning procedures: one in which the reinforcer is presented following a programmed number of alternative responses (i.e., differential reinforcement of alternative behavior [DRA]) and one in which the reinforcer is presented following a programmed duration without the target response (i.e., differential reinforcement of other behavior [DRO]). We found greater reductions in problem behavior during the DRA-based reinforcement thinning condition suggesting that returning the reinforcers following a delay contingent on a response is likely to improve the efficacy of a reinforcement thinning procedure.

Comorbid psychiatric disorders in individuals with autism spectrum disorders (ASD) are highly prevalent. The comorbidity of obsessive-compulsive disorder (OCD) in individuals with autism is an especially recognized issue. Interventions implemented for individuals with OCD only do not necessarily prove effective for individuals with ASD who also have an OCD diagnosis or symptoms. Acknowledged as the first line of treatment for OCD, Cognitive Behavioral Therapy (CBT) evinces promising outcomes for individuals with both ASD and OCD as long as the treatment protocol is enhanced by necessary modifications. This poster presentation provides the results of a critical literature review of the use of CBT as a treatment approach for OCD in individuals with ASD to determine the strength of evidence that supports the use of CBT to address OCD in individuals with ASD, identify the modifications that were used to increase treatment success, and discuss implications for future research and practice. The poster presentation will include a table of all studies that were analyzed and their relevant features and an analysis of the modifications used across studies to enhance intervention effectiveness.

Poor social communication skills are one of the many barriers that hinder the ability of students with ASD to learn and interact with peers in school settings. Therefore, this systematic literature review evaluates peer-reviewed single-subject research targeting social communication skills for students with ASD in school settings. Sixty-nine (n = 69) studies located in ERIC, PschINFO, and MEDLINE were published from 1995 to 2014 and met the inclusion criteria. The following variables were examined in each study: the number and the characteristics of participants, diagnosis, settings, dependent variables, independent variables, type of single-subject design, documentation of generalization and maintenance, the person delivering the intervention, rigor of the study, and non-overlap indice (Tau-U score). The mean Tau-U across all the studies was 0.76 (range from 0.00 to 1.00). Findings from this review suggest the availability of a wide range of specific interventions (and intervention packages) to improve different social communication skills for students with ASD in school settings. Suggestions for practical implications will be provided and directions for future research are proposed.

Mand compliance is a modified condition within functional analyses that is rarely evaluated in the literature (Bowman, Fisher, Thompson, & Piazza, 1997; Eluri, Andrade, Trevino, & Mahmoud, 2016; O'Connor, Sorensen-Burnworth, Rush, & Eidman, 2003). Treatment in the literature often includes a token system to reduce challenging behavior. The current study is evaluating two children whose challenging behaviors are maintained by mand compliance and alternative treatments were used to determine the effectiveness in reducing challenging behavior maintained by adult compliance with these mands. An extinction only procedure was used with the first participant. The other participant was treated using a DRO procedure. Both treatments worked to reduce challenging behaviors; however, there were some notable side effects to these treatments that may alter the decision to use them. First, instructions seem to be an important part of treatment for these children and prolonged periods of not having an adult comply with mands can result in increased rates of challenging behavior.

Children with autism spectrum disorder (ASD) often exhibit deficits in interaction with the other person. However, there are few studies to evaluate the interaction by using sequential measures of ABC(Whalen et al., 2006). By clarifying the functional antecedents, behavior and consequence, the analysis would be useful for parent and staff training. In the present study, we developed a dependent measure and evaluate the change of interactions between a child with ASD and the mother in pre- and post assessment of a parent training program. A boy (CA4;7, DQ44)and his mother participated in this study. The intervention was conducted once a week at the university laboratory for 1 hour, including parent training. At home, the parent took videos during home-based training sessions. We newly developed a dependent measure using ObserverTM (NoldusTM) to evaluate the interaction with a unit of ABC. The results showed the decrease of mothers nonfunctional indications and increase of appropriate behavior (Figure 1). IOA was above 80%. The result suggested the feasibility of a dependent measure to evaluate the child-parent interaction. Future research should be needed to evaluate interaction using the other dependent measures, such as turn taking and spontaneous utterances. This work was supported by CREST, Japan Science and Technology Agency.