Association for Behavior Analysis International

Behavior is determined by interactions between current and past contingencies. As such, investigations on the potential effects of behavior history are essential to the understanding of human and nonhumans behavior. The present studies offer examples of history effects on self-control behavior, relapse and resistance to change with both humans and nonhumans (pigeons and rats). Moreira and Abreu-Rodrigues observed, with obese individuals, that a history with self-control training promoted adherence to prescriptions, but did not affect impulsivity as measured by delay discounting procedures. Calmon-Rodegheri and Abreu-Rodrigues isolated the effects of response and reinforcer rates upon the resistance of a target response to extinction and its recurrence with additional contingency changes. They found no covariation between resistance and three relapse phenomena (reinstatement, resurgence and renewal). Finally, Al�, Abreu-Rodrigues, Can�ado, Doughty, Louzada and Silva de Deus manipulated the variation requirement across components of a multiple schedule and observed a negatively accelerated relation between resistance to prefeeding and behavioral variation. Taken together, these studies can help both basic and applied researchers in the task of promoting desirable and weakening undesirable effects of historical variables.

Among the treatments for obesity, there are the dietetics prescriptions and physical activity, often combined with behavioral intervention aimed to increase the adherence to prescriptions. The adherence behavior can be understood as choosing a self-control alternative rather than choosing an impulsivity alternative. The goal of this study was to investigate the effects of a behavioral intervention (Self-Control Training) on adherence with three obese participants. Several measures were used to evaluate those effects: (1) behavioral measures of adherence (number of daily meals according to the diet, frequency of weekly physical activity, goal achievement); (2) anthropometric (weight, BMI, waist circumference) and laboratorial (blood glucose, cholesterol and triglycerides) measures; measures of (3) quality of life (SF-36) and (4) impulsivity (BIS-11 and delay discounting). The participants showed weight loss and an increase in the behavioral measures of adherence and perception of quality of life. There was also a reduction in anthropometric and lab measures, with the exception of glucose levels in the blood. Regarding impulsivity measures, there was a decrease in most of the BIS-11 sub scales, but not in delay discounting. Self-Control Training was effective in the treatment of obesity, producing beneficial behavioral changes, but without reducing delay discounting.

This study compared the effects of response and reinforcer rates upon the recurrence and resistance to change of a target response with three procedures: reinstatement, resurgence and renewal. In Training, a target response (R1) was reinforced according to a multiple FR DRL schedule. In Elimination, R1 was extinguished in all procedures, but in the resurgence procedure, another response (R2) was reinforced, and in the renewal procedure, another context replaced the previous one. In Testing, extinction remained in effect for R1, but in the reinstatement procedure, non-contingent reinforcers were delivered; in the resurgence procedure, R2 was also extinguished; and in the renewal procedure, the initial context returned. In Phase 1, response rates were similar and reinforcer rates differed across components in Training, and in Phase 2, the opposite was in place. With the three procedures, resistance to extinction (Elimination) was greater in the component with lower response rates and higher reinforcer rates. Recurrence of R1 (Testing) was greater in the FR than in the DRL component in the reinstatement procedure, but differed unsystematically across components in the other procedures, despite of response and reinforcer rates. It was concluded that relapse and resistance are not similarly controlled by response and reinforcer rates.

Resistance to prefeeding was evaluated as a function of the degree of behavioral variability required for reinforcement. Rats were exposed to a two-component multiple schedule in which a four-response sequence distributed in two levers would lead to reinforcement or timeout, depending on whether a variability requirement was met. This requirement changed across multiple-schedule components, but reinforcement rates were equated between schedule components. Across six to ten cycles of baseline and test conditions, variability was manipulated using different threshold requirements across components. Yoke and repeat components also were used to test the effects of the absence of a variability requirement and the requirement of no variability. There was a negatively accelerated relation between baseline U values and U-value changes from baseline, for all three rats. Thus, small increments in the variability requirement produced substantial increases in resistance to change, but these increases became smaller as the variability requirement became more stringent.

Panelists will discuss how they implemented a clinically sound Applied Behavior Analytic (ABA) public school hybrid model in a failing private day school serving children diagnosed with Autism and Intellectual Disability. The failing school had parents who were outraged with the programming, along with funding agents and public school liaisons removing students at alarming rates. Panelists will highlight the implementation of structured teaching, verbal behavior interventions, the use of technology, fidelity checklists, and Organizational Behavior Management methodology that increased the goals met by 430% and a data collection system that last resulted in over 1.6 million data points gathered and graphically displayed. Unlike many ABA-based schools, , the Sarah Dooley Center is modeled on the look, rhythm and feel of a public school which has resulted in a tremendous increase in students being transferred back to their local public schools. We have also partially implemented a cloud-based verbal curriculum. Results of on-going studies on the efficiency and efficacy of cloud-based assessment, instruction and curricula will be discussed.

We have initiated, replicated, and extended a programmatic line of research for establishing operant procedures to investigate infant learning and to help young children who are at risk for developing autism or other developmental disorders acquire social repertoires. Infant engagement responses such as vocalizations, eye contact, joint attention, and social referencing are critical developmental milestones that serve as prerequisites for early communication and social skills (Pelaez, 2009). The emphasis in this symposium is that operant learning procedures can be successful in establishing early social-learning repertoires. The first presenter identifies the early behavioral indicators of at-risk infants. She examines the typical infant operant responses studied (e.g., vocalizations, gaze, kicking, smiles, gaze away) and the social conditioned reinforcers used (e.g., adult smiles, touch, nods, cooing, imitating, picking up) in the study of infant social learning. The presenter highlights the operant-learning procedures that have been useful in investigating infant phenomena like mother-infant attachment, acquisition of fears, joint attention, social referencing, and early communication. The second presentation analyzes previous research on behavioral procedures used to establish infant eye contact using a synchronized reinforcement procedure. The third presentation reviews existing research on procedures using two forms of social reinforcement (adult vocal imitation and motherese speech) for increasing early vocalizations among infants and young children. The fourth presentation examines the acquisition of joint-attention and social referencing repertoires via the operant-learning paradigm among typically and atypically developing infants and toddlers. The discussant will comment on these ongoing programs of research and future directions and implications of the research.

Operant conditioning procedures have been used very effectively to investigate infant social learning (Gewirtz & Pelaez, 1992; Novak & Pelaez, 2004; Pelaez, Virues, & Gewirtz, 2011, 2012). Infants and young children who are at risk of developing autism or other developmental disorders can benefit from early interventions that use operant principles and procedures (Neimy, et al., in press). In this presentation we will identify the early behavioral indicators of at-risk infants; examine the typical infant operant responses studied (e.g., vocalizations, eye gaze, kicking, smiles, gaze away) and discuss the conditioned social reinforcers often used in the study of infant social learning (e.g., adult smiles, touch, nods, cooing, imitating, picking up). We will highlight the infant phenomena that has been studied, including mother-infant attachment, the effects of maternal depression on infant learning, the acquisition of fears, joint attention, social referencing, and early learning of imitation.

Parents can successfully increase engagement behaviors such as eye contact and positive affect with young children at risk of autism and other developmental disorders. This presentation reviews and discusses a synchronized reinforcement procedure, described by Pelaez and colleagues (1996), that can strengthen infant eye contact. The procedure includes brief parental training where mothers are taught to provide simultaneous behaviors such as smiling, verbal praise, and rhythmic touch contingently to reinforce infant eye contact in the natural environment. The assumptions is that establishing eye contact in young children can aid the learning of other foundational skills required to build social communicative behaviors. The current presentation stresses the importance of establishing contingencies of reinforcement during mother-child interactions.

The volume of specialized services offered to children with ASD continues to increase to reflect the constantly increasing prevalence rate of the disorder. Access to early, intensive and individualized intervention services is crucial to prevent crystallization of symptoms and ensure optimal development of children. In real life settings, access to early intervention services and their effectiveness are hindered by three major challenges: 1) waitlists for obtaining diagnostic and services, explained in part due to lack of resources; 2) the variable response of children to treatment; and 3) lack of services regarding the support provided to parents. Service providers are challenged to expose all children (quantity, accessibility and equity) to quality interventions (scientifically proven, as for example, Early Intensive Behavioral Intervention programs). This symposium presents different research projects carried out by our team in order to evaluate alternatives to give access to ABA programs to children with ASD and their families in the best possible conditions and in taking into account the ressources of the public clinical settings.

To help eliminate current waitlists in Montreal (Canada) for preschool children requiring assessments to confirm the presence of Autism Spectrum Disorder, Global Developmental Delay or Intellectual Disabilities, the See Things my Way Assessment Centre was launched in 2015. The interdisciplinary diagnostic centre aims to offer the highest quality assessments, to support families in accessing and understanding the much needed early intensive behavioural interventions (EIBI). ABA-based recommendations are also provided in the interim. Objective: The Centres implementation is currently being carefully studied to ensure its viability, sustainability and replicability. Method: Instruments: standardized questionnaires, semi-structured interviews, patients records. Participants: 6 staff members and 35 families. Analysis: quantitative (descriptive) and qualitative (thematic analysis). Preliminary results in regards to its implementation (first year of operation), the overall trajectory of services across Montreal as well as parental satisfaction will be discussed. These findings will highlight the utmost importance of obtaining a diagnosis in order to access EIBI as well as the impact of a seamless continuum of services from first signs to intervention on families well-being and quality of life.

Considering that efficacy of early intensive behavioral intervention (EIBI) programs has been well documented in the rigorous experimental framework, the overall objective of this presentation is to show, in a broader program evaluation perspective, the potential contributions of various types of evaluation studies on the implementation and generalization of the EIBI in real life settings. The reported results are part of a large research project on the evaluation of global public services for children with ASD and their familiy (more than 300 participants). Participants were enrolled in different programs offered by a public rehabilitation center in Quebec (French province of Canada). Data and methodological issues on different questions of the project will be presented : 1) the quality of trajectory of services according to 176 parents, the social validity of waitlist intervention and EIBI program for 94 parents and the effectiveness of EIBI programs on different outcomes for 93 children. In conclusion, two issues will be discussed : 1) the importance of the fluidity of the trajectory of services, from the moment of the diagnostic, to the access of EIBI services until the integration in school ;2) the critical place of the families in the overal process, with a premise that more intervention and research should be family-oriented.

Although the majority of children with ASD show significant gains during EIBI program in terms of intellectual functioning, level of development, adaptive behavior and reduction of autistic symptoms, some children still present fewer improvements after the intervention. The current research in ASD and EIBI does not fully understand the factors that could explain this variability. Our previous work highlighted that Challenging Behaviors (CB) could be one of those factors (Rivard et al., 2013, 2015, 2016). With the goal of offering suitable intervention alternatives for children with ASD and comorbidities, we validated a French version of the Developmental Behavior Checklist Under 4 (DBC-U4, preschool age) on 650 children with ASD. By doing so, we want to better understand the CB : their prevalence, their associated factors and their impacts on the prognostic of children as well as their family. The goal of this presentation is twofold: 1) presenting an overview of the validation of the French version of the DBC; 2) providing the results of a three year follow-up of the DBC for a sub-sample of 37 children (24 boys and 13 girls), from all across the province of Qubec, Canada. By analyzing the evolution of CB over time, we want ultimate to suggest an optimal sequences of interventions, adapted for children with heterogeneous profiles.

Through recent empirical work in behavioral systems analysis, behavior analysis is increasingly placing itself in a position to theorize effectively and test empirically educated guesses about the functioning of leadership decision making in organizations. Change in complex organizations such as medical schools is a challenging and lengthy process. In their role as guides, leaders create new verbal relations between the current and future state of the organization, and between the future organization and its niche in the future environment. On the other hand, by recognizing individuals' implicit responding and values, leaders can design and implement effective organizational contingencies that promote wellness and effective team dynamics. This symposium will outline the collaborative efforts of the School of Medicine and Behavior Analysis Program at the University of Nevada, Reno. Presentations will highlight the creation, and adoption of behavior analytic assessments and interventions throughout an organization-wide curricular restructuring at the School of Medicine.

In 2012, the University of Nevada, Reno School of Medicine (UNR Med) adopted a behavioral analytics framework to guide a number of change processes including curricular restructuring. Over the following few years, this framework was also applied to faculty development and the creation of a new office for continuous institutional assessment. In the context of significant state wide changes in medical education, we extended our behavioral analytical framework for strategic planning. Over the course of one year we applied an iterative approach to institution-wide strategic planning that relied upon data-based decision making and continuous feedback loops. The process produced a systemic plan to guide us through our next phase of development. The newly articulated direction of UNR Med will be actualized through both strong leadership and by engaging the entire school of medicine community. Re-evaluating institutional goals and objectives will facilitate UNR Meds effective interaction with larger metacontingencies of healthcare and medical education in the state of Nevada.

Despite having seemingly greater access to medical and mental health care, as well as medical and behavioral knowledge, medical students and residents suffer from a higher prevalence of depression than do age-matched controls, and physicians have a higher risk of suicide than the general population. The prevalence of depression in medical students and residents appears to have increased over the last 20 years. The prevalence of burnout, a different but related construct to depression, is roughly 50% in all recent studies of medical students and physicians. Depression, if undiagnosed and untreated, is associated with cognitive dysfunction, loss of empathy, professional dysfunction and low esteem, and suicide risk. Burnout is associated with exhaustion, depersonalization, low professional satisfaction and unethical professional behaviors.These data areof great concernto medical educators,and are considered one of the major challenges facing medical education today. This concern is leading to new approaches to assessment, building resilience, eliminating the stigma of seeking diagnosis and treatment, and reducing adverse educational environments, requiring new tools for enhancing self-awareness, providing measurable feedback on behavioral changes, and developing new approaches to teaching.

Preventable adverse events have been identified as the nation's third leading cause of death in the United States. Faulty teamwork and communication amongst healthcare providers has been identified as the root cause of such adverse events. To enhance teamwork, communication, andas a resultpatient safety, the incorporation of interprofessional education (IPE) into healthcare training has been advised. Introduced in June 2011, the I-PASS handoff bundle curriculum is one evidence-based technology currently used in IPE settings. Interprofessional teams who have completed the I-PASS handoff curriculum demonstrate improved communication, coordination, and leadership skills within groups. One component that remains missing, however, is the psychological training of individual values and perspective-taking skills. Within behavior analysis, a methodology known as ACTraining exists to address these psychological deficits. Given this information, the current study implemented a comprehensive IPE programbased on the I-PASS curriculum, ACTraining literature, and descriptive analytic measurement methodsinto a medical and nursing school. Behavioral assessment procedures (e.g., simulated patient handoffs) and measures related to interprofessional communication were taken before, during, and after exposure to the curriculum intervention.

Scientists talk in a variety of ways. Some scientists primarily participate in philosophical discourse, whereas others may focus on research, and still others primarily apply the science in practice settings. By and large, workers in these different areas tend to speak in different ways, and this is likely related to their different aims. The present symposium involves two presentations which directly address ways of speaking about events in science, including common confusions engendered by different ways of speaking, and ways in which progress may be both stunted and enhanced by these different ways of speaking. The first presentation focuses on the relationship between philosophical discourse and investigation specifically, calling into question the extent to which philosophical discourse amounts to nothing more than talk and no action. The second presentation focuses on the relationship between theory and practice, and specifically, the extent to which different ways of speaking about different practices can both compromise and strengthen scientific progress. A discussant will provide commentary on these issues. It is hoped that attention to these topics will stimulate further conceptual work, research, and practice in the field of behavior analysis.

Sciences subjected to formal system building operations find their enterprises articulated in a collection of constructs serving to identify their unique subject matters, coupled with sets of premises pertaining to their origins, developments, structures, and relations with the subject matters of other sciences. This is what would ordinarily be called the philosophy of a systematic science. In accord with this philosophy and guided by it are organizations of specialized activity comprising the remaining aspects of a scientific enterprise, namely its investigative, interpretive and applied sub-domains. The manner in which the subject matter of a science is handled, including the terminology with which its operations are described, vary across these domains. For example, in the language of investigation, psychological events exhibit dependency relations; while in philosophical discourse, their interdependence is asserted. Failure to appreciate this variance, especially when the investigative domain of a science is over-valued, engenders spurious arguments among scientists. This paper addresses arguments of this sort among psychological scientists of the behavioral and interbehavioral varieties wherein the latter are held by the former to be all talk and no action. The aim of this paper is to dispel this confusion.

The growth and development of Applied Behavior Analysis (ABA) has led to widespread dissemination efforts around the globe. While this is a good thing, there have been a number of somewhat unforeseen consequences related to the rapid growth of ABA. This presentation describes the role of theories in the practice of ABA. The example of autism treatment will be considered as an example, especially the great variety of seemingly different more or less behavioral treatments, each with their own unique labels and descriptions. The implications of talking about interventions in this way are considered, and the eventual impact on science and clinical work is described. Ultimately, the audience is cautioned against placing too much emphasis on the language used to describe various intervention packages and urged to pursue a behavioral analysis of such packages. The perceived value of doing so rests upon an understanding of how scientific disciplines make progress, which will be a recurrent theme throughout the presentation. Surely, it isnt all just semantics, for descriptions of things impact how we respond to those things, including what research questions we ask about them, eventually impacting the clinical services we provide.

The stimulus control of behavior is a critical aspect of how organisms adjust their behavior to the state of their environment and the survival of animals (including humans) often depends on their ability to perform responses that are appropriate to their circumstances. Therefore the ability to appropriately attend to the important features of a complex environment and perceive their relations is a critical survival skill. Importantly, problems related to the allocation of attending are associated with various psychological disorders ranging from attention deficit to substance abuse. Among the many factors contributing to the allocation and persistence of attending, the relation between patterns of attending and the resultant consequences plays an important role. The aim of this symposium is to bring together researchers to discuss current experimental findings and conceptualization regarding the effects of environmental contingencies on stimulus control in humans ranging from associations discrimination and class formations in respondent schedules to eye-movement based observing in operant schedules. These studies reveal both the complexity of attending and observing for stimulus control and the strong need for a unitary theoretical framework to account for the range and diversity of environmental effects on the establishment and persistence of stimulus control.

Associative learning is at the core of several important learning phenomena, notably operant and Pavlovian conditioning. Allan and collaborators have proposed that it could be conceptualized as a perception problem, entailing the application to it the full psychophysical toolbox to quantify a subjects ability to perceive relations between events. This psychophysical framework goes along with a new procedure for the study of associative learning in humans, the streamed-trial procedure, where participants are exposed to rapid flows of stimuli at the end of which a contingency judgment is asked of them. This presentation will review results from an ongoing research project building on Allans pioneering work. Among the conclusions highlighted, (a) Participants are better at perceiving positive contingencies between stimuli; (b) The variability in their is constant; (c) The sensitivity to stimulus contingency cannot be modified through feedback; (d) It relies, at least in the streamed-trial procedure, on attention-dependent visual processing while verbal coding strategies (such as counting stimuli) only play a marginal role.

Researches indicated that stimuli pairing in training is responsible for transfer of discriminative function. The present study evaluated whether transfer of function was a product of temporal contiguity between stimuli or the formation of a functional class. Six college students were exposed to a three-phase procedure: the first phase was a successive discriminative training with three compound stimuli as S+ (A1B1, A1C1, A1D1) and three compound stimuli as S- (A1B2, A1C2, A1D2). The second phase was a successive discriminative training to establish R1 in the presence of B1 and R2 in the presence of B2. The third phase was a test, in extinction, to evaluate whether R1 or R2 would be emitted in the presence of A1, B1, C1, D1, B2, C2, D2 stimuli presented separately and successively. The results showed that 4 of the 6 participants showed R1 in the presence of stimuli from Class 1 and R2 in the presence of stimuli from Class 2. None of the subjects emitted the same response for all the single stimuli presented in the test. Results indicated that transfer of function was probably the product of the formation of functional classes and not a product of temporal contiguity.

Applied behavior analysis can be utilized to affect a wide range of socially significant behaviors across a diverse number of populations. This symposium seeks to address additional areas, practices, and populations that can benefit from applied behavior analysis, and the ways in which behavior analysts can find themselves in these fields. The presenters will discuss their own work in traditionally established recipients of ABA services, review their progress in diversifying the recipients of applied behavior analysis, and provide future directions to be pursued. Historical, legal, and ethical barriers to applied behavior analysis in a variety of domains will be addressed, as well as introducing avenues by which behavior analysts can enter and improve other fields using the science of human behavior. This symposium will explore a number of diverse domains in which behavior analysis can work to improve the lives of a number of populations by affecting socially significant behaviors.

This presentation is an illustration of how both data-based decision making processes and technological tools are relevant in applied settings and how the latter can influence the former in a meaningful and powerful way. Simon Lergs-Dejardin will present a case of a young girl with Potocki-Lupski syndrom that had no functional communication prior to intervention. The intervention consisted in developing a fine motor repertoire (the Big 6) through fluency-based instruction to promote the use of the tablet in order to communicate with a selection-based app. The success of this case will show that both technology of teaching (fluency-based instruction through Precision Teaching, Big 6 and Clicker training), and technology of tools (the use of an on online application to chart data on Standard Celeration Charts aka Chartlytics and the section-based application) are a powerful combination in behavior analysis and should be the standard when one work with students with special needs.

Although behavior analytic services for students with autism and other developmental disabilities remain marginal (only around 30 Certified Behavior Analysts are registered in France), it is growing year after year due to increasing demand by parents and caretakers. The result of this growth is that behavior analysis, or ABA, becomes synonymous with autism treatment despite the our history of working with various populations, settings, and social significant events. Currently there are few Behavior Analysts in France that work outside the field of developmental and related disabilities. In order to extend behavior analysis outside the field of autism, professionals need to address other disabilities and needs. The presenters believe that a good starting point would be to help meet the difficulties that occur within school, as it represents a large number of children and adolescents. During this presentation, Simon and Dorothe Lergs-Dejardin will present the state of evidence-based practices (i.e., Precision Teaching) for students with special needs in France, show data that they have collected about the need for these kinds of services, and provide the process they went through in order to open the first specialized center in France.

Over the past 20 years, there has been a renewed interest in designing educational environments that lead to various practical outcomes for learners. Educational endeavors may be conceptualized as falling within several categories: formal public education, formal private education, independent studies, athletic activities, musical activities, and day-to-day learning through an individual's life. In the past decade, the creation of individual learning opportunities through internet-based applications increased. Behavior analysis, historically aligned with formulating instructional design methods, can lend a helping hand to create meaningful educational opportunities for people of varying ages and ability. An educational technology startup (Institute of Meaningful Instruction, LLC) in Reno, Nevada launched in 2015 with the mission to expand the human potential through instructional material. This presentation will cover the founders approaches to creating instructional materials in-line with the mission and outside mainstream ABA approaches and populations. Successes, failures, and suggestions for the future will be presented.

We will present outcome of early behavioral Iitervention for children with autism from two community based intervention Centers in Norway. First, the Centre for Early Intervention in Oslo, Norway will present outcome following two years of low intensity behavioral intervention for 26 children with autism. They are compared to a group of 25children that have received eclectic special education. Next, the Department of Autism in Bergen, Norway will present outcome after one year of behavioral intervention for 28 children, and compare this to a group of 23 children that were provided generic special education of similar intensity. Finally, we will present outcome from a group of 13 children that continued a behavioral intervention program through third grade in school (age 10), and compare this to a group of children where behavioral intervention was ended when they started school (age 6).

We evaluated outcome of low intensity early behavioral intervention (about 12 weekly intervention hours) for children with autism as it was provided by the public Centre for Early intervention in Oslo, Norway. All the children (n=26) that completed two years of intervention between 2011 and 2016 are included in the study, and outcome was compared to a group of children that received eclectic special education. We measured outcome on autism severity, general intelligence and adaptive behavior. All though, the intervention was less intensive than what is recommended in the literature, the behavioral group did significantly better than the eclectic comparison group. Nevertheless, average gains were more modest than what is reported for more intensive programs.

We evaluate outcome following one year of intensive behavioral intervention (about 20 weekly intervention hours) provided through the public Department of Autism. in the City of Bergen, Norway. All children (n=28) that completed one year of intervention between 2011 and 2016 were included in the evaluation. Outcome was measured in terms of autism severity, adaptive behaviors and the occurrence of problem behaviors and compared to a group of children receiving generic special education.

We found better outcome in intelligence and adaptive behavior scores at age 10, for those children who continued to receive behavioral intervention in school compared to those children who ended their intervention at age 6. The groups had similar gains following intervention on pre-school.The group of children (n=11) that continued their behavioral intervention in school continued to gain in intelligence and adaptive behavior scores, whereas the group that stopped (n=8) lost points. This finding supports the hypotheses that behavioral intervention can continue to benefit some children with autism well into school age.

The literature regarding the use of physical guidance in schools is scant, perhaps due to the controversial nature of the topic. The studies presented evaluate the effects of one component of a comprehensive treatment, systematic physical assistance and graduated fading of physical guidance to decrease aggressive behavior and to increase on-task participation in children with autism. A comprehensive review and discussion of several different physical guidance training packages were undertaken and a training package from the Professional Crisis Management Association (2002), referred to as Professional Crisis Management (PCM), was selected. The settings used for this evaluation were different public French ABA schools (managed by 2 different Associations). These schools provide services for children with autism ranging in age from 3 to 18 years old. This 4-day PCM training was chosen because: 1) it provides strong emphasis on prevention and de-escalation; 2) considerable time is spent training staff on managing disruptive but non-dangerous behaviors, something particularly applicable to the classroom setting; 3) it narrowly defines crisis as behaviors which are dangerously disruptive or continuously self-injurious or aggressive; 4) the training clearly states that physical assistance is not to be used for discipline or compliance; 5) the physical component of all procedures is both safe and as dignified as possible. Additionally, the PCM program also includes physical feedback designed to assist the student in learning that physical assistance is immediately and systematically reduced as a consequence of reductions in physical resistence . Data collected on two behaviors: on-task behavior and aggressive behavior

The study was completed to evaluate the effects of systematically using and fading physical feedback to decrease aggressive behavior and to increase on-task participation for one child with autism. The setting is a French ABA school. This study includes a multiple baseline across teachers design. Baseline data was collected on two behaviors: on-task behavior and aggression. Aggressive behavior was defined as: (a) throwing and destroying objects; or (b) biting, hitting, scratching, or kicking other people. The student was considered on task when he was: (a) following the teacher's instructions; (b) orienting appropriately toward the teacher or task; or (c) seeking help in the proper manner (e.g., raising hand). Data were recorded in students classroom during 15 min of the class period as the students participated in the normal class activities. Data were collected once a day, using time sampling (30 seconds interval). A follow-up phase (6 months later) indicates that on-task behavior remains at high rates. Moreover, no aggressive behaviors were observed during this follow-up phase.

The study was completed to evaluate the effects of systematically using and fading physical feedback to decrease aggressive behavior and to increase on-task participation for students with autism during transitions This study includes a multiple baseline across teachers design. Students were considered on task when: (a) transitioning from point A to point B as instructed. Data were recorded in student's transitions, during 2 hours sessions with at least 10 opportunities for transitions. Data will be presented that includes baseline, treatment and follow-up conditions.

Behavior-based safety (BBS) entails the application of principles of behavior within systemic management of behaviors critical to occupational health, safety and environmental concerns (HSE). Scientific organizations that promote the application of behavior analysis to socially significant concerns (e.g., Cambridge Center fore Behavioral Studies - CCBS, Association for the Advancement of Radical Behavior Analysis - AARBA) provide an important role in advocating for effective behavioral solutions. This panel discussion considers the development, history, procedures, and results of accreditation/certification processes that assess the quality of BBS applications. Panelists are leaders in BBS and represent international efforts at the forefront of efforts promoting effective behavior management.

This session will showcase three presentations which highlight the behavioral change processes needed for durable, meaningful, and measurable changes in human behavior. The first paper will describe a series of findings between relational responding and intelligence in children with autism. The second paper will review the literature on multiple exemplar training on the development of relational response repertoires. The third paper illustrates that when staff are taught components of Acceptance and Commitment Therapy, clients' lives improve because staff change their own behavior. Together this series of papers reveal a wide range of cutting edge behavioral research and analyses of complex language processes.

The theoretical correspondence between the response families described in Relational Frame Theory and the types of behaviors measured in conventional tests of intelligence are well documented, and recent evidence has suggested that improving relational verbal responding can lead to corresponding increases in IQ. Two assessments developed by this research team provide a comprehensive analysis of individuals' abilities to derive non-arbitrary and arbitrary relations, allowing for a direct comparison of the relationship between participants' relational verbal repertoire and intelligence. The first assessment, PEAK-Equivalence pre-assessment (PEAK-E-PA) evaluates the development of multi-modal coordinated relations. The second assessment, PEAK-Transformation pre-assessment (PEAK-T-PA) evaluates the relational development across each of the relational frame families. Obtained results suggest that there exists a strong, significant relationship between these two assessments and conventional IQ tests, with implications for a behavioral analysis of intelligent behavior.

In the behavior analytic literature, two terms are often used interchangeably; namely multiple exemplar training (MET) and multiple exemplar instruction (MEI). The current paper attempted to define both terms, according to their procedural applications, as identified in a review of the existing body of empirical work. More specifically, studies on naming, stimulus equivalence, and relational frame theory were reviewed and analyzed. Procedures were categorized according to their similarities and differences, irrespective of theoretical orientation. Definitions of the terms are proposed, based upon the distinctions in their applications across these areas of study, as well as their outcomes. Additionally, a new term is proposed, with the intent of refining the precision of behavior analytic language pertaining to these procedures and terms. A discussion of the conceptual systems underlying both procedures is included in the hopes of providing a basis for further discussion and research, with the ultimate goal of generating clearer definitions and conceptual analyses.

This presentation will highlight component analyses of Acceptance and Commitment Therapy in persons with developmental disorders, as well as front-line staff working with adults with severe developmental disabilities. The studies share in common the application of single components of the ACT in isolation while examining their impact on an objective, reliable measures of behavior change. For example, young adults with developmental disorders participated in cognitive defusion and mindfulness exercises, and a functional relationship was established with the interventions and their performance during a role-play interview task. In addition, frontline staff participated in values clarification workshops related to their jobs and work with clients with severe developmental disorders, and a functional relationship was observed between the values trainings and staff engagement with clients. Implications for the application of components of ACT in services for people with developmental disorders will be described.

We used innovative techniques, and included siblings and peers, in play settings to address the social deficits commonly seen in children with autism spectrum disorder (ASD; American Psychiatric Association, 2013). Four research studies will be presented. In the first study, a sibling-mediated intervention using the Natural Language Paradigm (NLP) was used to increase appropriate speech of children with ASD during play. Occurrences of happiness and joint attention also increased during these play/speech sessions. In the second study, a theatre-based intervention increased the social skills and socio-dramatic play of dyads of children with ASD. The third study presented a fading prompt program to teach individuals with ASD to ride a bike, while also measuring verbal and non-verbal social behaviors. We saw a trend in that as bike-riding independence increased, so did social behavior. Lastly, a Behavioral Skills Training program was used to teach athletically skilled children with ASD to teach their playmates appropriate play. Ancillary social behaviors yielded positive gains. Taken together, these four studies demonstrate ways to teach play, treat in play settings, and incorporate siblings and peers into intervention.

Sibling-mediated interventions for children with autism spectrum disorder (ASD) can potentially improve joint attention (Ferraioli & Harris, 2011) and increase engagement (Celiberti & Harris, 1993). The current study used a multiple baseline design across three sibling and child with ASD dyads to assess whether siblings could use the Natural Language Paradigm (NLP) to increase appropriate verbal behavior of their brother during play. Indices of happiness, joint attention, and appropriate play were measured. Each dyad engaged in free-play sessions during baseline. Following baseline, siblings learned to implement NLP with a trained therapist. After reaching mastery criterion, siblings conducted NLP play sessions with their brother with ASD. Results indicated that siblings effectively learned and implemented NLP, and that sibling-mediated NLP was associated with increases in appropriate language for two of the three children with ASD. Measures of happiness increased for all three children with ASD, and joint attention increased for two children with ASD. The implications of this study point toward further investigation of using sibling-mediated interventions to increase the social behaviors of children with ASD.

Theatre interventions have been used to remediate the social skills deficits in children with autism spectrum disorder (ASD). In general, theatre interventions consist of performing skits, theatrical productions (Corbett et al., 2011; Goldstein & Cisar, 1992), and role-play in games (Guli, Semrud-Clikeman, Lerner, & Britton, 2013). In the present study, a multiple baseline design was used to assess the efficacy of a theatre-based treatment that aimed to teach play and social skills to three dyads of children with ASD. Measures of socio-dramatic play, verbal social behavior, and nonverbal social behavior were used. Each dyad participated in baseline, which consisted of five-minute free-play sessions. During intervention, the dyads engaged in warm up activities, put on costumes, practiced and performed skits. Results indicated that during baseline, there was little or inconsistent evidence of appropriate social behavior. Following treatment, all three dyads met criterion for nonverbal social behavior, and each participant displayed increases in all three dependent measures. The results of this study suggest that a theatre intervention offers promise as an effective play and social skills intervention.

Recreational activities, like riding a bike, can provide individuals with the opportunity to improve their health (Lang et al., 2010), increase their independence (McIlvenny, 2014) and socialize with peers (McDonald & Ulrich, 2009). For individuals with autism spectrum disorder (ASD), learning to successfully and independently ride a two-wheeled bike may be quite difficult. An AB design replicated across five individuals with ASD was used to measure a bike prompt fading program, implemented by the iCan Shine organization, that aimed to teach participants to ride a two-wheeled bike independently. Ancillary measures of verbal and non-verbal social behaviors and happiness behaviors were also taken. Using adaptive bicycle equipment, including rollers and rear handles, the participants safely practiced bike-riding skills. Following the fading program, all five participants successfully rode a two-wheeled bike independently, and evidence of all three ancillary social behaviors increased from pre- to post-training. Interestingly, non-verbal social behaviors increased with practice during each fading step and decreased when the level of difficulty was changed. The results of this study indicated that a fading program effectively taught individuals with ASD to independently ride a bike, and that this process may have offered individuals the opportunity to engage in appropriate social interaction.

Children with autism spectrum disorder (ASD) are often lacking in appropriate play and athletic skills (Weiss & Harris, 2001). It is therefore a common occurrence that peers and siblings often view them as a less desirable playmate (Banda, 2015). However, for those children with ASD who do have such skills, it may be appropriate to take advantage of their skills so that they can become a desired playmate. In the present study, an eleven-year-old male with ASD became an athletic instructor for two playmates. Researchers used a multiple baseline across participants and skills design to assess the effects of the child with ASD using behavioral skills training (BST), on the skateboarding skills of his playmates. Social behaviors of joint attention and conversation were also measured before and after training for all three children. Results indicated that the playmates acquired most skills when taught by the child with ASD via BST. Improvements in social behavior were also observed for all of the children following training. Discussion will focus on the implications of interventions mediated by individuals with ASD, as well as on considerations for structuring their teaching interactions.

An evidence-based effective and efficient education models for young children with ASD and other Developmental Disorders, based on the CABAS 40 years of research in Applied Behavior Analysis (ABA), has been a goal for several educators in Italy and Bosnia and Herzegovina. Introducing teaching as ABA was a logical step in order to provide novel methodologies in early childhood programs. Today, we will hear how CABAS model affected the educational practices in several Early Intervention programs in Italy and B&H, and what prognosis a different intensity of intervention can yield for children with Autism and other Developmental Disorders. The efficacy and efficiency of different intensity of Early Intervention and Preschool ABA programs were analyzed via several standardized diagnostic, assessment and monitoring tools. The outcomes of each are discussed in more details and the analysis of the effects on the level of functioning for children in these programs are discussed. The data from these studies are also discussed in terms of program design, significance of evidence-based early childhood developmental approach, and implications such results can have on health and education policies in the countries.

We investigated the efficacy and effectiveness of implementing different intensivity CABAS- based (Greer, 1994; 2002) early intervention programs, and analyzed results including diagnostic standardized tests. Thus, we could communicate with School and Health Public Agencies, advocate for the creation of a database, share research with other fields and impact local health policies. Participants were 7 children aged 2 to 5, diagnosed with autism and showing a pre-listener and pre-speaker level of verbal behavior (Greer & Ross, 2008). They were selected for the study because they had an early-diagnosis but no evidence-based interventions provided by their School or Health Department. A pre-post probe single subject design for each participant was implemented, with pre-post group statistical analysis (ANOVA).The dependent variables were the scores, collected for each child by a blind clinician, before and after 12 months of intervention, using the tests ADOS-2, (Lord et al., 1989), CARS (Shopler et al., 1988) and PEP-3 (Shopler et al., 2004). Results showed high social and statistical significance for every kid. The study is in progress: more participants should be added and follow up data should be collected. Results are discussed in terms of efficacy, efficiency, social impact and sustainability of early intervention programs.

In partnership with UNICEF-B&H and relevant ministries in B&H, EDUS was able to work on developing a system of Early Detection and Intervention for the country, to provide services based on a behavioral but transdisciplinary approach. We have created and standardized a behavioral developmental instrument, to detect and monitor early childhood development and tested it on over 1100 children. This tool enabled a creation of Early Detection System in the country. I will talk to you about the process of standardization and the creation of the B&H developmental norms. Also, the screening behavioral developmental tool was then used for 2 years in EDUS Early Intervention and Preschool ABA programs and pre-post data from those classrooms will be presented here to show the effectiveness of CABAS� based ABA program with 30 children. CABAS� component classrooms and the intense ABA programming was the independent variable. I will talk about promoting early childhood development through concrete steps, measures, tools and applications using the science of Applied Behavior Analysis in Bosnia and Herzegovina.

Through partnership with UNICEF-B&H and relevant ministries, EDUS was able to work on developing a whole system of Early Detection and Intervention for Bosnia and Herzegovina. This included creating EDUS Guides for Developmental Assessment and Creation of the Individualized Education Program for children ages 0-3 and 3-6. Guides are both the developmental behavioral assessment and curriculum for children ages 0-3 and 3-6. They have been tested and used for the past 3 years in EDUS early intervention and kindergarten programs. Dependent variable in this analysis was number of skills in students repertoire and number of acquired skills post applied behavior analytic intervention assessed with EDUS Guides. All EDUS classrooms implemented programs/curricula scripted from the Guides. All data on the students learning and advancement through curriculum were collected as responses to learn units, based on the CABAS model of teaching as a science (independent variable). The results showed an increase in numbers of mastered skills across all developmental domains in a curriculum.

The use of Functional Analysis (FA; Iwata et al., 1982/1994) has been established as the standard for determining the function of a specific problem behavior for several years. The technology has extended its initial applications with adults whom engaged in severe self-injury to: 1) persons of all ages, 2) with various levels of functioning (e.g., persons with multiple severe disabilities to typically developing children), 3) who display different topographical forms of challenging behavior (e.g., aggression, destruction, elopement, etc.), and 4) across various settings (i.e., residential settings, hospitals and clinics, and schools). Thus, FAs have been demonstrating to be an assessment technology that has broad reaching implications for nearly all individuals who display challenging behaviors. As a result, the field has produced various procedural modifications (i.e., Indirect Assessments, Descriptive Assessments, and other Experimental Analyses) of the FA that make up the constellation of technologies under the umbrella term "Functional Based Assessments" (FBA) because of the various limitations of FA's. These limitations (e.g., lack of training, time to conduct) are often cited as reasons for why FBA technologies are seldom used is schools. To permit broader usage of FBAs, specifically in school based settings, having professionals who possessed the skills and knowledge (i.e., breadth) of the technologies that make up the FBA continuum would better permit the "system" to have the capability to work with a larger universe of students who possessed challenging behaviors. In this symposium, four different teams will discuss their the process of training educational staff in the continuum of FBA technologies and discuss the resulting outcomes for the targeted school-based professional trainees who were trained by each model as well as the concomitant outcomes for the students and consequently the schools who were benefited by increased access and usage of FBA technologies. Finally, discussion will center of the broader implications of these training models.

The primary aim of this study was to develop, implement and evaluate the effectiveness of a web based training program in the area of functional behavior assessments (FBA) and behavioral interventions. As higher levels of challenging behavior are observed across students in special education (SPED) schools in Singapore, this training program was offered to special educators that are involved in the direct care of these children. To cater to a larger target audience, the training program was offered across two instructional modalities: a) traditional face to face workshops and b) Web Based Instruction (WBI). Specifically, the study aimed to evaluate the effectiveness of each instructional modality in meeting the professional development needs of SPED school teachers in the area of FBA and behavioral interventions. We hypothesized that both instructional modalities would be equally effective in meeting professional development needs of SPED school teachers. The descriptive and quantitative outcomes of this study would suggest that WBI could be used as an alternative sustainable tool for conducting future training workshops in FBA and behavioral interventions for in-service teachers in Singapore and worldwide via online learning platforms. Thus, building human resource capacity for meeting unserved needs.

Even when practitioners understand the importance of function-based interventions for challenging behaviors, their skill and confidence deficits may prevent them from incorporating valid data within the Functional Behavioral Assessments (FBA) they are required to develop and implement. The Tennessee Department of Education contracted board certified behavior analysts (BCBAs) from Vanderbilts Treatment and Research Institute for Autism Spectrum Disorders (TRIAD) to pilot a program training 8 school-based consultants (e.g. school psychology, special education) to improve the quality of their FBAs for students. In a small-scale replication of the work of Bassingthwaite, Casey, Wacker and colleagues, TRIAD BCBAs conducted behavioral skills training using a combination of live and telepresence support to teach trainees how to plan, conduct, and analyze preference assessments and descriptive assessments, and to synthesize assessment results into a valid and complete FBA. This presentation will include data reflecting consistent, marked improvements in trainee knowledge and self-assessment of their skills over the course of the project, along with rising procedural fidelity, inter-observer agreement, and accuracy for assessments and reports generated. These findings suggest that these training procedures are likely to result in improved FBAs conducted by school-based consultants, and include several practical implications.

The present study sought to extend the current literature on utilizing behavioral skills training (BST) to teach practitioners how to implement functional analyses (FA). Using a multiple baseline design across participants, this study measured the effects of using a remote BST package on accurate implementation of FA procedures. Specifically, we used the latest HIPAA-secure teleconsultation technology and BST to train 10 practitioners who had limited formal training in FA methodologies. Each participant experienced four phases, which included baseline (only instructions with simulated clients), BST (instructions, modeling, rehearsal, and feedback with simulated clients), post training probes (probes with simulated clients), and in-situ probes (probes with actual clients). All participants increased their performance in conducting FAs during the remote BST phase. Seven out ten participants maintained their performance at or above mastery criterion during post-training probes with simulated clients and during in-situ probes with actual clients. These results suggest that the use of remote technology for training purposes could be a cost-effective and feasible solution to increase the quality of services and number of trained professionals in underserved rural areas.