Association for Behavior Analysis International

The proposed symposium includes four presentations addressing recent advances in staff training. The first presentation evaluated the extent to which peer observations affected the treatment integrity of the observer in a human service setting. The second presentation evaluated the effects of a video-models combined with a self-instructional manual to teach behavioral therapists to implement both discrete-trial instruction (DTI) and enhanced milieu teaching (EMT) techniques. Together, these results indicate that therapists are able to acquire a large number of skills following a brief training. The third presentation examined the effectiveness of video modeling (VM) to train staff to conduct three preference assessments. The results demonstrated that VM was effective, and staff demonstrated high integrity during generalization and follow-up probes. The fourth presentation evaluated The Performance Diagnostic Checklist-Human Services (PDC-HS) to assess the environmental variables contributing to poor employee performance. The indicated intervention was effective to increase performance; the non PDC-HS based intervention was ineffective. Results are discussed in terms of the utility of the PDC-HS as a tool to identify a variety of performance problems in a variety of human service settings. Collectively these studies provide support for the effectiveness of a range of training approaches for staff.

Treatment integrity is a critical component of interventions in human service settings. Previous research has demonstrated significant increases in target behaviors that pertain to treatment integrity, directly linked to the observer effect, which is demonstrated when observing the behavior of others changes the behavior of the observer. The primary purpose of this study was to replicate and extend the work by Howard et al. (2013) by evaluating the extent to which peer observations affected the treatment integrity of the observer in a human service setting. Six clinicians working in a treatment center for children and young adults diagnosed with autism and other intellectual disabilities participated in this study. Participants were assigned to 3 different dyads: one member served as the observer and the other as the designated observee. A multiple baseline design across behaviors was used to evaluate the effects of peer observations on the treatment integrity of the observer.

The current evaluation assessed the effects of a video-models combined with a self-instructional manual to teach behavioral therapists to implement both discrete-trial instruction (DTI)) and enhanced milieu teaching (EMT) techniques. For DTI, experimenters provided instruction on completing a receptive-identification program and experimenters assessed performance with: (a) a confederate role-playing a child with autism, (b) generalization across other types of DTI programs, and (c) generalization with a child participant. For EMT, experimenters provided instruction on eight EMT techniques related to creating a learning environment and correct incidental teaching procedures. Following EMT training, experimenters assessed performance with both a confederate and with child participants. Results indicate that participants increased DTI performance from 0% in baseline to mastery criterion (90% correct) across all measures following approximately 1.5 hours of DTI training. Participants engaged in moderate levels (approximately 40%) of correct implementation of EMT procedures in baseline and correct performance increased to mastery criterion (90% correct) following approximately 1.0 hours of EMT training. Together, these results indicate that therapists are able to acquire a large number of skills using two teaching techniques, DTI and EMT, following a brief training using a combination of video-models and self-instructional manuals.

There is an ongoing need to identify stimuli that may function as reinforcers due to the reliance on reinforcement techniques during teaching. Three commonly used stimulus preference assessments (SPAs) are the single-stimulus (SS; Pace, Ivancic, Edwards, Iwata, & Page, 1985), paired-stimulus (PS; Fisher et al., 1992), and multiple-stimulus-without-replacement (MSWO; DeLeon & Iwata, 1996) preference assessments. The current study examined the effectiveness of video modeling with voiceover instruction to train staff to conduct these SPAs. The results demonstrated that video modeling was effective, and staff trainees demonstrated high levels of integrity during generalization and follow-up probes. These results support recent research that suggests video modeling is an effective approach to staff training.

Employee performance problems in human service settings can negatively impact services. The Performance Diagnostic Checklist-Human Services (PDC-HS) is an informant-based tool designed to assess the environmental variables contributing to poor employee performance in human service settings. We administered the PDC-HS to three supervisors to assess the variables contributing to poor performance by four staff members when securing clients in therapy rooms at a treatment center for children with autism. The PDC-HS identified a lack of appropriate consequences as contributing to poor staff performance. We then evaluated a PDC-HS indicated intervention as well as an intervention not suggested by PDC-HS results. The non-indicated intervention consisted of a prompt. The PDC-HS indicated intervention, graphed feedback, was effective to increase performance; the non PDC-HS based intervention was ineffective. Results are discussed in terms of the utility of the PDC-HS as a tool to identify a variety of performance problems in a variety of human service settings.