Association for Behavior Analysis International

I studied the effects of a repeated probe procedure using match-to-sample on the acquisition of Bi-directional Naming (BiN) in 4 female and 1 male pre-kindergarten students. All participants were typically developing. One student received free lunch through the district. Two students were English language learners. Throughout the experiment, we used a novel set for each probe and intervention phase. The stimuli were cartoon characters that the student were not previously exposed to or knew the names of according to pre-intervention tests. We used a multiple probe design across 2 groups. Following the pre-intervention probe, 3 students in the first experimental group entered the intervention. The criterion for intervention was 90% correct response across point-to, tact, and intraverbal tact responses. We conducted a post-intervention probe when the student met intervention criterion. The criterion for the presence of BiN was 80% accuracy across aforementioned 3 topographies. Among 5 participants, 4 students acquired BiN through the repeated probe procedure using match-to-sample. One student did not acquire BiN through the intervention; therefore, entered an intervention with a delayed phonemic response training. Following 2 intervention phases with the delayed phonemic response training, the student acquired BiN.

Paediatrics Child Health (2003) encourages pacifier use for infants up to 12 months of age. Mauch et al. (2012) reported that 79% of first-time mothers followed these recommendations and introduced a pacifier to their first-born infants. Cited advantages of pacifier use include the documented decrease in risk for sudden infant death syndrome (SIDS), the decreased risks of future tooth development issues when compared with thumb sucking, as well as the ability to satisfy an infant’s instinct to suckle (Paediatrics Child Health, 2003). Disadvantages of pacifier use include the decreased breastfeeding, impact on teeth development, and delayed language development, (Sexton & Natale, 2009). Average mouthing behavior frequency, type, and duration is an under-researched area of importance for children under 5 years of age (Tulve et al., 2002). A single research study by Tulve et al. (2002) found that children mouth at similar durations regardless of gender. Research studies cite both advantages and disadvantages to mouthing behavior. Many of the advantages include environment exploration (“Early Milestones”, 2011), while many disadvantages relate to exposure to toxins (Tulve et al., 2002). This study seeks to begin understanding the relationship between mouthing behavior and pacifier use. Initial findings suggest a positive correlation between pacifier use and mouthing occurrence.

The development of prosocial skills is considered pivotal to childhood development. Therefore, it is important to identify the most effective procedures to teach these skills. The friendship unit of the preschool life skills program (Hanley, Heal, Tiger, & Ingvarsson, 2007) addressed four early, prosocial skills that serve as a starting point for facilitating socially desirable behaviors. Given the inconsistent acquisition outcomes with neurotypical children when the prosocial skills were taught classwide, we sought to (a) extend features of the prosocial skills taught in the friendship unit and (b) systematically evaluate procedures necessary to teach all the skills in a one-to-one format. We taught children, three to five years old, with and without disabilities to say “thank you,” acknowledge and compliment others, offer toys, and empathize with distress and joy. We taught the skills using behavioral skills training during unstructured play in which the children engaged with highly preferred toys. That is, children had to momentarily stop playing to engage in a prosocial skill. Through a multiple-probe design, we evaluated the child’s performance with adults and tested the generality of the training with similar-aged peers. We discuss the necessity of supplemental reinforcement and the generality of the outcomes.

Acceptance commitment therapy (ACT) is a treatment strategy used to address private events (thoughts and emotions) and it has been demonstrated to be effective in reducing problematic behaviors. Applied Behavior Analysis (ABA) intervention developed from behavioral principles have long been empirically supported to bring on socially significant change which are measurable and observable. The combination of the two strategies may be effective in reducing problematic behavior for individuals addressing both emotional instability and behavioral change. The current study employed the use of ACT and ABA principles in designing and implementing a comprehensive behavioral intervention package for a 10-yrs old participant in reducing aggressive behaviors in a school setting. Results showed the implementation of the ACT model in combination with behavioral based strategy significantly reduced aggression towards others, property destruction, and negative comments for the participant. The long term effects of this combined model will require further research on this topic.

Conduct disorders in childhood and adolescence become one of the most frequent reasons in the consultation and psychological, neurological and psychiatric assistance. Investigations have been developed that show that behavioral problems in early childhood increase the probability of presenting antisocial problems in adulthood, unlike when it begins in adolescence. Disruptive behavior has been of great interest to health professionals due to the problems found in the family, school and community and the fact that it is a strong predictor of delinquency, crime and substance use in adolescence and adulthood. In an attempt to understand the beginning of behavioral problems in childhood and its relationship with disruptive behavior in adolescence and antisocial conduct in adulthood, studies have been conducted that integrate the literature that analyzes the report of parents and teachers of children behavior and adolescents with the aim of generating trajectories of disruptive behavior that predict antisocial behavior. Through the analysis of these trajectories, it has been observed that disruptive behavior increased, not only, in the intensity and frequency, but also, the topography and the mechanisms involved in its maintenance and generalization. The effectiveness of psychosocial interventions for children with behavioral problems seems to decrease as the age of the children increases, so the objective of this paper is to analyze the evidence regarding the trajectories of behavior and the mechanisms involved in its occurrence and maintenance.

Skinner (1953) argued that self-knowledge is acquired socially, and when individuals have enough self-knowledge they are better able to predict and control their own behavior. This study examined the effect of self-knowledge on self-control. Three issues were addressed: First, to determine whether video game (Sudoku) performance improves as a function of feedback on performance adequacy. Second, to examine the extent to which self-knowledge is able to be modified by its consequences. Third, to determine the relation between an increase in self-knowledge and self-control. Trials consisted of participants engaging in the game after which they answered questions about their performance. In condition A, which served as a baseline, participants were able to select a reinforcer without regard to their performance. In condition B, participants were allowed to select a reinforcer on the basis of their self-evaluation of their performance. In condition C, the reinforcer was determined by the experimenter’s evaluation of their performance. In condition D, the reinforcer was determined by the correspondence between the participant’s self-evaluation and the experimenter’s evaluation of the participant’s performance. Preliminary results suggest self-control as demonstrated by selecting a reinforcer commensurate with performance improves as knowledge of performance adequacy increases.