Association for Behavior Analysis International

The annual report of the Journal of Applied Behavior Analysis (JABA) will be presented, followed by the discussion of editorial policies and issues. We encourage past and present associate editors and board members, authors and prospective authors, and any other interested parties to attend. Questions and suggestions encouraged.

The purpose of this meeting will be for the editors and reviewers to meet and discuss (a) the current status of Behavior Analyst Today (BAT), and (b) the future of the journal. Information about how the editorial process works, as well as the plan for indexing on various outlets will be covered. New members, and those who would like to be on the editorial board are also welcome.

The purpose of the Pediatric Feeding Disorders Special Interest Group (SIG)meeting is to generate interest; foster collaborative research; share clinical information; and impact training, practice, and reimbursement for pediatric feeding disorders.

Provides intellectual, clinical, and organizational support to other professionals interested in aging and to foster behavior analytic research in aging. The goal of the meeting this year is to discuss issues in the field as well as issues of professional development. In addition, members will provide feedback on student presentations related research in the area of aging, which will be used to award the student researcher award. Finally, new officers will be chosen for any vacated positions in the special interest group.

This meeting will cover important components of the Behavior Analyst Certification Board (BACB), including information on Board Certified Behavior Analyst (BCBA) and Board Certified Assistant Behavior Analyst (BCaBA) credentials, eligibility requirements, approved course sequences, examination administration, and applying for examination. The presentation will also offer information regarding BACB growth and development. This meeting is intended for individuals who want basic information on the BACB or are planning to become certified.

Members of the Standard Celeration Society will congregate to discuss all business related matters regarding the Society, including but not limited to membership, finances, and the International Precision Teaching annual conference.

Behavior and Social Issues is an interdisciplinary journal that focuses on applications of behavior analytic and cultural analytic science to social, human, and environmental issues. The editorial board will discuss our progress in expanding our open-access, on-line presence, maintenance of the print version, steps toward further "institutionalizing" the journal, and plans to expand high quality submissions with social justice, human rights, and environmental sustainability dimensions, as well as those that advance cultural analytic science.

Behavior analysts involved in clinical practice recognize that we owe much to parents who have been staunch advocates for higher quality services for their children. The synergy that can arise from parents and professionals working together creates exciting opportunities and possibilities. The Parent Professional Partnership SIG is one such opportunity. A business meeting will be held to provide a forum for networking, to outline the PPP SIG's goals and objectives, and to discuss ways to improve upon the SIG's joint website with the Autism SIG. All interested parents and professionals are encouraged to attend this meeting and visit our webpage at www.AutismPPPSIG.org.

The purpose of this business meeting is to provide updates on the current status of the Nevada Association for Behavior Analysis (NABA), to provide information on NABA to potential new members, and to coordinate upcoming activities.

The Positive Behavior Support Special Interest Group (PBS-SIG) of the Association of Behavior Analysis International is dedicated to promoting research-based strategies that combine applied behavior analysis and biomedical science with person-centered values and systems change to increase quality of life and decrease problem behaviors. The overall goal of the PBS SIG is to promote the use of positive behavior support interventions in schools, communities, agencies, and homes and to support practitioners in its use. The PBS SIG addresses members of ABAI engaged in experimental and applied analyses of behavior who are interested in positive behavior support. Established in 2005, the goals of the SIG are to promote and disseminate positive behavior support within ABAI.

#None#

#NONE#

#NONE#

#NONE#

#NONE#

Reinforcement is all around us and reinforcers are contingent on all kinds of behaviors in real life. A good deal of the time those reinforcers are the events that make the world go 'round; they also produce accidents, errors, catastrophes, and on good days they produce humor, satisfaction, scientific discoveries, save lives and bring great joy. This paper will review the many examples of malfunction of the reinforcement contingency with consequences that go far beyond what they used to do in days before computers and large corporations yielding the conditions in which one person or one small group of persons wreaks havoc. I will review cases of radiation poisoning, eggs spreading Salmonella, oil spills, cell phone malfunction and other blessings created by inappropriate reinforcement contingencies in our society. To make up for the bleak picture, I will suggest ways of correcting these malfunctioning reinforcement contingencies.

Building architects are concerned with the physical design of a structure and with the flow of people through it, the ease of maintenance, emergency access, and a range of other factors. They consider the entire building as a dynamic system with all its parts. Performance architects view each organization as a dynamic system where every part affects every other part. They align all the components of the system to best achieve the desired results. Performance architecture grew out of the field of performance technology (PT). Early applications tended to focus on the workers, but soon people like Geary Rummler, Paul Harmon, Don Tosti, and other PT professionals saw the need to consider the nature of the work, the process, as well. Still others began to apply PT principles to the workplace and developed ways to analyze and address factors like culture, leadership, and strategy. These elements impact every worker and every process. Thus, performance architecture addresses the worker, the work, and the workplace, and does this within a system framework. This session will focus on several case studies, the performance architect models and tools, the recommended solutions and measurable evidence of success.

Giving effective oral presentations is a skill that many professionals, students, and practitioners seek to improve. A good presentation may make the difference between securing a new position at work, obtaining a grant, or just making a great impression. To keep an audience engaged, several skills and techniques can be learned to enhance the presentation being given. The international student committee is pleased to offer this event in the professional development series on improving oral presentation skills. Attendees will gain effective techniques and tips that they can apply to give more effective oral presentations. Panelists will share their own experiences and techniques that they have acquired to become effective speakers. The invited panelists have vast experience in a number of venues and types of presentations including trainings, presentations, invited talks and consulting meetings. This panel is developed for a new or student presenter, but open to anyone seeking to improve presentation skills.

Many studies of Pavlovian conditioning have demonstrated that conditioned behavior can be eliminated when previously established relations between stimuli are severed. This extinction process has been extremely important for the development of learning theories and, more recently, for delineating the neurobiological mechanisms that underlie memory. A key finding from behavioral studies of extinction is that extinction eliminates behavior without eliminating the original memory; extinguished behavior often returns with time or with a return to the context in which the original learning occurred. This persistence of the original memory after extinction creates a challenge for clinical applications that use extinction as part of a treatment intervention. Consequently, a goal of recent neurobiological research on extinction is to identify potential pharmacological targets that may result in persistent extinction. Drugs that promote epigenetic changes are particularly promising because they can result in a long-term molecular signal that, combined with the appropriate behavioral treatment, can cause persistent changes in behavior induced by extinction. I will review some of these findings and describe the ways in which extinction enhancing drugs can impact behavior and brain function.

Three studies examined social behavior in domestic dogs. Garden and Lupfer-Johnson presented pairs of dogs with auditory signals for food and observed increased snout contact and muzzle-licking relative to when a novel sound was presented; results are interpreted in terms of behaviors that facilitate acquiring information about food. Feuerbacher and Wynne compared the relative reinforcing effectiveness of brief social interaction to that of a small food item, using dog subjects. Results suggest that food is a more effective reinforcer for dogs than social contact, although inter-individual variation was observed. Qualitative differences in social interaction may affect its reinforcing function. Sobie identified various problematic behaviors belonging to a functional response class of social facilitation. A combination of response-cost and positive reinforcement of two response class members reduced responding in other response class members. Together, the results of these studies highlight the pervasiveness of social behavior across the expression of behavior in dogs.

Previous research suggests that domestic dogs can learn information about food from smelling the breath of a conspecific. In this study, we tested the hypothesis that muzzle-licking and/or snout contact are components of a food-related behavior pattern in dogs. Clicker-trained dog subjects were videotaped following the presentation of both a conditioned stimulus (CS) for food (click) and a novel sound while in the presence of another familiar dog. The number of seconds of snout contact that occurred in the two minutes following each stimulus presentation was recorded. Dogs engaged in significantly more snout contact when presented with a food CS than when presented with a novel auditory stimulus. The results of the study indicate that snout contact in domestic dogs can be released by a predictor of food and suggest that muzzle-licking, previously described as a submissive social display, may also function as a means of acquiring information about food from conspecifics.

Dogs enjoy a unique niche in Western society and their high level of interaction with humans warrants exploration into the social relations between dogs and humans. Structural approaches predominate, assessing, for example, "sociability" of a dog by measuring the occurrence of specific behaviors. This, however, omits the assessment of variables maintaining these social interactions, overlooking the possibility that similar topographies may be functionally distinct, and different topographies functionally equivalent. Taking a functional approach, we compared the relative reinforcing effectiveness of brief social interaction to that of a small food item for an arbitrary response. Our results indicate that most dogs emit more responses when food is the programmed consequence than when social interaction is delivered. However, most dogs did emit low level responding in social interaction sessions, although typically the number of nose touches emitted per session decreased in successive social interaction sessions. Additionally, latency between stimulus presentation and response was shorter in food phases. Interesting inter-individual variation was also apparent, posing the question of the provenance of this difference. Results are discussed in terms of the temporal dynamics of social interaction as a reinforcer and the possibility that qualitative differences in social interaction may affect its reinforcing function.

A functional response class is a class of operant behaviors which can be grouped together because they produce the same consequence or serve the same function. Social motivating operations are common antecedent events in dogs, and a treatment that manipulates social behavior as a functional response class may facilitate treatment of undesired social behavior. This study evaluated response class manipulation as a treatment for reduction of problem social behavior in four pet dogs living in separate family situations. Five or more behaviors consistent with inclusion in the functional response class of social facilitation were recorded in each family situation to assess whether manipulation through counter-conditioning involving a combination of response-cost and positive reinforcement of two response class members would reduce other behaviors considered to exist in the response class. Results indicated that manipulation of two responses within the social functional response class reduced responding in two to three other response class members.

One of the diagnostic criteria for individuals with autism is a qualitative impairment in social behavior, which can range from rejecting others in their environment to a failure to develop meaningful friendships. This impairment can lead to children and adolescents having fewer friendships, doing poorer in school, and having a lower quality of life. There have been numerous behavioral interventions that have been implemented to individuals with autism to increase their social behaviors. One procedure that has been empirically proven to be effective for teaching social skills is the teaching interaction procedure. The teaching interaction procedure consists of the teacher and the learner labeling the social behavior to be taught, providing a rationale of why the learner should engage in the social behavior, cues and characteristics of when the learner should engage in the social behavior, breaking the social behavior into smaller behavioral components, the teacher modeling the behavior, and the learner role-playing the behavior with the teacher. Previous studies have shown that the teaching interaction procedure is an effective way to teach a variety of social skills. This symposium will discuss three studies that further expand the research on the teaching interaction procedure.

One of the defining characteristics of an autism spectrum disorder is deficits in social interaction. In addition, children with autism spectrum disorders often have reduced play skills, which further interferes with their ability to interact with same age peers. One way that typical children between the ages of four and seven interact is to play structured board and card games. The purpose of this study was to teach two elementary aged children with autism ways to better play and interact with same aged peers by playing structured games. Using the teaching interaction procedure, the children were taught how to set up and play three different age appropriate structured games (i.e., Uno, Go Fish, and Yahtzee Jr.). Both children were able to learn all three games in a structured setting with an adult associated with teaching. In addition, they were able to generalize game play to an additional adult in a different, less structured, setting.

One of the diagnostic criteria for individuals with autism is a qualitative impairment in social behavior, which can range from rejecting others in their environment to a failure to develop meaningful friendships. While research has shown behavioral interventions to be effective in teaching and/or increasing a variety of appropriate social skills, limited research has shown generalization of these skills to the natural setting. One teaching procedure that has shown high levels of generalization for children with autism is the teaching interaction procedure. In this study, the teaching interaction procedure was used to teach a variety of social skills to four children diagnosed with an autism spectrum disorder. Additionally, the researchers utilized a fifth participant as a control; this participant did not receive the teaching interaction procedure. Results of this study indicated that the teaching interaction procedure was effective in teaching new appropriate social skills, of different topographies. Results also showed that participants were able to generalize skills learned to their natural environment.

Two methods that have been implemented to teach social skills to children with autism are social stories and the teaching interaction procedure. This study compared social stories to the teaching interaction procedure for teaching social skills to six children and adolescents diagnosed with an autism spectrum disorder. Using a parallel treatment design, researchers taught 18 social skills with social stories and 18 social skills with teaching interaction procedures. The teaching interaction procedure was effective in teaching all 18 skills across the six participants. Social stories, within the same amount of teaching sessions, however, were effective in teaching 4 of the 18 social skills across the six participants. Also, participants had greater generalization of social skills to adults and to peers when the skills were taught with the teaching interaction procedure. When the participants were allowed to choose whether they would prefer to be taught with the teaching interaction procedure or social stories, they had a slight preference for social stories.

This symposium combines three separate presentations, all related to the education of individuals with autism spectrum disorders. The first examined the effects of a video modeling procedure to teach verbal behavior to five children with severe autism under two experimental conditions. In one condition, response targets and environmental variables were related to the results of a preintervention functional analysis of gestural behavior. In a second condition, the same variables were not related to the results of the functional analysis. The second examined the effects of Proloquo2go on an iPod touch on the frequency of mands, problems behaviors, and verbalizations, for children with autism. The final examined the SPARCLERS program, which is used to prepare children for classroom structure and build the foundations for learning in a school environment. This symposium will present data related to each of the individual presentations.

A critical component of early intervention for children with severe autism is to teach recognizable verbal behavior. Strategies for improving the effectiveness and efficiency of verbal behavior training are therefore an ongoing priority in applied behavior analysis. This research examined the effects of a video modeling procedure to teach verbal behavior to five children with severe autism under two experimental conditions. In one condition, response targets and environmental variables were related to the results of a preintervention functional analysis of gestural behavior. In a second condition, the same variables were not related to the results of the functional analysis. In addition to mand acquisition and generalization, participants demonstrated increased levels of social responsiveness and decreased levels of problem behavior during the function-based condition when compared to the nonfunction-based condition. These results have implications for the use of functional analysis and video modeling when teaching verbal behavior.

Approximately 30% of individuals with autism remain non-verbal after receiving communication-based interventions (Akshoomoff & Stahmer, 2006). Non-verbal children with autism therefore have no means to communicate unless an alterative approach is taught. Children with autism sometimes may express themselves instead through problem behaviors, such as running, hitting, and screaming (Sigafoos, Drasgow et al., 2003). Non-verbal children with autism are therefore candidates for augmentative and alternative communication (Reichle, Beukelman, & Light, 2002). Augmentative and alternative communication (AAC) can include sign language, picture boards, and electronic devices. Many AAC devices lack portability and are often not universally understood. The present study examined a new type of a AAC device called Proloquo2go on an iPod touch, which was taught to children with autism. Proloquo2go is both portable and universally understood. Using the research proven teaching strategy of the picture exchange communication system (Frost and Bondy, 2002), the purpose of this study was to determine how the frequency of requests, problem behaviors, and verbalizations were affected when Proloquo2go was introduced to three children with autism. A multiple baseline design across participants was used and results will be presented.

A child must successfully demonstrate a myriad of prerequisite skills to participate in a preschool classroom including staying in ones seat, activity transitions, responding to name, and taking turns. Young children with autism often have not yet acquired these necessary skills or are not able to demonstrate the skills within the preschool environment. The purpose of the SPARCLERS program is to prepare children for classroom structure and build the foundations for learning in a school environment. The program consists of two components presented concurrently: 1.5 hours of one-on-one individualized skill development using discrete trial training followed immediately by 1.5 hours of pre-school structured activities (circle time, art, gross motor, snack, and cooperative games). This presentation will provide skill-specific outcome data for program participants in both the one-on-one program setting and in the pre-school generalization setting. Inter-observer agreement and procedural integrity data will be reported. Additionally, presenters will address issues pertaining to the development of prerequisite classroom skills in children with autism spectrum disorder ages, 2-4 years.

The current symposium contains four presentations that address the use of preference assessments for informing treatment of automatically reinforced problem behavior. The first presenter will review the use of a concurrent chains arrangement to determine treatment preferences for participants with automatically reinforced motor stereotypy. The author will also discuss results from an indirect assessment that was conducted with caretakers and relevant stakeholders. The second presenter will review data from two different preference assessments that are often used to identify preferred items for use in the treatment of automatically reinforced problem behavior. The author will review test-retest reliability for each of the assessments and will discuss the implications of the results for determining items for use in behavioral treatment programs. The third presenter will review data on the response persistence of automatically reinforced motor stereotypy following reinforcement versus control sessions. The author will discuss the effects of presenting matched versus unmatched stimuli during the reinforcement component on participants' subsequent persistence of stereotypy. The fourth presenter will discuss the use of a concurrent operant preference assessment for determining participants' preference for contingent social consequences versus extinction (no consequences) for their aggression. The author will review data from this assessment and will discuss how the findings may help clarify ambiguous functional analysis (FA) outcomes for participants' aggression.

The purpose of this analysis was to assess social validity with two adolescent males diagnosed with an autism spectrum disorder (ASD) in addition to their caregivers and other relevant stakeholders. Both participants engaged in high levels of automatically reinforced motor stereotypy and previously experienced a treatment component analysis designed to identify the necessary components to decrease stereotypy and increase appropriate play behavior. The treatment consisted of enriching the environment with leisure materials, prompting appropriate play, restricting access to motor stereotypy through blocking, and providing access to the stereotypy contingent on appropriate play behavior. The present analysis objectively assessed each client's preference, using a concurrent-chains arrangement, for this treatment package versus other relevant treatments commonly used to treat stereotypy (e.g., blocking only, activities only). An indirect assessment was then conducted with caretakers and other relevant stakeholders of each participant via viewing video clips and filling out a questionnaire, to assess the social acceptability of the purpose, goals, and effects of treatment (i.e., behavior changes observed after experiencing treatment) and the procedures that were implemented. Results of the treatment preference assessment indicated that both participants preferred conditions where activities were present as well as the treatment package. Social validity assessed by caregivers and relevant stakeholders indicated overall that the treatment package purpose, goals, treatment procedures, and amount of behavior change were appropriate and acceptable.

Because clinicians cannot withdraw or terminate the reinforcer associated with automatically reinforced problem behavior, effective behavioral treatment relies on identifying potent reinforcers. To this end, clinicians may conduct preference assessments based on item selection or based on both item engagement and problem behavior. The purpose of the current study was to evaluate two different preference assessments for determining items for use in an intervention for problem behavior maintained by automatic reinforcement. Two individuals diagnosed with an autism spectrum disorder, who exhibited motor stereotypy maintained by automatic reinforcement, participated in this study. We conducted two leisure-item preference assessments, four times each, and alternated assessments using a multielement design. In the paired-stimulus format, the therapist presented two leisure items and asked the participant to select one. Preference was based on the percentage of trials an item was selected. In the competing items format, each item was presented singly for 5 min, and preference was based on levels of item engagement and motor stereotypy. Results showed that the paired-stimulus assessment yielded higher levels of stability as determined by correlation coefficients than did the competing items assessment across replications. Implications of these results for determining items for use in behavioral treatment programs will be discussed.

Previous research has suggested that adding reinforcers into a situation can increase the persistence of behavior. Ahearn, Clark, Gardenier, Chung, and Dube (2003) found stereotypy was more persistent following reinforcement sessions than control sessions. The current study attempts to replicate and extend these findings by differentiating the type of stimuli given to each participant. Two children diagnosed with an autism spectrum disorder who engaged in stereotypic behavior maintained by automatic reinforcement participated. Three experimental components, matched, unmatched, or control, assessed the effects of matched versus unmatched stimuli on the persistence of stereotypy. Results and implications will be discussed.

Functional analysis (FA) has been shown to be an effective method for identifying the function of aggressive behavior (Iwata, Dorsey, Slifer, Bauman, & Richman, 1982/1994). Aggression is most often maintained by social consequences (Hanley, Iwata, & McCord, 3002). However, previous studies have demonstrated that ambiguous results from FAs may indicate that aggression can be maintained by automatic reinforcement (Ringdahl, Call, Mews, Boelter, & Christensen, 2008). The present study attempted to further evaluate the function of aggression that produced ambiguous results from a FA that included elevated rates of problem behavior in an extended ignore condition (Vollmer et al, 1995). Two participants were exposed to a concurrent operants assessment in which they chose between various social consequences for problem behavior versus extinction. On one side of the room the establishing operations and consequences from the tangible, demand, and attention conditions of the FA were presented. On the other side of the room problem behavior resulted in no programmed consequences. Participants were free to switch sides throughout all session, with choices defined as allocation to one side of the room or the other. Results will be discussed in terms of how concurrent operants arrangements can clarify ambiguous FA results.

The field of applied behaviour analysis (ABA) is heavily reliant on single subject research, which clearly demonstrates the functional relations between interventions and outcomes. When reviewing the literature on specific ABA procedures using single subject designs, there are few studies employing systematic methodologies to review the literature and determine the overall effectiveness of particular interventions. One method for amalgamating research results across studies is the percentage of non-overlapping data points (PND). With the current emphasis on evidence- based practice, especially in the field of autism, this symposium is designed to provide a practical tool to offer consumers of research the means to compare results across single subject studies, and to combine results to determine an estimate of effect size for particular interventions. This symposium will begin with a presentation describing the procedure and giving the audience some practical examples of its use, strengths and limits. This will be followed three examples of research projects that have employed PND to determine an estimate of the effect size for a body of published research studies in ABA and autism. The utility of this approach for researchers and consumers will be highlighted.

The field of applied behaviour analysis (ABA) depends largely on single subject designs in research and practice. These designs give the opportunity to demonstrate the impact of an intervention on a target behaviour for each individual in the study. A challenge with these designs is finding a reliable and efficient method of summarizing findings across studies. One possible method for synthesizing visual single subject data is to calculate the percentage of non-overlapping data (PND). This method can be used to determine the effect size of single subject research that includes a visual depiction of the data, including baseline and treatment conditions. PND can be a very useful tool for researchers, clinicians, and consumers of research and clinical services, wanting to determine the relative effectiveness of different techniques. This presentation will provide an overview of PND, and demonstrate the calculation of effect size using this method. The strengths and limits of the method will also be illustrated with sample graphs.

Problem behaviours have a negative impact on quality of life for people with autism spectrum disorders (ASD). Behavioural interventions based on functional behavioural assessment techniques have been demonstrated effective for reducing aggressive, self-injurious and destructive behaviours in individuals with ASD. Research in this area emphasizes the use of experimental functional analysis, though, in practice, many behaviour analysts rely on descriptive methods. The purpose of this study was to conduct a meta-analysis to compare the outcomes of intervention studies using experimental functional analysis to those using descriptive methods and combined methods. Effect sizes were measured using percentage of non-overlapping data points (PND). Preliminary findings suggest that treatment outcomes based on analog functional analysis, descriptive assessments or a combination of both were assessed, and found to range in effectiveness. Treatment outcomes were also found to be similarly effective regardless of whether the behaviour was maintained by a single function of behaviour or multi-functional. The implications of this study, limitations and suggestions for future research are discussed.

Interventions using the principles of applied behavior analysis (ABA) are effective for skill development and/or reducing challenging behaviours in children with autism spectrum disorders/developmental disabilities (ASD/DD) (Carr & Durand, 1985; McEachin, Smith & Lovaas, 1993). Many educators still refrain from using ABA in their classroom (Axelrod, Moyer & Berry, 1990). Treatment adherence is essential to improved outcomes for students with DD (Gresham, 1989). Valuable time and money is spent providing educators with training in ABA to implement treatment plans effectively (Ontario Ministry of Ed., PPM 140, 2007). Literature from other sectors (e.g., residential staff) suggests that didactic training is less effective than other methods at improving treatment adherence (Harchik et al., 1989). Given the considerable investment in educator training to support children with disabilities (especially autism) it is essential to examine the evidence to determine the most effective means to train educators. It is hoped that improved information about the effectiveness of training will influence practice, and result in improved treatment implementation and outcomes (Axelrod, Moyer & Berry, 1990, Harchik et al., 1989). This study employed the percentage of non-overlapping data points method to calculate the effect sizes for different training approaches. The relative effectiveness for different training methodologies and their impact on implementation will be discussed.

Social skill generalization is essential for individuals with autism spectrum disorders (ASD) to achieve meaningful outcomes from social skills interventions. This presentation will review a meta-analysis designed to fill a gap in the literature by examining the variables that influence generalization effects by calculating the percentage of non-overlapping data points (PND) from single-case studies. Participant characteristics, quantity of generalization strategies, generalization strategies used, categories of skills trained, and training characteristics were compared with overall and mean PND scores for treatment, maintenance and generalization outcomes. The analysis resulted in borderline significant results suggesting that using Natural Maintaining Contingencies or Training Loosely generalization strategies may produce better generalization effects for children and adolescents with ASD. Training with multiple exemplars was found to be moderately related to better maintenance effects. Further investigation of variables that predict and improve generalization effects for those with autism spectrum disorders (ASD) is warranted.

Children with a diagnosis of an autism spectrum disorder (ASD), have significant delays in communication and social interaction. Consequently, their parents often feel frustrated and disappointed by their inability to participate in daily interactions that most families take for granted, such as storytelling, laughing together, discussing the day's events, and speaking with their child about his or her thoughts and feelings. To develop these interaction skills, it is usually necessary to teach a variety of specific advanced language skills that are often not adequately addressed in many intervention programs. Some of these skills include being able to describe and answer questions about events as they are happening (i.e., "What are we doing? Who is here? Where are we?"). Another important set of skills is to be able to ask peers and family members for information (e.g., "Where is the playground? When can we go to the playground? Who will take me there?" ). Additionally, the child also must be taught to remember and describe what they are told about their peers (e.g., "What is Joe's favorite video?"), and describe recent past events, (e.g., "Who sat next to you at lunch today? What did he bring for lunch?"). Intervention programs that develop these types of skills can improve a child's ability to establish and maintain meaningful friendships. Specific strategies will be presented that professionals and educators can use to develop these advanced language skills and that focus teaching the child to attend to the actions and interests of peers and family members. Children with a diagnosis of autism spectrum disorder (ASD), demonstrate the ability to tact and often discuss items or events that they are able to experience. With proper program planning and teaching, children with autism can master intraverbal skills in relation to recalling past events and discussing these events with peers and family. One area that children with autism demonstrate significant delays is the ability to infer and make predictions about pictures, events, and feelings. Since the implementation of the first federal legislation mandating free and appropriate education for children with disabilities, there has been the requirement of specific learning objectives for each student's individualized education program. However, after reviewing many educational programs, it is readily apparent that many of the children who have not made significant progress in their development have objectives in their IEPs that fail to identify critical basic language and learner skills that are necessary to help them develop to their fullest potential. This presentation will review the developmental patterns of critical language and learner skills of typically-developing children between the ages of 6 and 60-months and identify how these data are useful in the establishment of appropriate learning objectives for young children with autism or other developmental delays.

Children with a diagnosis of autism spectrum disorder (ASD) have significant delays in communication, social skills, advanced language skills, and comprehension skills. Consequently, it is difficult for these students to participate in activities within the home and school setting. To develop these advanced verbal behavior skills, it is necessary to teach a variety of specific advanced skills in a variety of settings. Using examples and non-examples it is also necessary to teach prediction of outcomes. Some of these skills include describing activities and events as they are happening, and discussing possible future outcomes to certain events. Intervention programs that develop these skills can improve the child's ability to engage with peers and comprehend events. Specific strategies will be presented that professionals and educators can use to develop these advanced language skills.

Children with a diagnosis of an autism spectrum disorder (ASD), have significant delays in communication and social interaction. Consequently, their parents often feel frustrated and disappointed by their inability to participate in daily interactions that most families take for granted, such as storytelling, laughing together, discussing the days events, and speaking with their child about his or her thoughts and feelings. To develop these interaction skills, it is usually necessary to teach a variety of specific advanced language skills that are often not adequately addressed in many intervention programs. Some of these skills include being able to describe and answer questions about events as they are happening (i.e., "What are we doing? Who is here? Where are we?"). Another important set of skills is to be able to ask peers and family members for information (e.g., "Where is the playground? When can we go to the playground? Who will take me there?" ). Additionally, the child also must be taught to remember and describe what they are told about their peers (e.g., "What is Joe's favorite video?"), and describe recent past events, (e.g., "Who sat next to you at lunch today? What did he bring for lunch?"). Intervention programs that develop these types of skills can improve a child's ability to establish and maintain meaningful friendships. Specific strategies will be presented that professionals and educators can use to develop these advanced language skills and that focus teaching the child to attend to the actions and interests of peers and family members.

Children with a diagnosis of autism spectrum disorder (ASD), demonstrate the ability to tact and often discuss items or events that they are able to experience. With proper program planning and teaching, children with autism can master intraverbal skills in relation to recalling past events and discussing these events with peers and family. One area that children with autism demonstrate significant delays is the ability to infer and make predictions about pictures, events, and feelings. To develop these skills, it is necessary to teach many examples of situations and stories in which one would infer or predict an outcome. Using tact to intraverbal transfers as well as recall of experiences and emotions students with ASD can begin to infer future events. Intervention programs that develop these skills can improve a child's ability to predict outcomes in everyday experiences as well as with stories. Specific strategies will be presented that professionals and educators can use to develop these advanced skills.

Since the implementation of the first federal legislation mandating free and appropriate education for children with disabilities, there has been the requirement of specific learning objectives for each student's individualized education program (IEP). However, after reviewing many educational programs, it is readily apparent that many of the children who have not made significant progress in their development have objectives in their IEPs that fail to identify critical basic language and learner skills that are necessary to help them develop to their fullest potential. This presentation will review the developmental patterns of critical language and learner skills of typically-developing children between the ages of 6- and 60-months and identify how these data are useful in the establishment of appropriate learning objectives for young children with autism or other developmental delays.

Based on the research evidence of the efficacy of applied behavior analytic interventions, there is an augmented need for effective behavior treatments for autism. The survival of behavior analytic agencies, and the quality of services they offer, depends heavily on these agencies abilities to recruit, train, monitor, and maintain qualified employees. However, at this time, documented research regarding such employees is limited. In the series of papers we present, we conducted a needs assessment with 146 direct staff from 24 different behavioral service providers of individuals with autism. We used group-design analyses to investigate the self-reported needs and desires of employees to determine predictors of turnover among direct staff who work with children with autism. In this symposium, we discuss turnover intentions, and each statistically, socially, and clinically significant predictor, in detail. We provide research findings from prior studies in related fields, as well as offer suggestions for change. This symposium will further the skills and knowledge of BCBAs by addressing which research design is appropriate for a particular research question, highlighting the importance of methodological controls irrespective of type of research design, and outlining how behavior analysts can effectively prioritize their efforts for employee retention.

The large demand for behavior analytic services, in the field of autism intervention, results in a high need for direct staff. Agencies that offer behavioral services exert resources to recruit and maintain staff. However, there is a general knowledge of rapid turnover amongst direct staff even though, to date, there is no documented empirical evidence of turnover in this field. This high rate of turnover can affect a company's productivity, increase costs, as well as hinder a client's progress because of a lack of consistency. Industrial organization researchers found that turnover is costly to organizations because employees decrease productivity and emotionally distance themselves from their work (Keaveney & Nelson, 1993). Additionally, organizations undergo financial strain and a loss of knowledge within the company (Kiekbusch, Price, & Theis, 2003). Researchers have consistently found that intent to leave a company is the best predictor of actual turnover (Lambert, 2006; Ramlall, 2003). In our study 46% of direct staff reported likelihood to leave their company as compared to 12% based on research in related fields. We found variables, such as hours worked per week, employee education, and reimbursements were not in fact related to turnover. From a total of 146 respondents (representing 24 different companies in Los Angeles) we found supervision, training, and pay were the best predictors of turnover (F (1, 77) = 8.80, R2 = .39, p < .001). In this symposium we will discuss predictors of turnover in detail and offer suggestions for future direction.

In Los Angeles County, until very recently, the responsibility to teach direct-service staff necessary skills to appropriately implement behavioral techniques has fallen solely on agencies providing behavior analytic services to children with developmental disabilities. Given that agencies rely on their direct staff for implementation of programs, it is imperative that staff receive sufficient "on the job" training. Previous researchers found that level of training plays a key role in the turnover intentions of employees, such that, individuals receiving adequate training are less likely to leave their job (Rondeau, Williams, & Wagar, 2009). Training duration and the context in which the training was provided were also found to be significant correlates of training satisfaction (Schmidt, 2007). Regrettably, research addressing effects of training on direct-service staff providing behavioral services to children with developmental disabilities is scant. In this study, we used the Training Satisfaction Scale (Liu, 2006) to assess various factors relating to job retention. We found satisfaction with initial training to be the most prominent predictor of turn over intention. In this presentation we will discuss variables that contribute to initial training satisfaction.

Supervision in the field of applied behavior analysis (ABA) is of paramount importance because the majority of entry-level direct staff enter the field with, at most, an education in concept and theory and are thus largely relying on supervisors for appropriate implementation of services, maintenance, and mastery of skills. Researchers report supervision plays an influential role in the turnover intentions of employees such that individuals who feel satisfied with their supervisor relationship are more likely to continue in the field (Firth, Mellor, Moore, & Loquet, 2004). Furthermore, in the field of special education, researchers found greater levels of administrative support to be associated with greater job satisfaction and less subsequent turnover (Billingsley, 2004). However, within the field of ABA research addressing the relationship between a supervisor and the direct staff who provide applied behavior analytic services to children with disabilities is limited. In this study, we used The Supervision Satisfaction Scale to assess different factors that contribute to perceived supervisor support (Eisenberger et al. 2002). We found perceived supervision satisfaction to be a significant determinant of self-reported turnover intentions. In this presentation, we will discuss variables that contribute to participants' reports of supervision satisfaction.

It is imperative that behavioral agencies nationwide are cognizant of the factors that relate to high turnover rates of behavior therapists working with children diagnosed with autism so that these companies can find ways to better retain their employees. Prior research conducted on special education teachers (Billingsley, 2003; Nickson & Kritsonis, 2006) found variables such as the level of education of teachers, length of time at current job, severity of impairment of the cases, age of teachers, job expectations, and knowledge of concepts to be related to turnover. However, we found that several of these factors, as well as other seemingly pertinent variables (e.g., reimbursements, health insurance, etc.), were not statistically significant predictors of turnover. The results from our research were not similar with prior research and contradict the prevalent belief among agency owners. Furthermore, we found that rate of hourly pay accounted for only a small portion of the variance when predicting intent to turnover. Other variables that were examined, limitations, and implications for future research will be discussed.

O. Ivar Lovaas (1927-2010) was a trail-blazing clinician-scientist who devoted nearly half a century to improving the lives of children with autism and their families, brought applied behavior analysis (ABA) to the attention of the general public, and inspired many students and colleagues to join his quest for ever-more effective treatments. Lovaas' early studies showed the potential of ABA interventions to decrease severe challenging behaviors and establish communicative language in previously nonverbal children. His later work culminated in landmark reports revealing that many children with autism made remarkable gains with early intensive ABA. In person, Lovaas was larger-than-life, ebullient, outgoing, charismatic, feisty, and brilliant. This distinguished panel will discuss his multi-faceted contributions from the perspectives of former students who collaborated with Lovaas at different stages of his career, parents whose son received early intensive behavioral intervention in his clinic, and colleagues who interacted with him over a period of many years.

This symposium will feature four presentations on the application of behavior analysis within behavioral health and medicine. Everything from increasing physical activity and healthy food choices to medical regimen adherence will be discussed.

Discontinuous measurement systems are often used to record the occurrence of physical activity. These measures, however, provide only an estimation of the occurrence of a particular behavior. In the current study, several commonly used interval recording methods were utilized to examine the datasets of the physical activity of four preschoolers. The results indicated that discontinuous recording significantly overestimated the occurrence of physical activity, and progressively overestimated activity to a greater degree as the interval length increased. In addition, the degree of overestimation varied as a function of activity level (low, medium, high activity). These results suggest that it is important to evaluate a measurement system before using it to measure a particular behavior, in that nay interpretation of those data may differ depending on the observation system utilized.

The purpose of the current study was to develop and test an experimental methodology for assessing the effect of outdoor activity context on level of physical activity in preschool children in solitary and group settings. Several activity contexts and a control condition were manipulated according to a multi-element design. The fixed-playground equipment condition produced the most moderate-to-vigorous physical activity for most participants in both solitary and group settings. In addition, participants engaged in higher level of moderate-vigorous physical activity across experimental conditions when at least one peer was present.

The Kids Choice Program is a school-home partnership for child obesity prevention that encourages children to develop three weight management behaviors in their everyday environments: (1) fruit or vegetables first during meals, (2) choosing healthy low-fat and low-sugar drinks, and (3) exercise. Components of the Kids Choice Program include the offer of small and delayed rewards that serve as an incentive for children to try the three weight management behavior, small daily expectations for the behaviors and choices that avoid satiation effects, and conditions that encourage incidental peer modeling. The program was presented to 382 children in 1st to 4th grades. Results showed children in all grades increased eating fruits and vegetables first, drank more healthy drinks, and exercised more from baseline across the reinforcement conditions. BMI% for overweight children within the sample (N = 112) remained high from the previous year to 2 weeks before the program, but dropped significantly after the three-month Kids Choice Program. We believe the Kids Choice Program offers a cost-effective method to encourage children to develop healthy behaviors while in their everyday peer environment.

The purpose of the current study was to examine the effectiveness of behavioral self-management versus parental-management in increasing medical regimen adherence among adolescents with asthma. The study also examined the subsequent effects on clinical outcomes including expiratory peak flow measures and quality of life measures. An alternating treatments design was utilized to assess changes in adherence level, expiratory peak flow measures, and quality of life reports in six adolescents aged between 11 and 17-years-old. Results indicated that all participants increased adherence to their medical regimen and showed increased clinical outcomes and quality of life reports as compared to baseline levels. Five participants demonstrated highest levels of adherence, peak flow measures, and quality of life measures during parental-management conditions. One participant demonstrated highest levels of adherence, peak flow measures, and quality of life scores during self-management conditions. The study indicates that behavioral management is effective in increasing adherence and clinical outcomes for adolescents with asthma and suggests that more research be conducted in order determine most effective treatments for increasing medical adherence.

This symposium considers application of behavioral education methods to inform students across age ranges about the relation of global warming with human behavior. Evidence is rapidly advancing that climate changes are accelerating and will impact human existence in serious and debilitating ways. Changes in human behavior may delay or prevent serious environmental degradation. Our changing eco-system (e.g., rising sea levels, desertification) will affect vast numbers of people in life-altering ways but public perception of this varies from those alarmed to those who are dismissive. We can act to prevent further changes and/or adapt to a changing world but this requires an informed population. The papers in this symposium present current instructional work to network with other sciences and educate citizens about the issues involved in global climate change and its effects on human behavior. Behavior analysts are uniquely poised to work with environmental scientists. Together we might develop effective instructional programs to educate the public and orchestrate behavior changes that may diminish climate changes and/or prepare populations for the new environments emerging as a function of global warming. Integrating research, education and practice capitalizes on the success of behavioral technologies to promote and sustain behavior change.

Climate scientists believe global warming is occurring and co-varies with increasing greenhouse gasses. Television and the internet are widely-used media capable of reaching large numbers of people at one time, including preschool-aged children. While there are many new and developing tools to facilitate environmentally-responsible behaviors, people must use those tools for them to be effective. This paper will analyze what is known about young children and the influence the television and internet media have on their behavior, and make suggestions for a program of study to determine how television and internet media can more effectively lead to increases in environmentally-responsible behaviors.

"We believe that children are our future, that we must teach them well and let them lead the way," (Masser & Creed, 1977). What do we know about methods for effectively getting our children to engage in behaviors that are directly related to conserving resources? While current California State standards based science curriculum explores topics on conserving resources, it is not clear how this curriculum is directly related to changing human behavior. This paper will address the development of California State standards based science curriculum that targets student behavior change (e.g. reduction of plastic use) related to environmental issues through teaching practices and programming across the school environment.

This paper describes development of a course sequence at University of Nevada, Reno(UNR) covering human behavior in relation to global warming and environmental protection. It is currently the only course-work in psychology/behavior analysis at this university directly related to consideration of environmentally significant behavior. This paper presents the course operations: learning objectives, readings, assignments, evaluation plan, and teaching method. The course materials are available from the instructors who welcome commentary, collaboration, and resource sharing. Course evaluation data are presented. The course sequence includes didactic instruction in behavior analysis related to environmental issues, generation of applied project proposals, and supervised practicum. Future directions for further integrating psychology courses with other environmental sciences are considered.

The symposium includes a series of four presentations on the assessment and treatment of stereotypy in children with developmental disabilities. The first two studies examined the effects matched stimulation on immediate and subsequent engagement in stereotypy and collateral behavior. Specifically, Lanovaz et al. showed that music reduced vocal stereotypy and altered immediate and subsequent in toy manipulation in some children with autism. In contrast, Sheridan et al. found that the removal of a matched stimulus did not increase, nor decrease task engagement when compared to a baseline condition. The third and fourth studies extend research on assessment by analyzing levels of stereotypy during different functional analysis conditions. Rispoli and Lang have found that the presence of preferred stimuli may be associated with increased engagement in stereotypy. In a study comparing levels of repetitive behavior in children with developmental disabilities and/or autism with a sample of typically functioning adults, Bosch et al. showed that the stereotypy of a subset of participants may be maintained by automatic reinforcement established as such by aversive stimulation. The results of each study will be discussed in terms of improving the assessment and treatment of stereotypy in children with autism and other developmental disabilities.

Researchers have shown that music may decrease engagement in vocal stereotypy in children with autism (e.g., Lanovaz, Fletcher, & Rapp, 2009; Rapp, 2007). However, the effects of this reduction on engagement in other behavior have not been documented. To extend prior research, we used a three-component multiple-schedule combined with a multielement design to examine the effects of music on immediate and subsequent engagement in vocal stereotypy and toy manipulation in three children with autism. Music decreased immediate engagement in vocal stereotypy for two participants, but we detected no clear effects on subsequent engagement. The effects of music on toy manipulation varied considerably across participants. Music increased immediate and subsequent toy manipulation for one participant, produced the converse for another, and only increased subsequent engagement for the third participant. The implications of the results will be discussed in terms of the importance of monitoring the collateral effects of music on engagement in other behavior.

We conducted a series of experiments using multiple-schedules to evaluate the immediate and subsequent effects of structurally matched stimuli on stereotypy displayed by four participants diagnosed with autism. In Experiment 1, we found that structurally matched preferred items for 2 of 3 targeted responses produced a subsequent mildabsolishing operation (AO)or no motivating operation (MO) effect. For one response a subsequent establishing operation (EO) effect was produced. In Experiment 2, we found that for both participants the subsequent levels of task engagement, following the removal of the preferred stimulus, were high and undifferentiated in both the baseline (NI) and test (PS) sequences. In Experiment 3, in order to minimize the effects of prior access to stereotypy on subsequent engagement in stereotypy we used a twocomponent multiple-schedule. For one participant, access to structurally matched stimuli did decrease the immediate engagement in stereotypy. None of the stimuli produced an EO for subsequent stereotypy. The percentage of on-task behavior was undifferentiated following access to a matched stimulus. The implications for the assessment and treatment of stereotypy and their relation to increasing academic productivity are discussed.

Automatically maintained behavior can present considerable assessment and treatment challenges. One method that has been shown to be effective in treating automatically maintained behavior is environmental enrichment, which involves increasing the quantity or quality of preferred stimuli. However, studies have shown that in some instances, exposure to preferred stimuli may increase levels of automatically maintained behavior. In order to examine within-session patterns of responding, this study examined the effect of preferred stimuli on the cumulative frequency of automatically maintained behavior within the alone condition of an analogue functional analysis. Alone conditions with and without access to preferred stimuli were implemented for a 10-year-old boy with autism using a repeated reversals design. Across-session analyses suggested that the presence of preferred stimuli was associated with increased engagement in stereotypy compared to the absence of preferred stimuli. Within-session analysis revealed an increasing trend in the frequency of stereotypy in the presence of preferred stimuli. Results are discussed with respect to establishing operations and environmental enrichment interventions.

Last year, we presented data on repetitive behavior (e.g. nail biting, hair twirling, and skin scratching) in 50 typically functioning adults under conditions similar to those utilized in an antecedent-based functional analysis. Results showed that a majority of participants engaged in the highest levels of repetitive behavior in the alone condition, suggesting that repetitive behavior was maintained by automatic reinforcment. A subset of participants also displayed high rates of repetitive behavior in the demand condition; the absence of programmed consequences in the demand condition suggests that repetitive behavior in this condition may have been maintained by automatic reinforcement established as such by aversive stimulation. This year, we have extended our methods to children and adolescents with developmental disabilities and/or autism who engage in stereotypic behavior; results with developmentally disabled children are similar to those obtained with the sample of typically functioning adults. Implications for functional analysis methodologies will be discussed.

Although applied behavior analysis (ABA) is the evidence-based treatment (EBT) for problem behaviors, knowledge and skills accumulated so far is far from perfect in terms of effective service delivery. Hence, continuous efffort for treatment outcome study is necessary. At the same time, however, balance between research and clinical work is hard to reach due to many practical reasons. In this symposium, we demonstrate our efforts to conduct research in a clinical setting for 4 most common treatment topics in developmental disabilities (DD); early intervention, social-skills training, staff training in positive behavior support (PBS) and parenting training. We present our research questions, methods, preliminary results, research/clinical implications and suggestions for the future. Our future plan will be introduced, along with tips for the researchers/clinicians who are interested in conducting research in clinical setting.

The purpose of this study was to evaluate the effects of staff training in positive behavior support (PBS) on the behavior of persons with developmental disabilities (DD) in four residential facilities. A representative staff of each facility participated in PBS training once per month for 5 months and delivered trained PBS material to staffs in each facility. And each staff implemented acquired skills under the supervision of the representative staff. Overall level of problem behaviors as well as severity of target population was monitored along with staffs' stress level on service delivery. The results showed that behavioral problems of target population as well as staffs' stress level decreased significantly. Also, positive behaviors of target population increased. The results suggest that indirect training of staff in PBS can be effective for improving the behavioral problems of persons with DD, even in residential settings. The implications and limitations of this study, with directions for future research, are also discussed.

The purpose of this study was to examine whether the effectiveness of a behavioral parent training (BPT) is affected by the age of children. Seventy-twoparents of children with developmental disabilities aged from 2 to 17 (55 boys, 17 girls) participated in this study. The BPT was conducted in a small group format (6-7 per group) for 12 weeks and parents learned basic behavior principles as well as actual application of acquired skills to their child. Data were collected from direct observation and self-report scales. Thescore of each measure from pre to post training was calculated. The data were analyzed with one-way ANOVA. The results showed that parents who have preschool children (less than 7-years-old, N = 43) acquired more knowledge and skills about how to handle the situation of behavior problems than those who have school age children (over 7-years-old, N = 22). On the other hand, no significant difference scores could be found onparents' efficacy scale (PSI), and BPI. This suggested that BPT for parents of preschool children is more effective for acquiring knowledge than for parents of older children.

The purpose of this study is to examine how developmental level influences on the learning curve of young children with developmental disabilities (6 boys and 4 girls aging from 3 to 6). Measures included the K SIB-R and numbers of capable activities from the list of selecting teaching program (STP). Participants were divided into two groups: (A: above 2 years of K SIB-R score and 10 activities/ B: below 2 years of K SIB-R score and 10 activities). The program consisted of imitation and instruction of actions with object, and imitation of actions with gross and fine motor movements. Result showed significant differences between groups in learning curve for the imitation and instruction of actions with object. This suggested that lower the functions, the more influenced they were by the levels of the tasks. Performance of Group B fluctuated more than that of Group A, suggesting that an individual approach may be inevitable for Group B. No significant difference found between groups in imitating actions with gross and fine motor movements, indicating that imitation of motor movements may be influenced by variables other than participants aptitude. Further study needs to compare two groups after equalizing numbers of task in each field.

The purpose of this study was to examine the effectiveness of a peer-mediated social skills Training program (PSST), which was the modified version of two programs from Vernon et al. (1996) and Chung et al., (2007). The PSST was held for 100 minutes once a week for 20 weeks in a small group format. Target participants were two childrenwith Asperger syndrome and one child with autism aged from 10 to 13. Four typically developing children participated in the program as peers. To examine the effectiveness of PSST, parents completed the peer social tasks rating scale, social responsiveness scale and social skills rating scale before and after the training. Therapists also completed the clinical behavior checklist of social skills scale every session. Two out of three children showed improvement in social skills on parental report, whereas all showed improvement on therapist's report. Implications and future suggestions were discussed.

Much of human behavior, complex or not, involves the potential presence of two or more behaviors and before that, the individual, considering the particularities of each situation, emit only one or a part of them. In this case, a process of decision making or choice is in force. Provide opportunities for choice is always a quick way to identify positive reinforcers. More widely, preference and choice are important concepts in the experimental analysis of behavior. Although the area of choice is one that probably generates more knowledge in behavioral analysis, there are still numerous unanswered questions raising. Many research areas and educational applications can benefit from the choice paradigm, including basic research on schedules of reinforcement preferences, bridge research on teaching procedures of simple choice behaviors for individuals with delayed intellectual development, and computer game applications to be applied to the development of teaching program for this population. It has also been applied to the study of socially and culturally relevant behaviors involving cooperation and competition, generosity and altruism.

To make choices is a fundamental skill for individuals. Four intellectual disabled adults learned a work task with and without a jig that consisted of assembling notebook covers. The jig displayed containers to place its different components and was designed to provide immediate feedback, to increase or maintain the rate of response and to prevent errors during the routine. Work performance was assessed as a function of conditions chosen (Phases 1 and 3). Following initial training the subjects worked individually either under multiple schedules or under concurrent-chain schedules (Phases 2 and 4) according to a multiple-element design. When the multiple schedules was on, the components were either presence or absence of the jig, quasi-randomly distributed. In the concurrent-chain schedules it was used a FR-1, on the first link, and either one of the presence-absence of jig condition, on the second link. The results showed that when choice opportunities were given, the jig and choice conditions were chosen more often and time spent to task completion and average number of errors performing the task decreased. The results also suggested that the jig yielded greater control over work and the opportunity to make choices, engendered more motivation and work independence on the participants.

Contributing factors to treatment selection may include practicality, efficacy, and social acceptability (Hanley et al., 1997). These factors were considered when assessing the appropriateness of an FR versus RR schedule of reinforcement for task completion in an adolescent diagnosed with Fragile X Syndrome. In Experiment 1, within an alternating treatment design, FR and RR schedules were conducted throughout all waking hours in the participant's natural environment and alternated first weekly and then every two days. Although, larger PRP's were found in the FR schedules, overall rates of responding were found to be similar across the 2 schedules. In Experiment 2, the participant's preference for the FR and RR schedules was evaluated using a concurrent-chain procedure. Schedule selections were eventually allocated to the FR schedule. Implications and future research directions are discussed.

Preference assessment has been the focus of numerous research and applied work either by itself or as an important prerequisite. Because items of preference are so varied across individuals and also for the same individual across time, there is a need to simplify preference assessment procedures so that its application is feasible. The objective of this study was to develop an internet-based computer application to present visual (static and movements) stimuli, and auditory stimuli in a structured manner to assess choices and determine preferences. The application was developed in the Eclipse/Aptana Studio, written in PHP and presented in a user-friendly interface. The menu bar presents four options to the experimenter: stimuli, participants, preference assessment, and reports. In the stimuli option the user has access to all visual and auditory stimuli in the program data bank, with the possibility to add or delete stimuli. The next option allows the experimenter to list all relevant information regarding the subject. In the preference assessment the experimenter firstly chooses the number of links (concurrent schedule or concurrent-chain schedule), type and number of stimuli simultaneoursly presented (from 2 to 8), and type of reinforcement schedules associated with each alternative. The report option offers the experimenter access to the preference assessment results, classified by order. It can be executed from any computer connected to an Internet network, regardless of configuration or operational system, without any additional software. Target users are professionals working in education, psychology and related fields.

Robert Siegler's earlier B. F. Skinner Lecture will be discussed. Siegler's lecture will be given from a current non-behavioral developmental perspective. The panelists represent behavioral positions and will discuss Siegler's remarks and his responses to them.

A longstanding observation among behavior analysts is that basic and applied research often operate independently. A shortcoming of this separation is that it creates a gap in shared knowledge between domains. For applied researchers, such a gap may hinder the development of more sophisticated behavioral technologies that improve the human condition. For basic researchers, the gap may cause scientific endeavors to be completely devoid of any relevance to problems of social importance. A scientific tactic to bridge the gap involves translational research. This type of research employs a bidirectional approach between basic and applied domains to which scientific findings are translated into practical applications and vice versa. In this years Bridging the Gap event, presenters will discuss translational research on impulsive choice.

Log-survivor analyses suggest that intermittently reinforced operant behavior may be organized into bouts of responding. That is, the response rate of a single operant response actually might be a composite measure consisting of periods of engagement (i.e., bouts) and periods of disengagement (i.e., engaging in alternative responses). Further, evidence suggests that responses that initiate bouts may be functionally distinct from responses within bouts. In this symposium, presentations will explore the generality of bout analyses to different species (pigeons and humans), responses (keypecking and button pressing), procedures (concurrent schedules), and the application of bout analyses to understanding effects of drugs and environmental toxicants.

Some evidence suggests that responding under variable-interval (VI) schedules can be viewed as a composite performance consisting of bouts of engagement in the target response and periods of disengagement (during which time the animal is presumably engaged elsewhere). For rats nose-poking under VI schedules, analyses ofinterresponse timesindicate two functionally different response classes: responses that initiate a bout and responses within a bout. These two classes are revealed via log-survivor functions with a "broken-stick" appearance. However, attempts to replicate this effect with pigeons" keypecking have failed (i.e., log-survivor functions for pigeons' keypecking do not show a broken-stick). A possible explanation is that pigeons experience a lower rate of reinforcement for extraneous behavior than rats and, thus, either rarely disengage from the target response or do so only briefly. The present experiment attempted to produce periods of disengagement from keypecking by exposing pigeons to five sets of concurrent VI VI schedules. In this arrangement, a given alternative is the target response, and the other alternative provides reinforcement for engaging in another behavior. The log-survivor functions showed broken-stick characteristics in some cases, and log-survivor functions of changeover responses appeared linear. These results suggest keypecking under concurrent schedules may be organized into bouts.

Reinforced responding has previously been conceptualized as alternating between two states: (1) periods of engagement (clusters of responding with relatively short interresponse times; IRTs) alternating with (2) periods of disengagement (responses separated by longer IRTs). In order to obtain quantitative estimates of these two distinct components of responding, log-survivor functions have been used to characterize nose-poke and lever-press responding in rats. This analysis, however, has yet to be effective in characterizing the responding of other species. Thus, responding on a computer task was assessed in order to determine if the two-mode conceptualization of response rate adequately characterizes human responding. Adult human subjects pressed buttons which produced hypothetical monetary reinforcers on a 3-component multiple RI 60s, RI 120s, RI 240s schedule and the proportion of IRTs longer than some time (t) was plotted as a function of time (t) on a semi-logarithmic scale in order to construct survivor functions. Although there was some evidence that human responding might be classified as bout-like, not all data resulted in the clear 'broken-stick' functions evident in the analyses of rat nose-poke and lever-press responding.

A recently developed model posits that a bout of operant responding comprises three different components: bout initiation rate, within-bout response rate and bout length. Each parameter is thought to be affected by different classes of variables. Specifically, within-bout response rate is thought to be influenced by motor variables, while bout initiation rate is thought to be influenced by motivational variables. This model shows potential for examining drug and toxicant exposure on operant behavior because these two influences (motor and motivational) can be conflated. In a series of studies, the model was tested using drugs (pentobarbital, haloperidol) and a neurotoxicant (methylmercury) to determine the utility of the model in disentangling the motor from the motivational influences on high-rate operant behavior. This method of analysis proved to be effective in characterizing drug effects as the partitioned measures of a response bout provided separate and independent measures. This method of analysis also was effective in producing a sensitive marker of MeHg exposure. Deficits were observed in within-bout response rate weeks before deficits were observed in bout initiation rate or total responses. This model shows potential for separating the motor and motivational influences of drug and toxicant exposure on operant behavior.

Four experiments examined the changes in stimulus control occurring during guided skill learning in rats. In Experiments 1 and 2, rats were trained to complete a left-right (L-R) sequence of lever presses guided by the onset and offset of panel lights over their respective levers (the "Lights" condition). In Experiment 3 and 4, rats were trained to complete the same L-R sequence with the order of light onset and offset reversed (the "Reversed-Lights" condition). Once sequence accuracy was high and stable, the rats in each study were exposed to a subsequent condition which assessed stimulus control by the panel lights: Lights to Reversed-Lights; Lights to No-Lights; Reversed-Lightsto Lights; Reversed-Lightsto All-Lights. In all experiments, more practice produced greater autonomy and reduced dependence on the guiding cues. Learning rates were considerably lower when training began with the Reversed-Lights condition. In all four experiments, changes in sequence accuracy in the second condition were governed by a powerful simultaneous feature-positive discrimination bias, which greatly influenced the effectiveness of lights to serve as guiding cues and influenced the development of autonomous behavior.

The adaptive hypothesis that an obese-prone genotype and feeding history confer a fitness advantage was tested using a rat model. Juvenile (35-40 days) JCR:LA-cp rats, obese-prone (cp/cp) and lean-prone (+/?), were exposed to 1.5 h daily meals and 22.5 h of voluntary wheel running, a procedure that normally leads to activity anorexia (AA). Half of the obese-prone rats were raised on free food (Obese-FF) and half were pair fed (Obese-PF) the amount of food eaten by lean-prone, free feeding rats (Lean-FF). Animals were removed from AA at 75% of initial body weight (starvation) or after 15 days (stability). Obese-PF rats (M = 12.50 1.89 days) lasted longer than Obese-FF group (M=8.75 1.88 days) and Lean-FF rats (M=4.00 1.03 days), ps < .05. Fig. 1 shows that there were significant linear increases in rates of wheel running over days in Lean-FF and Obese-FF rats, ps < .004 , but not in the Obese-PF group. Cumulative distance (km) indicated that Obese-PF rats continued to run at a steady pace, traveling nearly 80 thousand kilometres. Pair-feeding obese-prone rats similar to lean-prone provides a survival advantage beyond genotype, and relates to increased conservation of energy by these animals (data not shown).

Activity-based anorexia (ABA) has been operationally defined as high levels of physical activity in conjunction with low caloric intake. In a previous study, this lab showed evidence that when two nearly genetically identical female rats were put on a low caloric diet and allowed ad lib access to a running wheel, they had different run patterns compared with each other, but interestingly predictive individual patterns. More specifically regarding voluntary individual exercise, one rat started out as a low runner and one as a high runner, and even as weight dropped and running amount increased, the low runner stayed low, while the high runner remained high. The current study more formally examines this pattern in eight male rats. The study will show that there is a consistent individual run pattern for some rats, and will lend further support to previous findings regarding levels of physical activity and low caloric intake.

Ames dwarf mice have a Prop-1 mutation that has been identified with increased levels of IGF-I in the central nervous system, upregulation of neuroprotective systems, and increased lifespan. Previous studies have provided some evidence that the benefits of the mutation extend to behavior. The present research compared Ames dwarf and normal mice on several operant conditioning tasks. Subjects were required to make a nosepoke response to a small aperture and reinforcement consisted of access to a saccharin solution. In Experiment 1, subjects were observed under a DRL schedule of reinforcement and a matching-to-sample task. In Experiment 2, subjects were observed under a FI schedule, a Chain FR FI schedule, and extinction. Comparisons were based on several measures of behavioral efficiency: pause durations, intertrial intervals, and numbers of responses. Ames dwarf mice were generally less efficient than normal mice, especially at the onset of each task. The results suggest limitations to the enhancement of biological systems involved in behavior allegedly present in Ames dwarf mice.

A review of past and current trends in the area of respondent conditioning will be offered. The paper focuses on how inaccuracies in the description of respondent conditioning have led to a neglect of this topic. A case is made that the analysis of many types of psychological events might be improved if respondent processes were taken into account. Two areas of current research seem related to respondent type procedures: conditioned reinforcement and stimulus equivalence. It is the purpose of the paper to offer an analysis of these phenomena wherein the extent to which respondent conditioning may be related. In doing so, a determination can be made regarding how the language surrounding respondent phenomena has been integrated into these areas of study as well as to see what impact the imprecise notion of pairing has had on the development of these lines of research. The paper will address the possibility that notion of pairing has limited the research on stimulus-stimulus relations or has fostered alternative but less adequate theories in these areas.

A great deal of biomedical research has provided experimental evidence of the function of specific neuropeptides in the development of autistic symptomatology. Interdisciplinary research in this area would provide a more comprehensive understanding of autism, by integrating the findings and contributions from both behavior analysis and biology. In this biology-behavior analysis interdisciplinary study, pregnant mice were injected with LPS (intervention group) or a saline formula (Control group) on the 17th day of gestation. Biology researchers performed a molecular analysis making a cytokine/chemokine profile of the fetal brain hippocampus using a Luminex system to identify differential protein expression profiles between treated mice fetuses and control mice fetuses. The behavior analyst researchers collected social interaction measures using a ABAB design. Data were analyzed within mice, across conditions and among groups. The social interaction of each was assessed by observing the behavior of each pup towards the mother, measuring its proximity to the mother. In addition average velocity and trajectory data was also collected.

Humans, like pigeons, tend to make errors while learning simple and complex discriminations. Errors are particularly problematic for humans recovering from strokes and re-learning language. These errors cause frustration and aggressive behavior that disrupts rehabilitation. An aspect of language rehabilitation commonly involves showing the patient several objects and asking them to point at a particular one. The present experiment explored a procedure designed to eliminate or reduce errors during the acquisition of an animal analogue of the patients training, the matching-to-sample task. Pigeons first peck at the sample which presents the comparisons. Pecking the correct comparison is reinforced. Errors were reduced by presenting the incorrect comparison very briefly and gradually increased how long it was present. The pigeons in the current experiment were first trained to peck a red or green sample. Then pecking the red or green sample produced a comparison the same color as the sample; pecking this comparison was reinforced. Next, pecking the sample produced both red and green comparisons. After 0.1 sec, the incorrect comparison disappeared. Across sessions, the duration of the incorrect comparison increased until it always remained for the duration of the trial. The two pigeons made 16 and 23 errors during acquisition. In the control condition the same pigeons were trained on an amber and purple matching-to-sample task by first training pecking the amber or purple samples and then abruptly presenting both the amber and purple comparisons. The pigeon made 185 and 29 errors during the first 5 days of acquisition. Additional data is being collected from these pigeons and four additional pigeons.

Humans, like pigeons, tend to make errors while learning simple and complex discriminations. Errors are particularly problematic for humans recovering from strokes and re-learning language. These errors cause frustration and aggressive behavior that disrupts rehabilitation. An aspect of language rehabilitation commonly involves showing the patient several objects and asking them to point at a particular one. The present experiment explored a procedure designed to eliminate or reduce these errors during the acquisition of an animal analogue, matching-to-sample, by providing a prompt for the correct response and gradually delaying presenting the prompt. In matching-to-sample, a sample stimulus is presented, and when it is pecked two comparison stimuli appear. Pecking the comparison matching the sample is reinforced. The pigeon was first trained to peck a red or green sample. Then pecking the red or green sample produced white and blue comparison keys, and pecking the white comparison was reinforced. Next, pecking the sample produced white and incorrect comparisons. When pecks to the white comparison were reliably quick the correct and incorrect comparisons were presented and after 0.1 sec the correct comparison was replaced with the white comparison. Across sessions the delay in replacing the correct comparison with the prompt (white comparison) was gradually increased until the prompt was no longer presented. The pigeons made 36 errors during acquisition. In the control condition the pigeon was trained on an amber-purple matching-to-sample task by first training pecking the amber or purple samples and then abruptly presenting both the amber and purple comparisons with no prompt. The pigeon made 69 errors during the first 6 days of acquisition alone. Additional data is being collected from this pigeon and four additional pigeons.

Promoting positive behavior in the classroom is critical for creating an effective learning environment. Empirical examination of behavioral consultation can illustrate both successful application of proven techniques and the usefulness of data-based decision-making. Further, documenting generalization of outcomes to non-targeted students may enhance teacher acceptance of structured behavioral interventions and increase teacher involvement in subsequent collaborative efforts (an ultimate index of the effectiveness of applied behavior analysis). This symposium will describe three consultation cases using ABAB and ABCDC designs that examined interventions to improve individual students behavior while also monitoring peer behavior. The first case used praise, self-monitoring, and a color wheel antecedent intervention to reduce inappropriate talking of a kindergarten student and empirically demonstrated concurrent improvement of classroom peers. The second case evaluated impact of a daily behavior report card with reward intervention on on/off-task behavior of a second-grader. With intervention, the students behavior matched his peers. In the third case, a class-wide interdependent group contingency increased engagement of both a targeted first grade boy and classroom peers. Discussion will focus on the potential positive collateral effects of behavior interventions for targeted students, the benefits of monitoring peers, and possible impact of such efforts on future teacher involvement in effective interventions.

An ABCDC design was used to examine the effects of praise, self-monitoring, and a classwide antecedent intervention on the inappropriate talking of a kindergarten student. In the first intervention phase, the teacher delivered behavior-specific praise to the target student. Also, the student recorded whether or not he followed the classroom rules at the end of each activity by circling a happy or frown face on a chart. If he met criteria for the number of smiley faces each day, he received a small prize. In the second intervention phase, a color wheel (CW) intervention was introduced classwide to reduce the overall occurrence of talking out. Talking out behavior of the target student and peers was monitored using direct observation interval recording. Interobserver agreement data were collected for 21% of observation sessions and were 100% for all sessions. Adherence was documented each day and remained at 100% across intervention phases. The interventions appeared to lead to significant improvements in the target student's behavior consistent with previous research. Additionally, parallel trends emerged from peer data across all conditions. Discussion will explore possible explanations for these results and the value of collecting peer comparison data.

An ABAB design was used to demonstrate the effects of a daily behavior report card (DBRC) intervention on the on/off-task behavior of a second-grade student. The DBRC rated the degree to which the student stayed on-task, listened to the teacher, and followed directions. A weekly reward was given after the student reached a pre-determined score. The teacher was trained by the consultant on intervention procedures and adherence checks were conducted regularly throughout implementation. Engagement data were collected using direct observation interval recording during 20-30 minute observation sessions. In addition to minoting the target student, every fifth interval, he behavior of a randomly selected peer in the classroom was recorded. Interobserver agreement data were collected for 18% of observation sessions and was at high levels (i.e., range 89-100% agreement). With the introduction of the intervention, the students on-task behavior increased and his off-task behaviors decreased during independent seatwork, with behavior closer to the level of his peers. Results are consistent with previous research showing that the DBRC is an effective and relatively easy intervention to implement in the classroom. Also, results show the utility of collecting peer data for monitoring the effects of interventions and setting goals for student behavior.

A classwide interdependent group contingency procedure was used to increase the engagement behavior of a first-grade student during group academic activities. Through consultation, the intervention was developed to meet the needs of the target student, to reduce the need for additional individual behavior plans for other at-risk students in the classroom, and to promote positive classwide behaviors. The intervention was evaluated using an ABAB design. Adherence checks were conducted throughout implementation and were at 100% for all observations. Data on target student and peer engagement were collected using direct observation interval recording. Interobserver agreement data were collected for 20% of observations and averaged 94.13% agreement. Prior to the intervention, the percent of intervals student engagement was observed ranged from 45.80% to 73%, with an average of 59%. After the implementation of the intervention, the target students engagement increased, ranging from 75% to 94% with an average of 88.5%. In addition, data on peer behavior indicated that the overall behavior of students in the classroom improved. Discussion will focus on the benefits of implementing classwide interventions to address the behavior of struggling students and to generally promote the positive behavior of all students.

This symposium is one in an ongoing, annual series that provides updated information and data on the Morningside Model of Generative Instruction, and its application in our laboratory school. In our lab school, we investigate promising curricula or instructional procedures, measure their effectiveness, and revise our curriculum and instruction protocols as the data suggests. Presentation #1 by Andrea McDermott describes a classroom response tool for generating meaningful active responding, #2 by Jenni Reilly describes teacher performance monitoring procedures using standard celeration charts and publicly posted wall charts, #3 by Jennifer Testa describes a model for predicting year-end reading comprehension growth from a repeated progress monitoring instrument, and #4 by Marianne Delgado describes how to track essay writing across the curriculum with standard celeration charts.

An invention of a tool at Morningside Academy was designed in partnership with Project H, a nonprofit humanitarian design network. We will present the process of user testing and modifying the product, design challenges, and implementation successes and challenges. Project H partnerships start in small educational settings and are targeted for wide-scale international implementations. These engagement boards function like Heward's response cards with a design twist.

Morningside Academy has recently implemented the use of standard celeration charts and wall charts for staff development of newly hired educators. A component, composite analysis, or task analysis, of skills necessary to implement the Morningside Model of Generative Instruction was done and a list of pinpoints or target behaviors were identified. A rating scale is used to evaluate the performance of each educator from month to month. Group and individual goals are set for each month and educators are coached and mentored to help them reach their goals. Performance ratings are publicly posted and the standard celeration chart is used to monitor the performance of each educator as a means of monitoring performance over time and to set personal goals for individual teachers. In this presentation, performance data from the wall chart and standard celeration charts will be shown from 09-10 and 10-11 school year.

Morningside Academy uses the Scholastic Reading Inventory (SRI) as a progress-monitoring tool to predict posttest outcomes on a standardized reading comprehension test. Using longitudinal data, we found that SRI scores are highly correlated with post-test standardized assessment reading comprehension scores. Thus, using a linear regression model, we are able to make predictions regarding the growth in reading comprehension that students will make within the academic school year. Having early indicators of a students acquisition of reading comprehension skills also enables Morningside to make instructional changes and implement interventions to ensure student progress. This talk is a follow-up study to a prediction model presented at the 36th Association for Behavior Analysis International Annual Convention (Gire, Testa, & Johnson, 2010). We will examine the utility of the prediction model in monitoring student progress and informing instructional decisions. Finally, observed posttest scores will be used to examine the predictive validity of our model.

We will explore different uses of the standard celeration chart in tracking essay writing across the curriculum: student response journaling to recreational reading in literature; essay questions and lab report discussion sections in science, position papers in writing, and "how to" expository essays in Math. The celeration chart excels in tracking output over time. Unique ways of tracking efficiency of writing, writer's engagement, acquisition of expository skills and fading of teacher prompts, by using symbols charted "below the floor" will be explained. We will present pre- and post-measures and student work samples across curricula and describe application uses at parent/teacher/student conferences.

The Inventory of Good Learner Repertoires (Ward, 2008), helps educators assess the ease with which their students can be taught. For students who are difficult to teach, the IGLR helps teachers identify ways to begin to establish instructional control. For more cooperative learners, the IGLR helps teachers identify ways to make instruction increasingly natural. The papers presented in this symposium will describe IGLR profiles for specific students, discuss the interventions selected as a result of these assessments, and discuss the outcomes both in regard to the specific repertoires targeted and related repertoires.

The Inventory of Good Learner Repertoires (Ward, 2008) assesses the ease with which students can be taught. Deficits in learner repertoires represent barriers to instruction, and frequently represent impediments to a student's overall level of functioning. Students who display excessive anxiety under ordinary circumstances can be limited in their access to environments and can be subjected to poorly-planned consequences of problem behavior. This presentation will describe, in detail, a scripted procedure for teaching students to calm in the presence of stressors. Recommendations are made for appropriate and inappropriate uses of this procecdure, and additional considerations when programming for students who display excessive anxiety.

The Inventory of Good Learner Repertoires (Ward, 2008) outlines 10 learning areas, 139 repertoires in total, that are component skills for the "good learner," or that are necessary skills to help a student to be a ready and available learner. The deficient repertoires in these learning areas are barriers to learning that typically keep students out of their home district school, or less restrictive environments. While teachers have many goals for their students, it is the goal of The Chicago Education Project to teach the students how to learn, or to overcome these baririers, so that they can benefit from more diverse environments. This discussion will focus on the learning profile of one student diagnosed with autism, attending a private day school. Specifically, this presentation will discuss whow deficits in learner repertoitres were identified, how these deficits affected multiple areas of functioning, and how interventions were selected.

Hunter is a student diagnosed with autism spectrum disorder, who has been very difficult to teach. These challenges ultimately led the local school district to fund significant behavioral intervention. The presenter assessed Hunter using "The Inventory of Good Learner Repertoires" (Ward, 2008). As a result of that assessment, the presenter identified 3 primary areas in need of programming: motivation, rate of response, and vocal responding. In this presentation, the presenter will discuss how these areas of need were identified, the negative impact these deficits were having on Hunter's learning, programming that remediated these deficits, and the resulting improvement in Hunter's ability to learn. Recommendations for future interventions will be provided.

It can be challenging for a behavior analyst to demonstrate responsible professional conduct consistent with the values of behavior analysis and meet the expectations of clients, supervisors, organizations and advisors. An example of one such challenge is when behavior analysts engage professionally with individuals and organizations that do not share a commitment to evidence-based practice, a key tenant of the practice of applied behavior analysis. In another example, a behavior analyst may experience conflicts with supervisors and advisors who try to influence a behavior analyst's clinical judgment because of organizational and professional interests not directly associated with the client's best interest. And, of course, a behavior analyst has a responsibility to follow through with professional obligations to individuals they are serving and organizations for whom they are involved, as employee or consultant. This panel will present case examples of professional conflicts and suggest and discuss possible solutions. The audience will be encouraged to participate by responding to panel members and offering additional examples.

Behavior analysts are used to preaching to a friendly choir when attending meetings such as ABAI, but in the rest of our usual days we encounter clients, patients, teachers, school personnel, parents, and people who work with clients. In such interactions behavior analysts often spend time explaining behavior principles and techniques. How do they do that in a way that keeps the person's attention, assures that he understands what the behavior analyst is saying and applies the principle appropriately? The tried and true ways of explanation of behavioral principles is the focus of the symposium—the presentation of behavior analysis in a positive manner so that others are able to put the principles to work. The subjects include elderly clients and aging problems, parenting and child-rearing and teen guiding as well as teachers and other school personnel. The presenters have decades of experience in guiding clients in the learning and application of behavior analysis principles with numerous examples of effective and surprising outcomes from their conversational strategies and styles.

The older we get, the faster we learn using the same stimuli we used in learning when a youngster. The stimuli that will be discussed in this paper are verbal words in speaking and teaching behavior; words used to describe and shape behavior, or extinguish, or add a new behavior. Using the correct verbal stimulus (spoken word) is a serious step in the effective application of behavioral principles. Learning begins with sensory memory; in most cases it is auditory. Therefore, it is important to use the same sensory stimuli when speaking and teaching behavior, especially in regards to the aging population. For example, using the word "reinforcer" when speaking with a centenarian most likely will not make sense, but asking the aged, "What do you do after you walk around the block?" does make sense. It provides the basis for understanding their own behavior, what maintains it, and what it diminishes.

Serious conversation with a child or teenager can be difficult. Most parents find their son or daughter an elusive prey not easily cornered and not easily impressed. This presentation offers a behavior analyst's strategies for teaching behavioral principles to parents so they may put the principles to work in family negotiations and in family conversational habits. Examples from family exchanges are reviewed and exemplified in the following general principles: (a) parents should deliberately slow their pace of conversation so their child-teen can slow his conversation; conversation doesn't make a good competitive sport; (b) parents should watch the non-verbal signals: folding arms, getting louder, and turning away all have their messages; (c) parents should avoid the "quick fix" temptation; the real subject may not have come up yet, (d) density of reinforcement can be maintained developing a plan to highlight the behaviors that are liked. Loving is not much without liking, (e) punishment is likely to be imitated; it is terrorizing when misunderstood and it is inappropriate for adults. Reflective reactions often result in more information; a teen's first remarks are long on feelings and short on facts. Several vignettes illustrate these principles at work in family and counseling situations.

Teaching teachers and school personnel behavior analysis has always been difficult, probably for several reasons. The underlying pinning of American education has been that the pupils are intrinsically interested in learning, so "forcing" them to behave is counter to the prevailing orientation. Secondly, education is replete with "new programs" which last a few years, fade away and then are replaced by another "new program." So when someone proposes a "new program," that is behavior analysis, teachers are hesitant if not reluctant to accept it. With these obstacles in mind, this paper will focus on strategies to help the behavior analyst interact with teachers to help them understand and apply behavioral principles. Usually the behavior analyst is a consultant to the school and carries very little authority. No matter what type of situations exists the behavior analyst must be most careful in the interaction with the teachers. The give-and-take in conversation is most crucial in obtaining the teacher's cooperation. This paper will focus on this conversational interchange. Examples of situations that are likely to arise in a school setting will be discussed.

An important part of teaching and learning behavior analysis is the arrangement of the learning environment to maximize practice, feedback, and the efficiency of instructor time. This symposium will focus on two areas of effectively teaching behavior analysis: reducing student procrastination (thus maximizing the positive effects of practice) and evaluating the effects of individual variables in the learning environment to make instruction more efficient. The first two talks in the symposium will describe projects designed to reduce student procrastination through contingency management and the resultant effects on student exam and quiz performance. The third talk will describe the exploration of the effects of several variables (e.g., attendance at lectures, completion of extra credit assignments, attendance at study sessions) on the overall exam and course performance of students in an introductory behavior modification and therapy course. Discussion will focus on ways instructors might structure their classroom environments and learning activities to maximize student learning while also being as efficient as possible.

Behavior analysis has been directly involved in best practices for teaching at the university level, including mastery-based personalized systems of instruction (PSI) and non-mastery-based inter-teaching. After a small unit of study, the assessment of student learning (i.e., the students verbal and textual behavior repertoire) for both of these methods may include their verbal repertoire on tests and in class. Data from two projects will be reviewed: (a) from a mastery-based PSI-taught Psychology research methods and statistics course in which individual and group contingencies are used; and (b) from several sections of an Introduction to Learning course that has utilized inter-teaching methods. The results indicate that (a) when contingencies are in place for completion of work prior to class that students score higher on tests; and (b) the group discussion condition for interteaching produces higher scores when compared with an individual condition. Implications for future teaching, and for behavior analysis programs in general, will be discussed.

We examined undergraduate students' procrastination of studying for weekly in-class quizzes. Three schedules of online practice quiz delivery were compared using a counterbalanced alternating treatment design within an ABA reversal design. When online study material was made available noncontingently, students generally procrastinated studying. Studying was more evenly distributed during two variations of a conjunctive schedule during which access to additional study material was contingent on completing previous study material. Overall, the mean gain in percentage correct scores on weekly in-class quizzes relative to pretests was greater during the two contingent access conditions than during noncontingent access conditions.

Several variables are potentially associated with both exam and overall course performance in college classrooms, including: attendance at class lectures, completion of review activities, attendance at study sessions, and a student'sgrade point average (GPA)when entering the course. The present talk describes how these variables were investigated in an introductory behavior modification course across several semesters. Specifically, we were offering several learning opportunities to students (i.e., optional extra credit assignments and mock exam review sessions) which were correlated with improved exam and course performance. Because the activities were optional, we were not sure if they were really helpful, or if just the "better" students were attending. Thus, we wanted to know if the apparent improvements were the result of our supports or other variables such as how many lectures the students attended or their entering GPA. In addition to looking at basic correlation data for variables associated with exam performance, additional multiple-linear regression analyses were conducted to attempt to identify the individual and cumulative effects of the variables in the present course.

The gannet, a seabird, catches its prey by plummeting into the ocean from heights up to 100 feet, piercing the water at speeds as great as 60 mph. Just before entering the water, she retracts her wings. The timing must be precise: retract too soon and the result can be steering problems and a missed target; retract too late and broken wings (or worse) can result. How do gannets achieve such precision? The same question arises when explaining coordinated motor behavior in humans (e.g., applying the breaks of a car). Within cognitive science, the traditional answer has involved the positing of mental representations as critical causal factors. Anthony Chemero (2009) has offered an alternative answer: radical embodied cognitive science (RECS). Inspired by Gibsonian ecological psychology and the dynamical systems approach, RECS is explicitly anti-representational, defining "cognition" as "the ongoing, active maintenance of a robust animal-environment system, achieved by closely coordinated perception and action." In explaining coordinated motor behavior, Chemero cites general tau theory (e.g., Lee & Raddish, 1981; Lee, 2009), an approach which focuses on the coordination of direct perception with motor behavior. My presentation provides an account of Chemero's anti-representationalism, and general tau theory (including a brief video of plummeting gannets).

What currently defines what is to be considered as overt or covert behavior is a function of the available technology. Our ability to detect responses and study functional relationships between discriminative stimuli, responses and reinforcers depends on the sensitivity of our measurement tools. Increased sensitivity will lead to detection of functional relationships previously gone unnoticed. EEG is a high temporal resolution (milliseconds) measure of brain activity obtained placing electrodes on the surface of the scalp. A specific kind of EEG technique, called ERPs (Event Related Potentials) allows measuring brain activity that consistently follows or precedes presentation of stimuli. The P3 and the N400 ERP effects constitute two promising tools in measuring covert emitted behavior (P3) and covert fluctuations of response strength beyond the threshold of emission (N400). Specifically, the P3 effect reflects differential brain activation to evocative stimuli as compared to non evocative ones, and this differential activation is preserved in a task that involves a "covert" response. The N400 effect reflects the contrast between the emission of a response that had been strengthened to one that had not been strengthened by preceding stimulation. Benefits of the use of electrophysiological measures are discussed within a radical behaviorist paradigm.

The role of emotions within the field of behavior analysis has traditionally elicited mixed feelings from behavior scientists. Despite the encouraging willingness of many to tackle analyses of complex private behavior, the issue of emotions and feelings and their suitability for study remains controversial. There are many who believe that the difficulty of measuring and observing emotions presents an insurmountable obstacle and threatens the objective nature of the science. B. F. Skinner acknowledges emotions' existence as "bodily states generated by reinforcers," but it is apparent that he views these responses as relatively unimportant collateral byproducts of an organism's interaction with its environment. While we agree with Skinner that a science of behavior can predict and control behavior effectively without a complete understanding of emotions, we argue that emotions play an important role. Furthermore, a failure to formulate a coherent account of emotions not only leaves behavior analysis at the mercies of non-behavioral psychology and physiology, but also represents a gaping hole in the otherwise sound theoretical cloth of the science.

Skinner's radical behaviorism included an account of private events as occurrent and discriminable conditions of the body that may participate in the functional control of the ongoing behavior of the individual organism and which have special relevance to human verbal behavior. An alternative view from Rachlin's teleological behaviorism describes an account of "mental" phenomena without assuming behavioral functions of private events, but rather relies only upon overt behavior and contingencies extended in time. Both behavior analytic perspectives will be considered in the context of a number of issues. These issues include the role of first-person accounts in a scientific analysis, the ontological versus phenomenological status of private events, complex behavioral functions of (overt and covert) behavioral events, interpretations of "mentalistic" terms and reported "internal states," and reported examples of functional private events in clinical and experimental settings. It will be concluded that (a) the differences between radical and teleological behaviorism regarding private events may be traced to specific differences in their respective scientific systems, and (b) the molar (or multiscaled) analysis of behavior that is the emphasis of teleological behaviorism may be applied to private as well as public events.

Numerous instructional strategies exist to increase the efficiency of academic interventions. However, many of these instructional strategies have only been evaluated with a limited number of individuals. In addition, research on novel strategies used to increase the efficiency of acquisition is needed to expand the potential intervention procedures that are available to therapists and teachers. The collection of studies in this symposium sought to expand upon current intervention strategies and evaluate novel procedures to increase the efficiency of intervention. The first presentation compared three interventions to decrease echolalia and increase the rate of acquisition of intraverbal responses in children with autism. The second presentation compared prompts that were or were not paired with a discriminative stimulus (SD)and the effects of these procedures on the acquisition of intraverbal responses in children with autism. The third presentation evaluated antecedent and consequence manipulations to increase accuracy during sight-word reading. The final presentation compared embedded identity-matching prompts with embedded echoic prompts that were intended to serve as differential observed responses (DORs) to the auditory sample stimuli, and evaluated effect on tact emergence as well as the acquisition of auditory-visual conditional discriminations.

Children with autism frequently engage in echolalia that may interfere with the acquisition of verbal behavior during language-based training. Several previous studies evaluated a cues-pause-point procedure (CPP) to reduce non-functional vocalizations during language training. Although the treatment was effective and resulted in generalization to untrained targets, the authors had to fade various aspects of treatment to transfer stimulus control from a prompt or cue within the learning trial (i.e., a tact prompt, a finger cue) to the auditory verbal stimulus. In addition, the procedure may not be as efficient as other prompting strategies more commonly utilized in early intervention programs. Thus, additional evaluations of treatment procedures for echolalia during verbal behavior training are warranted. We compared the effectiveness and efficiency of three interventions to reduce echolalia in children with autism during intraverbal training. Results indicated that an echoic prompt with error correction was the most effective and efficient treatment for all participants, although a tact prompt with error correction was also effective for teaching intraverbal responses for 2 participants.

Least-to-most prompting is a common strategy used in acquisition training for individuals with developmental disabilities. Despite being an oft-utilized procedure, little research has been conducted to compare variations within least-to-most prompting procedures. The current study compared the efficacy of reiterating the initial verbal discriminative stimulus (SD) with every prompt (SD pairing condition) and withholding the verbal SD when prompting (no SD pairing condition). Variations in responding were assessed across intraverbal skills for 3 participants diagnosed with autism spectrum disorder. Acquisition was compared using a combined multielement and multiple baseline across targets design. Overall, the SD pairing condition resulted in faster acquisition than the no SD pairing condition. Furthermore, all SD pairing targets were acquired; however, in several cases, the no SD pairing condition did not result in acquisition of the intraverbal. These findings are discussed in terms of clinical recommendations, the potential for generalization across skills, and treatment integrity.

Antecedent and consequent interventions have been shown to be effective for teaching skills. Antecedent interventions might include modeling or priming, and consequent interventions might include feedback or error correction. The purpose of the current study was to compare the effects of some antecedent and consequent interventions for teaching sight-word reading to two typically developing preschool-aged children. For one participant, we found that (a) simply modeling the correct response one time (single pre-exposure) or (b) providing error correction (no pre-exposure+EC) for incorrect responding was effective for increasing correct sight-word reading. Further manipulation suggested that error correction was most effective when it was implemented for incorrect responding as compared to a general feedback condition. For the second participant, we found that modeling the correct response one time was not effective; however, (a) modeling prior to every session (multiple pre-exposure) or (b) single pre-exposure plus error correction was effective for increasing sight-word reading. Further manipulation suggested that when the number of exposures to the correct response was controlled, multiple pre-exposure was more effective than a condition involving multiple exposures to feedback.

Embedding an identity-matching (IM) prompt in a least-to-most prompting sequence has been shown to enhance acquisition of auditory-visual conditional discriminations (Fisher, Kodak, & Moore, 2007). The IM response may function as a differential observing response (DOR) to the visual comparison stimuli. The present study compared embedded IM prompts with embedded echoic prompts that were intended to serve as DORs to the auditory sample stimuli, and evaluated effect on tact emergence as well as the acquisition of auditory-visual conditional discriminations. Four typically-developing children aged 4- to 6-years-old participated. An adapted multi-element design was used to compare (a) an echoic prompt embedded in a least-to-most prompting hierarchy, (b) an identity matching prompt embedded in a least-to-most prompting hierarchy, and (c) a least-to-most prompting hierarchy alone. All participants acquired the target auditory-visual discriminations, but in contrast to prior studies, there were no differential effects of the three prompting conditions on acquisition. For one participant, tact emergence was greatest in the echoic condition, but no differential effects were found for the other 3 participants. Typically developing children may already have the necessary skills to perform well on auditory-visual conditional discrimination tasks and therefore, enhanced prompting procedures may not have benefited these participants.

Behavior analysts have powerful tools to produce behavior change in a very broad range of populations. Yet an effective intervention can be stopped in its tracks when the behavior analyst consultant cannot get the primary care provider or direct care staff to follow the principles and protocols that were developed to be helpful. There has been little attention paid to problems that arise at this interface. This tutorial will provide an introduction to behavior change principles that can be applied to create a relationship between the behavioral consultant and treatment provider so that collaboration and problem-solving readily occur. To achieve this aim the tutorial will show how the behavior analyst can approach a functional analysis to the consulting relationship to identify stimuli that impede or improve collaboration. Functional classes of responses that should be considered will be discussed that pay particular attention to the stimulus properties of the consultant as well as his or her repertoire for effectively assessing and influencing the service provider. The tutorial will provide conceptual information as well as clinical scenarios one is likely to encounter when implementing programs. The emphasis will be on building constructive repertoires in both the consultant and provider.

The session will focus on the growing emphasis on defining "evidence-based practices" and the role of single-case research to contribute to this effort. Specific recommendations being applied by the What Works Clearinghouse will guide discussion of how single-case research may become more influential.

Other panelists: KENNON A. LATTAL (West Virginia University), M. JACKSON MARR (Georgia Institute of Technology), PHILIP N. HINELINE (Temple University), TIMOTHY D. HACKENBERG (Reed College), and JAY MOORE (University of Wisconsin-Milwaukee)

Participants in this panel offer ABAI members some solutions to problems emanating from rapid growth of the field to include large numbers of much needed practitioner/technicians (the good news) and the ensuing back-channel struggle for control of the mother-organization (the bad news). In congruence with its stated mission, the panelists agree that ABAI should continue its historical role of advancing science and supporting full-spectrum training of scientist/practitioners and scientists to serve as future leaders in the practice and the science of behavior analysis. This panel of leading behavior analysts offers insights into the long-term consequences of various alternative roles for ABAI and suggests that the growth of behavior analysis justifies multiple organizations having multiple functions and differing, albeit overlapping, constituencies.

An important aspect of animal training is the reinforcers used to establish and maintain performances. Although food is generally used as a reinforcer, different types of reinforcers, such as access to toys or areas and social interaction, are used depending on the goal of the final performance. In all cases, it is important to maintain the efficacy of the reinforcers. This symposium will present three experimental studies that manipulate the environment in various ways to change the reinforcing value of events, to enhance the reinforcing value of events, and to introduce animals to events that if contacted would naturally maintain behavior. The first presentation will show procedures that maintain reinforcing efficacy in spite of increases in body weight, the second presentation will show the effects of positive reinforcement on changing avoidance and escape behavior into approach, and the third presentation will show procedures to introduce captive animals to naturally available reinforcers.

In the avian training community, a procedure has long been utilized to maintain food reinforcer efficacy at high body weights. Elements of this procedure include strict limited holds and mostly closed economies. By imposing limited holds on keypeck behavior of two feral pigeons in an operant chamber, we were able to keep rates of responding high regardless of the subject'spercent ad lib body weight. Target rates were determined using a baseline performance of FR 15 at 80% ad lib weight. The schedule was then modified so that the keylight would darken for 20 seconds if an IRT greater than 0.6 seconds or a post reinforcement pause greater than 10 seconds was detected. Under this schedule, we were able to increase the pigeon's body weight to 93% ad lib without a concurrent decrease in rate of response. Data is still being collected to determine if higher weights are possible without rate decreases.

Escape maintained behavior in dogs is generally displayed by one of two behaviors-fleeing or aggression. Once aggression is negatively reinforced by the removal of the aversive stimulus, it is very difficult to eliminate from the animal's repertoire. Counter conditioning is the process of pairing a positive reinforcer with an aversive stimulus in the attempts that an organism will no longer exhibit fear responses in its presence. This process must be done gradually with small approximations. Many animals have been trained to enter aversive situations via counter conditioning. However, this process can be time consuming and has inconsistent results. The purpose of this experiment was to monitor the effects of counter conditioning and investigate a faster, more systematic method for reducing fear responses around aversive stimuli. The subject of this presentation was a dog (a 6-year-old Rhodesian Ridgeback mix) afraid of vacuum cleaners. Two conditions were conducted concurrently compared: approach to a neutral object and approach to the feared object. The results show that even though counter conditioning produced approach to the feared object the dog still remained afraid of the object.

Captive animals are often less active then their wild counterparts. These animals serve as ambassadors to educate the public on their species, yet it is more common to see them engage in stereotypic behavior and less in species-appropriate behavior. A struggle animal keepers face when designing enrichment is prolonging habituation (Tarou & Bashaw, 2007). Many ideas have been proposed, some anecdotally investigated, to increase the length of time habitat enrichment functions as enrichment, but few have been compared to see which method is most effective. This study was designed to manipulate individual enrichment components to discover which method, removal of enrichment, adding novel enrichment, or rotating enrichment, as well as training enrichment, is the most effective at increasing overall behavior as well as species appropriate behavior. An initial study showed that enrichment increased the activity and engagement of Ring-tailed Lemurs. In the next phases of the study the different enrichment items are systematically manipulated to show their contributions to behavior change of the lemurs.

Despite convincing evidence on the effectiveness of applied behavior analysis (ABA) for children with autism spectrum disorder (ASD), delivery of ABA services is becoming increasingly difficult due to a growing population, economical cuts at the state and federal level, and a shortage of trained ABA therapists. Many members of the ABA community are now looking toward technology and how it can be leveraged to serve a larger number of ASD children and adults. Some of the solutions include the use of computers and other media (e.g. video) for training parents, school staff, or therapists; supervision of remote home and school programs; data collection systems; and computer-assisted instructional programs. The benefits of using technology include improved data collection and reporting, increased access to ABA services, increasing number of people that can be served by ABA professionals, and potential improved outcomes for children and adults with ASD. There are also limitations with technology including less face time with clients and staff, technology break-downs or difficulties, and potential ethical issues with confidentiality, competency, and emergency situations. Panel members will briefly discuss the current trends in remote service delivery along with what the research tells us. The benefits and limitations including ethical issues will be discussed with participants.

Establishing response generalization is important to increase the utility of any behavior change procedure. This symposium examines three research studies that investigated various teaching procedures to establish response generalization across social initiations and intraverbals. In the first study, a generalized repertoire of social initiations in the presence of multiple toys was established with four children with autism using multiple exemplar training and script fading procedures. In the second study, matrix training was used to establish recombinative generalization to the intraverbal relation in three preschoolers of typical development. In the final study, response variability of intraverbals was increased in five individuals with autism by implementing a conjunctive differential reinforcement schedule. In all three studies, response generalization increased, albeit to varying degrees.

Interventions that teach verbal initiations are crucial for the social development of children with autism. Script fading procedures have been shown to be effective for teaching children with autism to initiate and participate in social interactions without verbal prompts from adults. Previous research in this area, however, has generated mixed results in establishing a generalized repertoire of verbal interactions under the control of stimuli found in the natural environment. In this study, four boys with autism were taught to verbally initiate a social interaction in the presence of a toy through the use of a script fading procedure and multiple exemplar training. Six training categories of toys were used to increase the likelihood of generalization of verbal interactions across novel toys. A multiple-baseline with a multiple probe across-subjects design was used to assess the successes of this procedure to increase novel initiations. The results showed that children with autism initiated and sustained verbal interactions under the control of stimuli present in the natural environment. These results also generalized to novel stimuli, settings, and peers. In addition, all participants increased their use of novel interactions.

Matrix training is a procedure for selecting training stimuli in order to produce recombinative generalization to untrained combinations of stimuli. Ample research has demonstrated the effectiveness of this procedure across a variety of verbal operants, listener behavior and play skills. The purpose of this investigation is to extend the matrix training strategy to the intraverbal relation. Three typically developing preschool girls participated in a multiple baseline across responses design. Two out of the three demonstrated limited generalization to untrained combinations, while the third participant did not emit any generalized responding.

A procedure intended to teach variation in appropriate verbal responding to an antecedent stimulus was systematically manipulated for 5 individuals with autism. Four antecedent stimuli that include the clause, else do you like to do were presented in a varying order. Five responses that were appropriate to any of the antecedent stimuli were taught using a script-fading procedure. Percentage of varied verbal responses was studied under a conjunctive-differential reinforcement procedure using a multiple-baseline-across-subjects experimental design. Under a modified percentile requirement of the conjunctive schedule, responses were ranked according to their frequency of emission after every session and reinforcement was omitted for the 2 most frequent responses on the subsequent session. Under a lag-1 schedule requirement, reinforcement was omitted for consecutive occurrences of a given response within a given session. Data showed that the percentage of responses meeting the conjunctive schedule requirement increased with the systematic implementation of the schedule. A variability measure showed that responses were more stereotyped during baseline sessions in comparison to treatment sessions. Comparisons between the numbers of different statements emitted by individuals with autism versus those of their typically developing peers suggest that further research is necessary to increase responding to a typical level. Nevertheless, responses by teachers and parents to a social validity questionnaire suggest that the procedure could be applied in clinical and home settings and used to increase varied verbal responding.

Identifying effective reinforcers is an important aspect of many interventions that used in a wide range of settings. Several different types of preference assessments have been demonstrated to be effective at fulfilling this need. However, previous research has demonstrated that, when given a choice between edible and leisure items within a multiple stimulus without replacement (MSWO) preference assessment, individuals are more likely to choose edible items (DeLeon, Iwata, & Roscoe, 1997). This symposium will present three talks, each further evaluating this line of research and extending it beyond multiple stimulus without replacement (MSWO) assessments used with children with developmental disabilities. The first talk evaluated displacement in paired-stimulus preference assessments with young children diagnosed with autism as well as typically developing children. The second talk also evaluates the paired-stimulus format and as well as whether shifts in preference from leisure to edible items may be a result of delays inherent in the preference assessment procedures. Finally, in the third talk the paired-stimulus format is compared with a single presentation of the MSWO to explore the effects of deprivation and satiation on the displacement of leisure items by edibles.

The identification of effective reinforcers continues to be an important component of successful behavioral interventions for individuals with developmental disabilities. Likewise, the identification of effective reinforcers for individuals of typical development is necessary for effective behavioral interventions. Preference assessments have been developed to identify potential reinforcers. However, previous research has indicated that when individuals with developmental disabilities are given the opportunity to choose between food and leisure items, they choose food items more frequently, even when the leisure items are highly preferred (DeLeon, Iwata, & Roscoe, 1997). This study examined displacement of leisure items with young children diagnosed with autism and young children of typical development. Forty-three participants, aged 9 mos to 8 years, were exposed to three paired-choice preference assessments: 1) edible items only, 2) leisure items only, and 3) combined edible and leisure items. Results suggest that displacement of leisure items is not unique to individuals with developmental disabilities, and as such, separate assessments may be necessary to identify preferred leisure stimuli for children with and without autism.

Studies have indicated that edible stimuli will displace leisure items when compared during preference assessments (DeLeon, Iwata, & Roscoe, 1997; Bojak & Carr, 1999). However, the prevalence of displacement as a phenomenon is unclear. Additionally, the influence of reinforcer magnitude for leisure items (i.e., duration of access) and delays on displacement is unknown. Displacement may be a product of the relatively brief periods of access to leisure items typically utilized in preference assessments. The purpose of the current investigation was to examine the prevalence of displacement of leisure items in children with autism, and to determine whether duration of access to leisure items affects displacement. In Experiment 1, 26 participants were exposed to three paired-choice preference assessments that evaluated edible stimuli, leisure items, and the two combined. Results suggest that the displacement of leisure items is common amongst children with autism. In Experiment 2, participants chose between the edible stimuli that displaced leisure items and the top ranked leisure item. Access to the leisure item was systematically increased across series to identify the point at which leisure items became more preferred. Results are discussed in terms of implications for clinicians who may use leisure items as reinforcers.

Over the past several years, methodologies aimed at assessing effective and efficient identification of reinforcers have been developed. Research has validated preference assessment methods reported by Fisher et al., (1992) and DeLeon and Iwata (1996). Extensions of these methods have included implementing fewer presentation trials (Carr et al., 2000), examining displacement of leisure items by food items (DeLeon et al., 1997) and examining manipulations and the effects of establishing operations on preference (Gottschalk et al. 2000, McAdam et al., 2005). This study extends the literature by examining the motivating operation effects of deprivation on food and leisure items and to examine establishing that may effect displacement of leisure items. The current study also presents a single presentation of a multiple-stimulus preference assessment. Participants were exposed to either one multiple-stimulus preference assessment or paired-stimulus preference assessment immediately following 2 hours of food deprivation, or immediately following 10 minutes of free access to edibles. Results indicate that establishing operations can affect outcomes of preference assessments. For two participants, deprivation of food items resulted in an increase in preference selection of food items for each assessment (multiple stimuli withoutreplacementand paired stimulus).

The literature in the area of applied behavior analysis has provided educators of students with autism a plethora of effective teaching strategies. As the incidence of the population has increased, however, challenges for practitioners have as well. It is paramount that skills necessary to function at the highest level of independence are identified and systematically taught. Areas of particular concern include identifying effective strategies to fade staff support, teaching children to earn in a group instructional format, and improving social skills in a group setting. The papers in this symposium will discuss three research projects. Specific data are presented on teaching social skills in small group formats as well as a detailed description of a conceptual model outlining several instructional strategies to enhance social skills in group settings. Additionally, data on the results of a project designed to systematically fade staff support while simultaneously increasing student independence will be discussed.

The majority of scientifically based literature indicates that young children with autism learn most efficiently using individualized teaching practices based in applied behavior analysis. Current economic resources have required practitioners prepare students for learning formats commonly found within the community and least restrictive environments, typically requiring that students independently function and acquire group learning skills. To do so, practitioners need a systematic plan to move students from one-on-one instructional formats, to small groups, and, when appropriate, to inclusion settings, including vocational and community settings. This research project includes an assessment protocol and a teaching strategy designed to fade staff support in a systematic, empirically based manner. Dependent measures include active engagement, active responding, accuracy of responding, rates of competing behaviors and frequency and topography of staff prompts. The teaching strategy employed utilizes a simple conditioned reinforcement procedure combined with fading staff support. The participants are 10 students at a private school for students with autism, ranging in age from 8-16. A multiple baseline across group instructional formats within participants was used to evaluate the effectiveness of the independent variable. Baseline data indicates that student performance and levels of support students required is consistent with individual learning profiles.

One of the most prevalent challenges for students with autism is in the area of social skills, including difficulty with observational skills, play interactions, social pragmatics, taking another's perspective, making inferences, and sharing enjoyment. To date, instructional models have been minimally successful in the acquisition, durability, and generalization of meaningful social skills (Bellini, S., Peters, J., Benner, L., & Hopf, A., 2007; Quinn, Kavale, Mathur, Rutherford, & Forness, 1999; Gresham, Sugai, & Horner, 2001). Consistent with recommendations in the literature (Gresham, et. al, 2001; Peters, et. al, 2007; and Quinn, et. al, 1999), the current study investigates the use of social skills groups to teach children to emit novel discrete social skills in conjunction with a generalization strategy to promote immediate generalization and multiple learning opportunities. Participants included nine students with autism, ranging in age from 8-16, grouped according to learning style, behavioral repertoire, and social skills deficits. A multiple baseline design across skills within students was used to assess the teaching strategies' effectiveness. Preliminary results indicate that the social skills group format was successful in teaching a variety of social skills to students across time, with clear demonstration of skill generalization.

Teaching children with autism in group contexts is challenging. The attention deficits associated with autism impede the children’s ability to learn in group settings. In addition, the history and experience of the child in 1:1 instruction can be difficult to transition from. There are also associated worries that group instruction will, by definition, reduce the intensity of instruction, thereby providing fewer instructional opportunities. The data set we are presenting follows a stepwise progression of training targets. The critical elements of instruction were identified as average rates of SD’s delivered per minute and average rate of reinforcers delivered per minute. Behavioral skills training was effective in building these rates, while didactic training alone was insufficient. Additional targets of teaching included increasing the rates of instructions delivered to the entire group to facilitate choral responding, and the number of instructions delivered from children to fellow students. Ancillary data demonstrated that improvements in the rate and quality of group instructions were associated with reduction in stereotypy and increases in engagement. Results will be discussed in terms of stepwise training approaches to group instruction and the utility of treatment integrity tools to assist in staff training to deliver group instruction.

Specific fears are commonly reported in children with an autism spectrum disorder (ASD) (White et al., 2009), and are a common priority for treatment in service delivery settings (e.g., clinics and schools; Ghaziuddin, 2002). However, the core symptoms and associated features of ASD present significant challenges to the assessment and treatment of comorbid specific fears. Further, there are currently few studies addressing the phenomenology of these comorbid fears in children with an ASD, including evaluation of associated behavior problems. Moreover, treatment requires special considerations due to functional limitations that already impede the children's quality of life. This symposium will focus on recent research efforts that have yielded promising new methods for assessment and treatment of specific fears in children with an ASD. Emphasis will be placed on assessment and clinical intervention in structured research and school-based settings. Examples will include an evaluation of the incremental clinical utility of multimodal assessment procedures and the relationships between individual characteristics of ASD, comorbid specific fears, and increased injury risk for the child with an ASD. Further, intervention considerations will be illustrated with three case examples in the context of an effective behavioral treatment package implemented in a school setting.

Intense fears and phobias have been reported in 31% - 64% of children with an autism spectrum disorder (ASD; Muris et al., 1998; Sukhodolsky et al., 2008). However, the phenomenology of fear in children with an ASD has been largely ignored in the behavioral literature. A common speculation that fear in children with an ASD may be related to the core symptoms of autism (Evans et al., 2005; Sukhodolsky et al., 2008), was investigated in this study using a novel, multimodal assessment procedure. In this study, parents of 32 children with an ASD completed the Pervasive Developmental Disorder Behavior Inventory (PDDBI; Cohen & Sudhalter, 2005) and a survey of their child's fears. These data were combined with results from a novel behavioral assessment procedure, which included systematic observations of children's responses to pictorial fear stimuli. Results indicated that social approach behaviors and receptive and expressive language abilities were positively correlated with overall levels of fear in children with an ASD. Results also indicated that medical fears were the most common fear type in this population. Implications and limitations will be discussed with emphasis on valid and reliable assessment techniques for children with an ASD.

Previous research has demonstrated that children with an autism spectrum disorder (ASD) experience more intense fears than both typically developing children and other developmentally delayed peers (Evans, et al., 2005; Matson & Love, 1990). Within the injury risk literature, fearful behavior has been suggested as a protective factor against risk-taking behavior in typically developing children (Morrongiello & Matheis, 2007). However, children with an ASD have been shown to engage in more risk-taking behaviors and sustain more severe injuries than typically developing peers (Lee, et al., 2008; McDermott, et al., 2008; Straub & Romanczyk, 2009). The purpose of this presentation is to present and review characteristics of children with an ASD, particularly expressive and receptive communication, which might explain the existing disparate findings regarding fear and injury in this population. Further, potential applications of these findings will be reviewed within the context of environmental stimulus control to increase child safety in home and school or residential service settings. Discussion will focus on challenges in the assessment of injury risk in children with an ASD and the utility of caregiver report in identifying potential risk factors as targets for intervention in applied service settings.

Children with autism spectrum disorders (ASD) may experience feelings of anxiety or fear in the school setting. Although the social and communication skill deficits associated with ASD make it difficult for many children to tact their feelings of anxiety or fear, the co-occurring extreme avoidant behaviors (e.g., hitting, screaming, or running away) and marked physiological arousal (e.g., increased heart rate, breathing, and sweat production) are indicative of such feelings. These avoidant behaviors can lead to disruption of the learning environment, peer rejection, and a decline in academic performance. Fortunately, they can be successfully treated by using a behavioral treatment package that includes systematic desensitization, shaping, differential reinforcement, social and coping skills training, and contingency management (Gillis et al., 2009; Jones & Friman, 1989; Tolin et al., 2009). Three cases involving specific fears the school setting will be presented including (1) school refusal in a 5-year-old with autism, (2) fear of fire alarms in a 7-year-old with autism, and (3) fear of bugs and peer ridicule in a 12-year-old with pervasive developmental disorder-not otherwise specified (PDD-NOS). Behavioral concerns, intervention strategies, and treatment efficacy will be discussed.

This symposium will demonstrate the efficacy of applied behavior analysis across the lifespan. The present data will demonstrate that though younger children with autism display vast improvements with applied behavioral treatments, participants that are in adolescence or adulthood can also show gains from our scientific approaches. A case study demonstrating the effective collaboration of key trans disciplinary team members in the treatment of a child with autism will be presented along with pertinent data related to the efficacy of this collaboration. A presentation will also be made related to enhancing the reliability of a frequently used assessment tool in autism, the Autism Diagnostic Observation Schedule (ADOS). Children and adolescents ages 5 to 15 were used as participants in this study. Preliminary data will also be presented on the use of the Verbal Behavior Milestones Assessment & Placement Program (VBMAPP) for adults with autism, demonstrating its efficacy in the assessment and curriculum development for this often underserved group.

The Verbal Behavior Milestones Assessment & Placement Program (VBMAPP) is a MULTI component assessment designed to provide a baseline measure of an individual's verbal skills and deficits based on B. F. Skinner's (1957) analysis of verbal behavior (Sundberg, 2009). In addition to providing a measure of the individuals current skill level, the assessment can be used to establish curricular goals and evaluate progress over the course of a treatment program. The five components of the assessment are the milestones assessment, the barriers assessment, the transition assessment, task analysis and skills tracking, and placement and individualized education program goals. The VBMAPP is typically used to assess the verbal behavior and social skills of children as they develop. Sundberg (2009) also states that the assessment can be used for adults with developmental delays. The present study will describe the use of the VBMAPP to evaluate adults with a primary diagnosis of an autism spectrum disorder. Some preliminary findings will be discussed along with some examples of how an effective treatment curriculum can be developed using this assessment device.

The ADOS (Autism Diagnostic Observation Schedule) is a diagnostic tool used in the assessment of autism spectrum disorders. Some clinical challenges have been noted by administrators of the test related to the interobserver reliability scores that are obtained after coding the schedule. A number of the items on the inventory involve the coding of observations that are somewhat subjective making inter-observer reliability an issue. The following project used four reliability observers, three ofwhich were trained in applied behavior analysis and one in occupational therapy. Observations of children's behavior were conducted using the existing guidelines for the administration of the ADOS assessment. A second condition was implemented whereby each of the areas of the test was modified to include operational definitions of each of the areas of observation. The results indicated enhanced inter-observer reliability scores as a result of utilizing operational definitions to code the schedule. Outcome data on the inter-observer reliability scores for the observers under both conditions will be reported as well as implications for future research.

Special education teams for children with significant behavioral challenges traditionally include teacher(s), paraprofessionals, therapists, and other supporting professionals. The current model of collaboration is often frustrating and inefficient due to incongruent professional vocabulary, competing service delivery models and lack of teamwork. This talk will focus on a private school experiencing these same difficulties that sought to make a change in the manner in which they addressed behavioral issues. Student ages ranged from 5-21 years at the school. The majority of them were supported through individualized education plans and behavior support plans. Separate treatment teams were in place that consisted of five to eight professionals. Most of the teams also included anapplied behavior analysisimplementer, speech therapist, occupational therapist, physical therapist, special education teacher, program supervisor (certified special educator or BCaBA), clinical director (BCBA), and program director. Considering the number of professionals involved on each student's educational team, a collaborative model is necessary in order to embrace a true transdiciplinary approach that will accelerate academic learning and behavioral progress. Some key outcomes in terms of student progress will be detailed along with representative data based upon the collaborative model that will be described. Data to be reviewed will include increased job satisfaction, greater understanding of programmatic goals, and improvements in goal development systems. All of these organizational targets will be detailed with the ultimate goal of successful, efficient programming for the student.

This symposium will feature four presentations on the application of behavior analysis within behavioral health and medicine. Specifically, obesity related problems will be addressed.

Recent research demonstrated that an exergaming class produced more physical activity than a typical physical education (PE) class among overweight elementary students (Fogel, Miltenberger, Graves, & Koehler, in press). This study is a replication with four normal weight elementary students with problem behaviors. We compared exergaming and PE in an alternating treatments design and showed that the children engaged in a greater percentage of physical activity during exergaming than during PE class. In addition, students had more opportunity for physical activity during exergaming than during PE. The occurrence of problem behavior did not differ between the two conditions, however, timeout was used numerous time during PE but was never used during exergaming, suggesting that serious problem behaviors were more likely to occur during PE than during exergaming. A further analysis of the eight exergaming stations showed which stations produced the greatest and least amount of physical activity.

Americans have daily access to (Hiza, Bente, & Fungwe, 2008) and are consuming more (Nielsen, Siega-Riz, & Popkin, 2002) total calories than ever before. Across age groups, more of these calories are coming from places outside of the home (Nielsen, Siega-Riz, & Popkin). This increase in calories could be a contributing factor to the obesity epidemic (Young & Nestle, 2002; Diliberti, Bordi, Conklin, Roe, & Rolls, 2004). Thus, developing interventions providing behavioral feedback regarding nutritional information in eating establishments outside the home (e.g., restaurants, cafeterias, and vending machines) may affect food choices (Bergen & Yeh, 2006). However, broad reviews of nutritional feedback literature conclude that the results are inconsistent across contexts (Seymore, Yaroch, Serdula, Blanck, & Khan, 2004). Additional feedback strategies, such as providing information regarding the amount of activity needed to burn off calories consumed (i.e., energy expenditure feedback), may affect food purchasing and eating behavior. The purpose of this study is to expand the nutritional feedback literature by analyzing how feedback, including nutritional information and energy expenditure, affects consumers' behavior. Results could be used to develop effective, inexpensive environmental interventions that reduce future weight gain.

Two therapy approaches were compared to evaluate outcomes of weight and psychometrics in obese females. In Experiment 1, acceptance and commitment therapy (ACT) and cognitive behavior therapy (CBT) were implemented in one-on-one 60 min sessions for 8 weeks. In Experiment 2, one day workshops were conducted using each therapy. To date, the obtained data suggest: a) weight problems are the outcome of other psychological conditions, b) ACT showed variability with psychometric results, and c) CBT results showed weight loss and maintenance in all participants. Implications for designing more effective weight loss treatments will be discussed.

Social and cultural problems are understood from the behavior analytic perspective to be consequences of environmental arrangements rather than of individual failure and hence responsibility. Remediating social problems requires accurate behavioral analyses of the target systems controlling conditions. This series of papers employs behavior theory to examine several culturally important and recalcitrant social problems, including violence, parenting skills, environmental sustainability, and unhealthy eating that leads to obesity. The authors demonstrate that effective intervention with cultural problems requires sophisticated knowledge of both behavior analysis and the multidisciplinary information relevant to the target social problem.

Addressing social challenges like violence, drop out from schools, and criminal youth gangs will require working not only with individuals but with the entire system to which the problems belong. Concepts like metacontingencies and macrobehavior are promising and contribute to the development and refinement of technical terms for approaching large scale behavior. Combined with a systems approach that accounts for both a system's internal interactions like communication structures and processes, and for the system's external interaction with the environment, behavior analysis can make progress across levels of systems complexity. In this paper I will present a model that shows how a behavioral systems approach may explain properties like function, processes and structures in a selectionist perspective.

Behavior analysts have called for colleagues in the field to further the promotion of caring behaviors. The current analysis examines the socioeconomic factors that contribute to caring and non-caring behaviors in family units and discusses the repercussions different parenting techniques have on children later in life. By reframing the child psychology literature on parenting skills in behavior analytic terms, we can see what behavior analysis can contribute to the betterment of American children. The present paper recommends several specific areas in which research can be conducted to further examine the impact new developments in behavioral psychology can have on the caring behaviors of family members.

With respect to global climate change, it is unlikely that the full effect of todays consumer behaviors will be observable in the lifetime of the individuals emitting them. This extreme delay to consequences for ecologically friendly behaviors precludes the shaping of pro-environmental action through direct contact with desired results. The behavior changes desired to preserve the environment involve reducing the purchase and consumption of goods and services that create harmful byproducts in their production, delivery, consumption or waste. We propose that small and large-scale change of these behaviors might be accomplished by using existing organizational structures that already influence consumer choice. To this end, we present examples of both large and small cooperatives that have successfully promoted greener consumer behavior, including data from a small-scale gardening coop in Reno, NV.

Recently, researchers have linked the availability and popularity of energy-dense fast-foods to an increasingly obesogenic environment. Such availability has led to both over-consumption and under-nourishment, especially in lower income neighborhoods that fail to offer healthier alternatives. As a result, food deserts, as they are described, play their part in both the increasing trend of obesity and the climbing costs associated with treating obesity-related disorders. In order to address this issue, food environments could be engineered by employing creative zoning in at-risk areas. Zoning allows municipalities to support developments that promote health, safety, and public welfare; in this context, zoning law could be utilized to support healthy, and more affordable, lifestyles. However, there is currently a lack of both empirical and public support for such an intervention on any scale. These issues could possibly be addressed through the utilization of convenient pilots, experimentation aimed at developing interventions that increase community buy-in, and implementation of smaller-scale designs prior to the planning of a larger-scale intervention. In doing so, a foundation may be built upon which the development of a legitimate, environmental design approach to targeting obesity may be possible.

Recent advances in variables affecting the maintenance of effects obtained in the treatment of severe problem behavior have focused on schedule-related variables impacting the resurgence of problem behavior and the persistence of appropriate and inappropriate behavior when treatment is implemented or treatment challenges are faced. In the current symposium, we present three studies that further evaluate these relationships. The first study evaluated the effects of variable-time (VT) reinforcers on the persistence of problem behavior during treatment and a potential solution to address the phenomenon. The second study evaluated the effects of fixed-time (FT) reinforcers on the resurgence of problem behavior observed during DRA-based treatments. The final study evaluated the effects of rate of reinforcement on the persistence of appropriate behavior when treatment was challenged. Collectively, these studies extend both our applied and basic understanding of response resurgence and persistence. The findings will be discussed relative to their implications for treatment of severe problem behavior and their relevance to extending current literature related to the topic.

The magnitude of treatment relapse has been shown to be greater when high rates of reinforcement are used to reduce problem behavior in both reinstatement and resurgence paradigms. The effect of added response-independent reinforcement on the relapse of problem behavior within an applied behavior analysis (ABA) renewal paradigm was evaluated. The participant was a 17 year male with severe learning disabilities who presented attention-maintained problem behavior. In two separate contexts two therapists provided contingent reinforcement on multiple VI 120-s schedules with additional VT 30-s reinforcer deliveries in one component. The same schedules were then repeated in a second context. The participant then remained in the second context and all behaviors were placed on extinction. The participant then returned to the first context and all behaviors were placed on extinction. Results indicated that problem behavior was more resistant to extinction with Therapist 2, i.e. in the schedule with the higher rate of reinforcement, and suggest that it may be possible to avoid ABA renewal by using lower rates of response-independent reinforcement than those commonly used in applied settings. Additional discussion of renewal models of treatment relapse will be presented.

Resurgence is the term used to describe the phenomenon in which the reemergence of a previously reinforced behavior occurs, after that behavior has been placed on extinction (not reinforced), and a subsequent behavior has been reinforced and subsequently placed on extinction. This phenomenon has been observed clinically, and, thus, understanding the conditions that influence its occurrence may be important for the successful treatment of problem behavior. Commonly used treatments to address problem behavior, including differential reinforcement of alternative behavior (DRA), typically include an extinction component. Identification of variables that lead to the persistence of appropriate responding and prevent resurgence of problem behavior may help to increase the efficacy of DRA. The current study found that fixed-time reinforcer delivery following DRA-based treatments maintained appropriate responding for all four participants, prevented resurgence of problem behavior with one participant, and reduced resurgence of problem behavior with three participants. Results will be discussed relative to their implications for designing effective treatments for problem behavior.

The current study examined relations between rate of reinforcement and the persistence of behavior maintained by negative reinforcement. We present data from one participant who had a history of disruptive behavior maintained by negative reinforcement in the form of escape from task demands. Disruptive behaviors were aggression (e.g., hitting, kicking) and destruction (e.g., tearing work activities). Interobserver agreement was calculated across 30% of all sessions and averaged above 90%. A functional analysis of disruptive behavior was conducted to identify escape from demands as a maintaining variable for disruptive behavior. We next introduced two unique stimuli (e.g., green or red work activities) correlated with different schedules of reinforcement. When presented with the stimulus correlated with the higher rate of reinforcement (i.e., green work activities), the participant received a break from work activities on both response dependent and response independent contingencies according to a variable interval and fixed time schedule of reinforcement. When presented with the stimulus associated with the lower rate of reinforcement (i.e., red work activities), the participant received breaks on response dependent contingencies according to the same variable interval schedule of reinforcement. Results suggest that rate of reinforcement influenced the persistence of behavior maintained by negative reinforcement.

In this symposium, we will present data from outpatient evaluations and application of these procedures to assess and treat severe behavior. Kelly Schieltz from The University of Iowa will present data on the evaluation of mild punishment on problem behavior maintained by positive reinforcement conducted in an outpatient clinic. Patricia Kurtz from the Kennedy Krieger Institute and Johns Hopkins University School of Medicine will provide a description of intensive services for individuals with severe behavior and case examples. Anjali Barretto from Gonzaga University will present data on the application of outpatient assessments to school settings. Following the presentations, Keith Allen from the University of Nebraska Medical Center will discuss the presentations.

A common behavioral concern for parents is their child's ability to play alone while the parent completes household tasks. The purpose of this study was to evaluate the effects of a mild punisher on problem behavior maintained by positive reinforcement. The participants were 2 typically developing children who engaged in problem behavior maintained by access to parental attention. All procedures were conducted within a 90 min evaluation in an outpatient clinic. Interobserver agreement was assessed for 48% of sessions and averaged 99%. During Phase 1, brief functional analyses of problem behavior were conducted within a multielement design and access to parental attention was identified as maintaining problem behavior for both participants. During Phase 2, different versions of punishment were conducted with each child. For Jude, access to parental attention was delayed contingent on problem behavior. Results showed that this procedure was effective at increasing appropriate behavior. For Sam, the amount of parental attention earned decreased contingent on problem behavior. This participant's results showed that this procedure was effective at increasing appropriate behavior. For both participants, results suggested two effective interventions for problem behavior maintained by positive reinforcement.

Individuals with intellectual/developmental disabilities who display severe behavior problems (i.e., self-injury, aggression, or property destruction) may require intensive services to develop effective behavioral treatments. The current investigation describes a hospital-based intensive outpatient program for individuals with severe problem behavior. Treatments were developed based on experimental functional analyses (Iwata et al., 1982) and were evaluated using direct observation procedures and single-case experimental designs. Reliability data were collected on a minimum of 33% of sessions for all participants and agreement coefficients were 80% or greater for all the target behaviors. The primary goals of this presentation are to describe the service delivery model, review the course of treatment (i.e., duration of service, target behaviors, percent reductions, number of clients served), and provide case examples. A complex case of a child with severe skin picking as well as aggressive and disruptive behaviors will be described. For this participant, function-based interventions consisted of sensory extinction + competing stimuli, and functional communication training. Skin picking and other problem behaviors were reduced to zero levels. The benefits and challenges of this alternative treatment model will be discussed.

Since the development of the functional analysis methodology by Iwata and colleagues in 1982, several research groups have adapted this assessment procedure to address various clinical needs. This investigation further extends the applications of the functional analysis methodology by conducting assessment and treatment procedures in a classroom and utilizing the classroom's daily schedule and activities to evaluate the functional analysis and treatment. All assessment and treatment sessions were conducted by the teacher in the classroom. Two independent observers achieved 90% agreement on over 33% of the sessions. Results showed that functional analyses resulted in identifying effective treatments for use in the classroom. Results will be discussed in terms of community-based assessment and intervention.

Three translational studies across multiple contexts will be discussed. The first study examined the generality of the matching law to communicative behavior during 20-min instant-messaging conversations for college students. On aggregate, data for all participants were moderately well described by the time allocation equation demonstrating the generality of the matching law to contemporary media. The second study examined the effects of delayed reinforcement on discrimination acquisition by children with developmental disabilities. The authors demonstrated that (a) unsignaled delays of up to 40 s lead to discrimination acquisition, (b) the availability of response options during the delay does not interfere with response acquisition, and (c) the number of responses targeted per session affects on the efficacy of delayed and immediate reinforcement. Finally, the third study examined covariation in response classes with typically developing preschool children when one class member is targeted for intervention using differential reinforcement of other behavior (DRO) while other members are left untreated using a laboratory model. In general, results indicated that DRO was effective in decreasing all response class members when only one member was targeted. However, in one case, DRO was not effective in reducing the untreated response.

Like Borrero et al. (2007), the current investigation examined the generality of the matching law to communicative behavior during 20-min instant-messaging (IM) conversations. Confederates provided statements of agreement according to independent variable-interval schedules, and "attending" was assessed for 12 college students using the generalized response-rate and time-allocation matching equations. On aggregate, data for all participants were moderately well described by the time allocation equation. These preliminary findings extend the generality of the matching law to contemporary media.

Basic studies have shown that delayed reinforcement can produce response acquisition and maintenance. However, fewer applied studies have isolated the effects of delayed reinforcement. There is some evidence that short, signaled delays to reinforcement produce correct identification of picture cards (Grindle & Remington, 2002). The purpose of the present study was to further investigate the effects of delayed reinforcement on discrimination acquisition by children with developmental disabilities. To do so, we examined (a) whether discriminations could be acquired when relatively longer, unsignaled delays to reinforcement were programmed, (b) whether the availability of alternative response options during the delay affected acquisition, (c) whether changing the number of responses targeted per session altered the efficacy of delayed reinforcement, and (d) whether responses could be acquired under immediate reinforcement when interreinforcement intervals were equated across delayed and immediate reinforcement conditions. To date, we have found: (a) unsignaled delays of up to 40 s lead to discrimination acquisition, (b) the availability of response options during the delay does not interfere with response acquisition, and (c) the number of responses targeted per session affects on the efficacy of delayed and immediate reinforcement. These findings suggest that unsignaled delays to reinforcement produce acquisition under certain conditions.

Research on response classes (i.e., all forms of behavior that are maintained by the same consequence) has applied significance because less severe forms of problem behavior have been found to co-occur with other, more severe forms. In addition, the most severe forms are often targeted for intervention without monitoring other less severe forms. Past research has demonstrated that the probability of untreated response class members may change (i.e., response covariation) following treatment in individuals with developmental disabilities. Recently, Shabani, Carr, and Petursdottir (2009), developed a laboratory model to investigate the covariation of response class members. The purpose of this study is to replicate and extend Shabani et al. to assess covariation in response classes with typically developing preschool children when one class member is targeted for intervention using differential reinforcement of other behavior (DRO) while other members are left untreated. In general, results indicated that DRO was effective in decreasing all response class members when only one member was targeted. However, in one case, DRO was not effective in reducing the untreated response. Understanding such complexities of response classes and covariation may aid clinicians in developing more effective and efficient treatments.

Discounting is a research paradigm guided by behavioral theories of impulsive choice and researchers have witnessed a seemingly exponential increase in the number of scientific articles published each year in the area of delay discounting (Madden & Bickel, 2010, p. 3). Discounting phenomena are associated with a variety of social health phenomena (e.g., substance abuse) characterized by impulsive choice patterns. However, the vast majority of human discounting research studies have used monetary outcomes to index impulsive choice patterns, in spite of the fact that most social health problems associated with impulse-control problems (e.g., obesity, sexual risk-taking) involve decisions for non-monetary outcomes. This symposium comprises three research studies that examine discounting for non-monetary, hedonic outcomes associated with important social health phenomena. Each of these studies represent an important advance in the empirical study of discounting-related phenomena and each highlights the importance of focusing on the nature of the stimuli used in discounting research with human participants. All three presenters (Drs. Lawyer, Holt, and Johnson) have published extensively in the discounting literature and the Discussant (Dr. Leonard Green) is one of the most important voices in the laboratory study of discounting in humans. This symposium highlights the importance of translational research for bridging basic laboratory-behavioral research and real-world social health phenomena.

Discounting is a behavioral measure of impulsive choice. A growing literature shows that individual patterns of discounting delayed and probabilistic outcomes are associated with a variety of social health outcomes, including alcohol, drug use and obesity. However, the vast majority of discounting studies to date have used monetary outcomes to predict a range of health problem behaviors associated with impulsive decisions for decidedly non-monetary outcomes (e.g., alcohol, sex). The underlying assumption in such studies is that discounting for one outcome will serve as a reasonable proxy for other outcomes is consistent with traditional notions of impulsivity as a trait (McCrae & Costa, 1995), but less so with the behavioral notion of impulsivity as behavior patterns fundamentally tied to context (e.g., Skinner, 1953). In this study, undergraduate students (n = 86) completed delay and probability discounting tasks for both hypothetical money and hypothetical sexual activity. Individual rates of discounting were estimated using area under the curve and then were correlated with self-report measures of sexuality-related outcomes. Results indicated that discounting for sexual activity, but not money, was significantly correlated with approach-related sexuality constructs. These findings highlight the importance of stimulus specificity in discounting research.

As the delay to an outcome increases, the subjective value of the outcome decreases. This phenomenon has been termed temporal discounting. Researchers have examined how individuals temporally discount various outcomes, including consumable and non-consumable outcomes (e.g., Estle, Green, Myerson, & Holt, 2007). Results suggest that individuals discount non-consumable outcomes (money) less steeply than immediately consumable outcomes (candy, soda, drugs, etc.). Charlton and Fantino (2008) suggest the difference may be due to specific characteristics of the items, one being the characteristic of a metabolic function. Other characteristics, such as the perishability and the fungibility of the item, may also affect the rate of discounting. Our results demonstrate that outcome types that are not directly consumed (Visa gift card, grocery gift card, and pizza certificates) are discounted at a lower rate than the equivalent item (cash, candy bars, and pizza slices). Furthermore, items that have a direct metabolic function (candy bars and pizza slices) were discounted at a higher rate than the equivalent gift card or certificate.

Cocaine dependent individuals show high rates of sexual risk behavior and HIV infection. A study in 38 cocaine dependent volunteers examined if the discounting of delayed sex was relevant to this risk behavior. Volunteers completed a sexual discounting task and a money discounting task, and were tested for HIV. Participants completed the sexual discounting task in reference to 4 photographed individuals, i.e., the person: (a) he/she most wants to have sex with, (b) he/she least wants to have sex with, (c) most likely to have an STD, (d) least likely to have an STD. Participants rated their likelihood of using a condom when available at several delays with an alternative of immediate unprotected sex. Participants showed significantly greater discounting (preference for immediate unprotected sex) for the individual with whom he/she most (compared to least) wanted to have sex. Participants showed significantly greater discounting for the individual least (compared to most) likely to have an STD. Money discounting was generally correlated with sexual discounting. The 5 HIV positive (compared to 33 negative) volunteers showed greater individual variability across sexual discounting conditions. These data suggest that discounting of sexual rewards is associated with clinically meaningful effects, and may contribute to HIV risk.

Reinforcers have long been thought to increase the probability of responses that they follow, but some recent research has suggested that they may act more as signals for future contingencies. This symposium presents three experiments that investigate the degree to which reinforcers can act as effective signals for contingencies that change over time after reinforcers. Re-conceptualizing the nature of reinforcement may profoundly change the nature of behaviour analysis and allow a reconciliation with associative conditioning.

Pigeons worked on concurrent arithmetic schedules in which one food delivery was arranged during the 60 s following the last food delivery. The probability of the next food being available on the left key changed sinusoidally as a function of time since food. The range of left reinforcer probabilities across the sinusoid was .91 to .09 in all conditions. In Part 1 (Conditions 1 to 4), the variations in reinforcer probabilities were unsignaled. Condition 1 was a 2-cycle sinusoid, and Condition 2 was a reversal of this sinusoid. Condition 3 arranged a 1-cycle sinusoid, and Condition 4 a half-cycle sinusoid. We found that sinusoidal control of choice increased as the cycle length was decreased, and control of choice by local food ratios was greatest just after food delivery. Subsequently, choice came under extended control of the overall reinforcer ratio at a point that was related to the number of cycles arranged. Local choice affected obtained reinforcer probabilities dynamically. In Part 2 (Conditions 5 to 9), a change in key-colour signaled particular portions of the sinusoids to examine whether a stimulus change can reinstate local control by food probability.

We trained six pigeons on concurrent variable-interval schedules in which the relative frequency of food on the 2 alternatives reversed at fixed times after food delivery. Across conditions, the point of reversal was varied from 10 s to 30 s with the overall VI schedule ranging from VI 15 s to VI 45 s. Control by reinforcer ratios over choice was strongest immediately after the delivery of food, and decreased thereafter. We found that the degree of control of the obtained food ratios over choice both before and after the reversal was decreased when the reversal occurred longer after food. There was little effect of the food rate on the VI schedule on control over choice. Obtained food ratios were also affected by choice immediately after food delivery, indicating that the behaviour and food ratios were part of a dynamical system. Thus, the effects of reinforcers on subsequent behavior depend strongly on where and when reinforcers signal further reinforcers.

Following each food delivery, a fixed-interval schedule was arranged on the left key with a probability p(L), or an exponential VI 30-s schedule was arranged on the right key with the complementary probability. In Part 1, the FI schedule value was varied from 5 to 50 s, and in Part 2, the FI was 20 s and the value of p(L) was varied from .1 to .9. In both parts, pigeons choice shifted to the left key considerably before the FI schedule had timed, but peaked very close to the FI-schedule value. In Part 2, p(L) controlled both overall choice and the accuracy of the FI timing. We present a model in which obtained foods on the left and right keys are smeared across times since food according to a normal distribution. This model described the obtained data well.

In the three-term contingency, the stimulus (S-dee) controls emission of a response whereas the absence of the stimulus (S-delta) controls cessation of the response. In several experiments with rats using food reinforcement, novel responses were introduced several times to the same S-dee. In each case, the rats had to relearn the discrimination. The results show that an S-delta is not a stimulus that represents or signals absence of reinforcement; S-delta control did not generalize to a novel response. Instead, the rats had to learn for each response that the response was not reinforced in the S-delta. The research is ongoing and shows that with continued presentation of novel responses in S-dee, the extinction of responses in S-delta is faster and faster. Eventually, a situation will arise where acquisition of S-dee control of a novel response is nearly errorless. This is a data-driven presentation. The attached graph illustrates the appearance of extinction responses for the first three sessions of each introduction of a novel response in S-dee (at least 10 sessions were scheduled for each novel response). Novel responses are listed at the top of the chart. Extinction responses appear for each novel response and there is a gradual reduction of extinction responses in S-delta across novel responses for both rats.

Kyonka and Grace (2007) showed that temporal control can be rapidly acquired when terminal-link delays varied pseudorandomly across sessions. In the present experiment, four pigeons responded in a multiple peak-interval (PI) procedure. The goal was to compare within-session acquisition of temporal control, measured using start and stop times on no-food trials that were interspersed within a session. Time to food on food trials of the two schedules summed to 30 seconds each session in the "correlated" condition but not in the "uncorrelated" condition, and varied pseudorandomly across sessions. Across all conditions, stop times stabilized within the first third of a session. Stop times for two birds showed increased sensitivity to intervals in the uncorrelated condition after exposure to the correlated condition and stop times for the other two birds showed no difference in sensitivity across conditions. Precision of the stop times increased within-session and from the first uncorrelated condition to the correlated and second uncorrelated condition, suggesting that correlated interval values facilitated the acquisition of temporal control in the uncorrelated condition.

The purpose of the present research was to develop a preparation that could be used to examine the bipolar properties of behavior controlled by fixed-temporal intervals. Since little or no responding occurs at the beginning of fixed-temporally based schedules, the examination of the "negative going" behavior is problematic. Forty-seven pigeons were exposed to a clocked fixed-time CFT schedule embedded within a variable-interval schedule (i.e., concomitant VI-CFT). Responding under three different CFT durations was examined with each of four different VI durations. The addition of the VI schedule increased the response rate throughout the CFT schedule. The pattern of responding in fixed-temporal intervals is traditionally attributed to poor stimulus control; however, the current data suggest that the low rates of responding at the beginning of the CFT schedule cannot be attributed to an absence of control but rather are the result of the active suppression of responding.

Previous literature on post-reinforcement pausing (PRP) utilized fixed-ratio and fixed-interval schedules. The general consensus from those studies is that the PRP is a pre-ratio or pre-interval effect observed only in fixed schedules (aka, predictive schedules). The use of the term 'post-reinforcement' is only descriptive of the temporal location of the pause. The present research utilized a variable ratio schedule with a response counter to disentangle the post- and pre- sources of pausing. This is the first demonstration of linearly increasing pausing in variable ratio schedules. As indicated, the variable ratio schedule contained a response counter each response to a computer touch screen drove a small dot-stimulus across the computer monitor to one of 80 randomly selected positions. In three different experiments, the terminal location of the dot was either signaled or unsignaled. In the last experiment, the previous workload was signaled. The data confirm that PRPs occur only when the upcoming ratio value is well-predicted. Signaling the previous workload had no effect. The PRP is a pre-ratio effect, when the ratio value is well predicted. Descriptively, the PRP does occur, generally, after a reinforcer has been terminated.

Narrative language is a sophisticated type of language that has strong associations with academic skills and social competence. Story Champs was designed to teach children the structure of fictional and personal stories and provide a context for targeting complex language features such as subordination and elaborated noun phrases. Principles of behavior and of effective instruction form the basis of this program. For example, active responding is built into every step of the procedures; systematic prompting, shaping, and prompt fading are also embedded in the program, and the program makes use of activities enjoyed by most children (e.g. storytelling). The flexible procedures allow for implementation at several levels: large group, small group, and individual. The smaller, focused intervention provides a context for differentiation and individualization, whereas the large group intervention allows for efficient and cost effective narrative instruction. In this symposium, we will present three different applications of narrative language interventionlarge group of at-risk preschoolers, written stories of typical first graders, and individualized procedures for children with autism. The third paper has only one of the three participants completed, but the results are positive. Data from the other two participants will be completed soon and presented at the conference.

Children use narrative language (storytelling) to socialize with peers and report to adults about their school day. Narrative language is also closely associated with literacy and academic outcomes. Many behavioral educators provide language intervention to children with language delays and few procedures for improving storytelling have sufficient research support. In this study, a pre/posttest, control group design was employed to investigate the effects of Story Champs, a narrative language program, on preschoolers' language performance. Story Champs was delivered in two Head Start preschool classrooms with approximately 20 children at a time. Twelve sessions of intervention were delivered, each lasting approximately 15-20 minutes. The critical instructional components include group responding, visual prompting, prompt fading, and peer-monitored independent practice. Children's language skills were assessed in the context of story retells and answering comprehension questions. As a measure of generalization, children told personal stories. Differences between groups at posttest were statistically significant for both story retells and story comprehension. Results indicate that Story Champs enhanced children's narrative language skills. In addition, the size of the group and the few, brief sessions delivered suggests that Story Champs is an efficient and cost effective intervention for improving narrative language.

Children typically produce oral stories with causally and temporally-related components such as an initiating event, an attempt, and a consequence. These components form the basis of stories and other features such as information about the character and setting, dialogue, feelings, and modifiers enhance the quality of stories. Children tend to produce oral stories with these structures naturally; however, these features do not always appear in young children's writing without explicit instruction. Behavioral educators may be called on to teach story writing to elementary aged children with or without disabilities. This study investigated the effect of Story Champs, a small group oral language program, on children's written stories. Story Champs was delivered by the classroom teacher in six 10-15 minute instructional sessions to groups of four children. The procedures involved repeated modeling, retelling, and story generation using pictures and icons to support children's productions. The teacher modeled a pre-scripted, relatable story, and then guided the group and individuals to retell the story and then to generate their own oral story. A multiple-baseline design was employed across seven first grade students. Results indicate that the oral language program increased the number of important story components children included in their written stories.

Children who have autism nearly always present with language impairment, including difficulty producing certain aspects of narration. Many behavior analysts work to improve this type of language in children with autism. Language intervention that focuses on improving narrative ability has been effective with preschool and school-age children with language impairment, however, there is currently little research examining the effects of narrative intervention on the language production of school-age children with autism. Using a multiple-baseline design across behaviors and participants, this study investigated the effects of narrative intervention on specific aspects of story structure and language complexity of narrative retellings and personal story generations produced bythree children with autism. The narrative intervention program, Story Champs, involved repeated modeling, retelling, and story generation using simple drawings, icons, and clinician prompts to support narrative productions. Following staggered baseline phases, each participant received 12, 30-min individual narrative intervention sessions. Repeated elicitations of participants' narratives were analyzed for several narrative features including causal subordination, temporal subordination, elaborated noun phrases, and story structure. Results indicate that there were meaningful changes in both story structure and language complexity.

Educators who specialize instruction behaviorally must move beyond "just talk" about verbal behavior to evaluating the real behavior of interest-desired changes in student and teacher verbal behavior. The purpose of this session is to discuss findings on effective educational interventions to improve verbal behavior instruction for students and to improve the verbal mediation of instructors. One study analyzed variables related to student verbal behavior. Student verbal behavior was investigated in a systematic replication and extension of Hugh-Pennie, 2006, which tested the auditory consequences that controlled non-contextual repetitive speech (i.e. delayed echolalia/ palilalia); results were further analyzed to test if stimulus control would transfer from the individual to a verbal audience. In two studies of the verbal mediation of instructors, authors tested the effects of data decision analysis review meetings, and the effects of video modeling and self-observations to develop teacher-training protocols. Findings from the video self-observation study reach beyond the original Teacher Performance rate and Accuracy (TPRA) form developed by Ingham and Greer, 1992. The study of Data Analysis Review (DAR) meetings found that DAR meetings improved teacher verbal behavior and rate of effective instruction in the classroom, which was measured by teacher correct tacts of data decision opportunities, correct and incorrect teaching strategies provided, and overall number of instructional units to criterion.

This study was a systematic replication of Hugh-Pennie, 2006 which tested the effects of auditory stimulation on non-contextual repetitive speech/palilalia of children with autism spectrum disorder and other disabilities. The study is relevant to further determining underlying causes of non-contextual repetitive speech and developing teaching procedures to develop socially appropriate and functional verbal behavior for children who emit palilalia. The effects of auditory consequences were tested on four school-aged children; two male and two female, in a publicly funded private school in New York. The students ranged in ages from 5-10. The students were all diagnosed as children with autism spectrum disorder. All of the students' emitted non-contextual repetitive speech (i.e. delayed echolalia or palilalia). Baseline data was taken on the number of mands, tacts, intraverbals, vocal stereotypy, and palilalia emitted during 10 minute 1:1, group, and play sessions. The results will help to determine if non-contextual repetitive speech can be shaped into socially appropriate vocalizations through the use of auditory consequences, such as: music, the students own voice, and novel-stimuli. Finally, the original study found a transfer of stimulus control from self to a verbal audience. A further investigation of this transfer will be discussed. Data collection is ongoing

This study is a systematic replication of the effects of direct and observed supervisor learn units on teachers scientific tacts and instructional strategies (Nuzullo, 2002). This study tested the effects of weekly data analysis review meetings on the rate of effective instructional decisions made by teachers. The study took place on two campuses of a publicly funded private school in New York. The subjects of this experiment were teachers with experience ranging from 0-8 years. The students were children diagnosed with autism spectrum disorder or other disability. Baseline data was taken on the number of correct and incorrect data decisions made by teachers through an analysis of students individualized educational program graphs. Additionally, data were taken on correct and incorrect tacts of data decision opportunities, and correct and incorrect teaching strategies chosen. A data analysis review form was used by school supervisors and administrators to determine correct and incorrect data decisions. The interventions used by teachers were determined to be effective if the student met criterion in the subsequent phase. Additionally, if the intervention matched up to the error in the three-term contingency it was considered as a correct teaching strategy. Data collection is ongoing.

Previous research (Doll, Covington, Rosenfeld, & Cerrone, 2009; Doll, Covington, Sgueglia, & Logozio, 2010) has identified that a subset of teaching staff do not respond to repeated observation-and-feedback cycles with a modified Teacher Performance Rate/Accuracy (TPRA) form fashioned after Ingham & Greer, 1992. In the 2009 and 2010 studies, those teachers who continued to commit instructional errors subsequently improved when they were taught how to use the modified TPRA form and then used this form in order to self-score their own teaching behavior from video samples. Teaching accuracy improved and instructional rate also improved; accuracy was a treated variable, while rate was an untreated variable. The present study seeks to replicate results from the 2009 and 2010 studies; and to evaluate whether training and video self-observation applied prescriptively for new staff improve staff performance compared to other new staff on a wait-list and compared to returning staff who do not receive the intervention. Data collection is ongoing.

This seven year study analyzed the effectiveness and sustainability of a method for teaching teachers to use behavior analytic problem solving when confronted by students with behavioral problems. The teaching method used a scripted agenda for teacher-run pre-referral meetings. The scripted agenda was read out loud by the initiating teacher to prompt other teachers to complete 15 problem solving steps often used by behavior analytic consultants. They included defining the problem behaviorally, observing and graphing the behavior prior to treatment, assessing function, selecting an intervention, and, finally, planning the delivery and evaluation of the intervention. Prior to implementation of the scripted agenda, pre-referral meetings completed only 13% of these steps. After implementation of the scripted agenda, meetings completed 80%. This decreased to 50% with a downward trend without the scripted agenda and increased to 80% with the agenda. A seven year follow-up found that teachers implemented 80% of the steps in spite of 70% turnover of school staff and a new principal who demanded a return to the usual consultant model. Supplementary data showed an increase in homework completion and a decrease in disciplinary referrals. Implications for the application of single-subject experimental analysis to program sustainability are discussed.

The purpose of this study is to examine the effect of teaching educational and residential professionals to teach and promote specific functional equivalent behaviors to replace the problematic behaviors of adolescents in a residential facility for juveniles with significant behavior support needs. In addition, staff who worked in three different contexts of the program (two separate classrooms and the residential setting) were provided written scripts on how to respond to both student minor and major problem behaviors as well as desired behavior. Scripts emphasized the correct use of individualized, specific and contingent praise statements for desired behavior, instructional re-direction for minor problem behavior, and effective responding to major problem behavior (those that met program criteria for dangerous and harmful to self and others). These strategies minimized time of student state of escalation, while maintaining safety of student and staff and avoiding the use of physical restraints. Data on time for training staff, as well as fidelity of intervention are provided as is interobserver agreement for greater than 30% of all observation sessions. Student minor and major problem behavior, student use of specific replacement behavior and total time of student engagement in assigned activity is reported across a multiple baseline design across contexts (two classrooms and residential part of program).

Training programs often provide employees with a set of rules to follow in performing their job functions. Training programs, including teacher education programs, typically teach the trainee to identify certain conditions, and then state the rule about how to respond in that situation. With skills that are frequently practiced, the behavior eventually comes under control of the natural contingencies in the environment, and rule-governance fades out. That is, newly acquired behaviors may not come into contact with the natural contingencies frequently enough to fine-tune or maintain these behaviors. Preservice teachers, thus, may construct specific rules, which specify the contingencies of their teaching behaviors, when the natural consequences are too infrequent to maintain such behaviors. While many teaching behaviors are shaped by day-to-day interaction with students and faculty, others only occur every so often, and therefore must be maintained by rules. One example of the latter is developing individualized education programs for students with disabilities. This study is built on the theory of rule-governed behavior as a means of professional development, and seeks to uncover the rules developed by each participant to manage his or her own behavior.

Behavioral safety is a well-established workplace safety methodology generally well understood and clearly defined. Safety culture remains a more nebulous concept often used to describe a wide range of attributes for organizational culture related to the expression of workplace safety. Although the concepts of behavioral safety and safety culture are often considered to have similar derivations; however, their actual origins and modus operandi are very different. This session will discuss the fundamental aspects of both behavioral safety and safety culture. The specifics for each methodology will be outlined and described from the results of published literature and from a discussion of the application in industry for each approach. A comparison and contrast of the points of intersection will be explored for a means of harmonizing the use of both approaches. Finally, the session will express how an optimized system for ensuring that individual behavior and organizational behavior align with the desired safety culture paradigm can be created and reinforced by the systems of the workplace. This formalized protocol for reinforcing both organizational individual behaviors within the same operational paradigm to achieve safety excellence represents a profound foundational shift in the management of risk and the functioning of workplace safety protocols.

The field of behavioral safety and behavior-based safety is well known and well established. Subject matter experts and renowned researchers such as Aubrey Daniels, E. Scott Geller, and Terry McSween are household names. However, the vast majority of research and publications have consistently reviewed what MUST be done in order to accomplish Behavioral Safety the right way. Very few formal attempts have ever been undertaken to identify those characteristics, conditions, or actions that can cause behavior based safety processes to fail. A frank and honest discussion of these items is long overdue. This session will outline the key performance indicators that suggest a behavioral safety implementation will be unsuccessful. An in-depth review of numerous behavioral safety process initiations and a comprehensive literature search serve as the source for the information. The commonalities of characteristics that inhibit success with a behavioral approach to safety include lack of management support, lack of organizational maturity, and increasing complexity of non-specific workplace systems. The role and function of each of these topics will be discussed and the formula for success will be presented in terms of the optimal strategy needed to avoid failure.

The current study examines the effectiveness of various levels of training on the safe operation of two watercrafts commonly used by novice operators (kayak and boat). A multiple baseline experimental design across participants was utilized to measure changes in safe behavior and correct steps completed during baseline (no instruction), followed by the implementation of two interventions expected to increase a user's ability to operate the crafts independently. Subsequent phases included providing participants with the owner's manual provided by the manufacturer of the watercraft at time of purchase, followed by a comprehensive behavioral skills training approach to safe operation including written instruction, modeling by a skilled operator, immediate feedback during practice, and reinforcement for safe and correct operation by participants. Results suggest that the safe and correct operation of such watercrafts is most impacted using a behavioral approach to training compared to the limited effectiveness of providing an owner's manual to unskilled operators. Implications for implementation with the general public will be discussed.

A case study describing the implementation of a behavior-based safety process with a client in a manufacturing environment will be presented. Steps leading up to the implementation and continuing three years afterwards will be described. The critical role of the internal champion throughout implementation and maintenance phases will also be discussed. From launch (February 2008) to October of 2010, the rolling 12-month average loss time accident rate and rate of recordable incidents decreased from 1.0 to 0.0, and from 8.0 to 1.0, respectively. Participation by hourly employees, defined as conducting daily observations, was also measured, and has increased from approximately 25% at launch to over 95% at present. Key behaviors of the champion and plant leadership will be discussed with respect to frontline participation and sustainability of the process.

York Central Hospital Behaviour Management Services of York and Simcoe employs a mediator model in the delivery of behavioural interventions for individuals with developmental disabilities. In this model parents and/or care providers are involved with the assessment of the behaviour and are provided with clinical recommendations that they are to carry out on a day to day basis with feedback and monitoring provided by the behaviour consultant or therapist. Moderate to high levels of treatment integrity are considered essential if a treatment plan is to be effective. Implementation of behavioural interventions in natural settings may be challenging due to a variety of variables including: subject variables, such as parent stress and psychopathology; behavioural consultant and client characteristics; environmental variables, such as staff to client ratio, and treatment characteristics, such as the complexity of the intervention. The following symposium will demonstrate some of the barriers faced by day program staff, families and group home staff that make adherence to behavioural recommendations challenging. Strategies to help care providers manage and decrease difficult behaviours despite challenges surrounding the implementation of recommendation in natural settings will be provided.

Response interruption and redirection (RIRD) has been an effective method used to decrease vocal stereotypy maintained by automatic reinforcement in individuals with developmental disabilities. RIRD can be difficult to implement, as it is important that each occurrence of the behaviour is blocked. A mediator model was utilized in the development and implementation of an intervention package used to decrease the vocal stereotypy of a woman with a developmental delay in a day program setting. Due to environmental factors within the day program, adherence to a RIRD intervention was difficult. This presentation will focus on the development of the intervention package; the challenges the staff at the day program faced in implementing the behavioural strategies; and the steps that were taken to over come these challenges to provide the best possible intervention for this individual.

The mediator model has shown to be successful with the majority of individuals served through York Central Hospital Behaviour Management Services of York and Simcoe. However, there are numerous barriers that may make adherence to behavioural recommendations difficult for some families. Each family's situation must be considered when developing a plan to help decrease problem behaviour. This will be illustrated through the service provided to a 15-year-old young man with autism. He exhibited severe aggression and self-injurious behaviour (SIB) maintained by escape and attention. Due to the intensity of this behaviour, safety concerns and the level of stress in the home, his family was unable to implement empirically based strategies to decrease aggression and SIB. This presentation will focus on the preventative , skills development and intervention strategies that were developed; the challenges that were faced in implementing the strategies and the steps that were taken to overcome these challenges to provide the best possible service for this individual.

A mediator model is a service delivery model in which a consultant (behaviour therapist) and mediators (parents, group home staff, teachers) work together to solve behaviour problems presented by a client. A mediator model has its limits and relies mostly on group home staff, parents and or teachers to implement the treatment programs. Ensuring treatment recommendations are being implemented correctly is often more difficult than the initial treatment development. A case study using a very complex young woman who is deaf, has Cornelia de Lange Syndrome and many aberrant behaviours will illustrate how a mediator model made a difference in reducing problem behaviours and at the same time increasing proper implementation of treatment recommendations.

This symposium will bring together leaders in our field who will discuss the latest ethical and professional challenges to behavior analysis. These challenges are often based in the fact that practitioners are the most public face and fastest growing segment of behavior analysis. A 2008 survey indicated that almost 50% of the practitioners had less than 5 years of professional experience. Challenges for behavior analysts related to supervision, informed consent, referrals, and working within one's scope of practice will be discussed as well as issues related to training practitioners so that they receive the necessary theory in behavior analysis as well as meet practice standards. Financial contingencies that affect the implementation of services can also result in questions in ethical, professional behavior. Finally, lessons that can be learned for those who misrepresent research and interventions and for those whose work is misrepresented will be addressed.

Practitioners are the most public face and fastest growing segment of our field. A 2008 survey indicated that almost 50% of the practitioners had less than 5 years of professional experience. Only a minority of those responding reported that they held professional licenses or credentials in other disciplines governed by separate established legal or ethical standards. Challenges for behavior analysts related to supervision, informed consent, recruitment of clients, and working within one's scope of practice will be illustrated through case example. In addition, complexities including competing contingencies (e.g., levels of tx supported by research vs. available funding) will be explored along with suggestions for ways to avoid or address such problems at both the individual practitioner and systemic level.

The author will provide a description of concerns regarding the training of ethical behavior for individuals going into both practice and academia. How one promotes ethical behavior across all types of trainees will be addressed.

In 2007, Morton Ann Gernsbacher gave invited lectures at the University of Kansas titled, "The Science of Autism: Beyond the Myths and Misconceptions," that misrepresented applied behavior analysis in autism. In 2009, Edward K. Morris published a response to her lecture titled, "A Case Study in the Misrepresentation of Applied Behavior Analysis in Autism: The Gernsbacher Lectures." This presentation uses Gernsbacher's lecture and Morris's correspondence with her and her colleagues about it as case studies in (a) the ethics of representing and misrepresenting intervention research and (b) professional conduct in responding to any such misrepresentations. The ethical issues concerning Gernsbacher's lecture lie in the areas of competence, public statements, teaching, and conflicts of interest. The professional issues concerning Morris's response and correspondence lie in the areas copyright, misrepresenting misrepresentations, disingenuousness, and personal attributions. The presentation concludes with lessons for those who misrepresent research and interventions and for those whose work is misrepresented.

The values that guided the development of applied behavior analysis emerged from the science of behavior. Our founders expressed those values in the seminal paper, "Some Current Dimensions of Applied Behavior Analysis" (Baer, Wolf & Risley, 1968). They envisioned a field that was applied, behavioral, analytic, technological, embodying conceptual systems, effective, and generalizable. They specifically did not include "profitable" as I do not believe they could imagine a day behavior analysis would emerge as a profession powered by competitive markets with all the attendant legal and ethical issues we see in other business ventures. In this presentation I will address the clash of two cultures: capitalism and behavior analysis and outline what I see as some specific problematic issues for our profession.

As behavior analysis has grown as a field, professional standards have been keenly examined and debated. The value of empirical evidence in the field has contributed to our ability to track, analyze, and be informed by changes in the field. The current research presents commonalities in professional training programs at the undergraduate and graduate levels. In addition, their relation to standards for certification in behavior analysis and gold standard treatments in applied settings will be examined.

Cooperative contingencies have been shown to have a positive effect on performance. One explicit cooperative contingency of interteaching includes quality points, designed to enhance student's in-class discussions, as well as their learning. To date, most interteaching studies have found the quality points contingency to not have a positive effect on exam scores, possibly due to the often delayed delivery of quality points. Therefore, the present study was intended to further examine the quality points component of interteaching by enhancing the immediacy of the delivery of quality points. The first method included the distribution of tickets to students for engaging in quality discussions; the tickets were then entered in a drawing for a chance to win quality points. The second method involved the administration of a brief post-discussion quiz to students. Feedback on quiz performance was available immediately after completion of the post-discussion quiz. Both methods of providing quality points were alternated between successive classes and compared to exam scores. Preliminary findings indicate that the post-discussion quiz method of delevering quality points resulted in higher exam scores. In addition, preliminary social validity findings indicate the majority of students report higher preference for the post discussion quiz method of delivering quality points.

The natural sciences, biology, chemistry, physics, and mathematics, are arguably the home of behaviorism, yet ABA practice and education today reflects little of this heritage, nor of the ongoing explosion of knowledge in neuroscience. Many tenets of applied behavior analysis (ABA) can be found, and even better understood, thru their analogous principles in some of these other "natural sciences." Terms like reinFORCEment and behavioral MOMENTUM can sometimes be more easily understood in light of their context in other disciplines. Concepts in chemistry, physics, biology, and mathematics will be discussed and utilized by participants until they not only understood and no longer feared, but are readily incorporated into the participant's armamentarium. The session will also review some of the newer findings in neuroscience most relevant to the daily practice of ABA.

During the last decade, metacontingencies and cultural practices have been studied by a group of behavior analysts in Brasilia, Brazil, at the Universidade de Brasilia and the Instituto de Educacao Superior de Brasilia. These studies have included analysis from laboratory work to analysis in the natural environment and covered topics such as family interactions, media role, mathematic games, laws and public policies, labor organization, and transit behavior. In this symposium some of these studies will be presented as well as their contributions to further development of the metacontingency concept and its role for the understanding, planning and maintenance of cultural practices.

Recurrent interlocked behavioral contingencies which result in an aggregate product selected by a cultural environment are easy to find in the natural environment. It is also easy to find the description of metacontingencies in laws. This work presents analyses of legal texts and the kind of control exerted by them in natural situations, of how interaction with the selecting cultural environment transformed a labor cooperative in a small business administrative structure, and a real life large scale modification of a cultural practice-the case of the crosswalk in the streets of Brasilia, Brazil.

The concept of metacontingency has leveraged the studies about cultural practices as well as the (re)discussion of the concept of culture within the realm of behavior analysis. At the University of Brasilia, Brazil, two sets of research efforts have been developed in the last few years: (a) family evolution, formulation of public policies, and the role of the media on the family and on politics; (b) planning of micro societies in the laboratory using verbal behavior and mathematic games as analytical tools. One example of each set will be presented as well as their contribution to the development of methodologies to further enhance the concept of metcontingency and its role for the understanding, planning and maintenance of cultural practices.

In four games of iterated prisoners' dilemma game (INPDG), four people each independently chose a green or red card. Green always produced the best outcome for individuals if all the others chose red and the worst outcome if all chose green. All choosing red optimized points for everybody. In no case did all choose red in the first baseline (20 trials). Metacontingencies were added (cultural consequences for combinations of choices) and manipulated across the next 2 conditions, selecting for at least three red or at least three green choices. Verbal behavior was allowed in only 2 groups in all the sessions, and the choices in these groups stabilized on all red (or all green), depending on the metacontingency in effect. Although groups without verbal behavior ended with 3 of 4 participants choosing red in accordance with the metacontingency producing the positive cultural consequence of smaller magnitude, all 4 participants in both groups reached consensus on choosing green. In an additional session when the participants of groups with no communication could talk to each other, they achieved the criterion for both conditions showing the role of verbal behavior as modulator for all the groups.

Providing psychotherapy in adult homes and other long-term care settings presents both challenges and opportunities for behavior analysts as mental health service providers. When compared with other inpatient settings, such as hospitals and residential rehabilitation and treatment centers, which are involved in treating acute cases of mental disorders, adult homes and long-term care facilities, are involved in managing a wide array of chronic mental disorders and adjustment problems in older adults. Research shows that important elements of good care in long-term facilities are the opportunities for residents to make decisions and exercise some control over their lives. However, as a group, the residents are often characterized by a devastating dependency, inactivity, and lack of spontaneity. In addition, mental health service providers often have limited control over the environment. The purpose of this paper is to examine the challenges and suggest some solutions to the existing problems. Opportunities for researching and developing an effective clinical behavior analytic approach to psychotherapy with aging population are discussed.

The Buddha taught that the key to his Middle Way was the 8-fold Path. These consist of Right Understanding, Right Thinking/View, Right Speech, Right Action, Right Mindfulness, Right Livelihood, Right Meditation/Concentration, and Right Effort. A Buddhist perspective on the nature of things is very consistent with many behavior analytic views- no agency to explain action, the contingent nature of events in the world, etcetera. Some aspects are central to a behavioral viewpoint-for example, impermanence is a core Buddhist emphasis and without impermanence of behavior there could be no learning. This talk will offer elements of each of the 8-fold path in terms of how they can assist one to become a more effective consultant to teachers, parents and others. For example, within Right Mindfulness, knowing that things will not stay the same-including the calm behavior of one's student this morning-suggests that we should now not later-prepare for the changes to come. Within Right Speech, we should focus on listening and speaking with an aim to reduce the suffering of others. And there is always the imperative that we are responsible for the outcomes of our actions-both intentional and unintentional.

Too often a freshly certified BCBA enters the job site to change the world one behavior at a time and the result is far from their initial objective. New BCBAs prepare for their careers through practicum and behavior analysis centered academia, but are commonly plagued with work-site induced ineffective programs and novel situations that were absent from practicum settings and classroom discussions. This paper reviews several "real world" incidents that highlight the barriers a new BCBA may face and challenges such as working with other professions, political/administrative hurdles, and what makes us all joke, "I should have been an accountant." Several "veteran" behavior analysts were interviewed and their solutions along with the authors will be presented with wit, memorable examples, and data.

BehaviorBreakthroughs is a computer-based simulation program which provides an interactive environment in which parents/caregivers learn to apply and practice implementing strategies based on principles of applied behavior analysis (ABA). Elements of the decision making process in the design of the program, which leverages game-based techniques/technologies, will be presented. Information used in selecting and prioritizing the principles illustrated during the interaction with a simulated child will be reviewed. Decisions were driven by the science of ABA and practitioners' experience in working with children and adults who display severe challenging behaviors. A theoretical model was constructed based on the foundation of two basic behavioral principles implemented in Level 1 of the simulation: reinforcement and extinction. Scaffolding was used so that mastery of each level builds on knowledge and skills the parent/caregiver learns in previous levels. It was determined that subsequent levels of the simulation embed the following principles: chaining and shaping, correction as punishment, and prompt fading. Behavioral objectives were written for the virtual child (called "Asa") using terminology common in individual education plans. Interactions were written to be analogous to sequence of behaviors observed in actual children. The process used to select principles and sequence of events for objectives was pulled from real-world experience.

Intraverbal behavior contributes to a number of social and academic skills, such as answering questions, reciting items by category, singing songs, and engaging in conversation. To maximize the effectiveness of early intervention, it is important to study the acquisition of intraverbal responses in individuals with a diagnosis of developmental disabilities (such as autism), whose language development is delayed. To elucidate the relevant environmental variables, it is equally important to study the acquisition of intraverbal responses in typically developing individuals. In the current symposium, Valentino and Shillingsburg will first present a study on the use of echoic prompts with and without motor movements during intraverbal training with an individual with autism. Next, Coon and Miguel present a study on the influence of instructional history on the effectiveness of different prompt modalities during intraverbal training with typically developing preschoolers. Next, Carp, Lepper, and Petursdottir will present an evaluation of the use of a blocked trials procedure to teach intraverbal responses to typically developing preschoolers. Finally, Ingvarsson and Cammilleri present a study on the emergence of listener responses following intraverbal training. Together, these studies represent a sample of current efforts to expand upon the relatively limited literature on the acquisition of intraverbal behavior.

In the current study, we used an adapted alternating treatments design to compare the effectiveness of echoic prompting alone versus echoic prompting with associated motor movements on the acquisition of independent intraverbal responses in one female with a diagnosis of autism. At admission, the participant had a limited echoic repertoire; therefore, verbal behavior skills were initially targeted using sign language. After the participant had developed a strong echoic repertoire, teaching of vocal verbal behavior skills was initiated. The current investigation indicated that including associated motor movements in combination with echoic prompting resulted in faster acquisition of intraverbal responses when compared with using echoic prompting in isolation. The difference between the two prompting approaches was replicated with the same participant using additional intraverbal targets. We will discuss the implications of using combined prompt modalities in intraverbal training, and the unique learning histories and prerequisite skills that may contribute to the effectiveness of such procedures.

The results of studies comparing the effectiveness of differing prompt types to teach intraverbal responses have yielded mixed results. These results suggest individuals' histories of exposure to specific prompt types may influence which prompt type will be most effective. The purpose of this study was to test whether programmed increases in exposure to specific prompt types can produce concomitant increases in the acquisition rate of intraverbal responding. Acquisition rates among four typically developing preschool aged children were compared when taught using either echoic or tact prompts following exposure training with one prompt type. Results indicated that for all participants the prompt method most recently used to teach intraverbal responses required fewer trials to teach new intraverbal responses compared to a prompt method that had not recently been used to teach intraverbal behavior. The results are discussed in terms of the effects of reinforcement history on the acquisition of verbal behavior.

We describe a procedure that was developed to establish vocal intraverbal relations in the context of a basic study on derived stimulus relations. Participants in the study were typically developing children aged 3 and 4 years, and the experimental protocol required establishing control by three vocally presented stimuli (names of Greek letters) over three arbitrary vocal responses. The original training protocol, in which all three relations were introduced simultaneously, resulted in slow acquisition and a large number of errors. As a result, we developed a new training protocol that was in part based on blocking procedures that have previously been described in the literature on establishing conditional discriminations (e.g., Perez-Gonzalez & Williams, 2002; Saunders & Spradlin, 1989; Smeets & Striefel, 1994). Each relation was originally introduced in massed-trial format that included distracter-trials intended to prevent self-echoic control over the target responses. Training then gradually progressed to mixed trials that included all three relations. Two participants have been exposed to the new training protocol, and training with additional participants is in progress. Compared to earlier participants, participants have required fewer trials to criterion with the new protocol, and errors during training have been greatly reduced.

We examined the emergence of derived listener responses following intraverbal training in four children diagnosed of autism, whose intraverbal repertoire was deficient relative to other verbal skills. We first taught the participants to tact pictures of state birds. We then conducted listener baseline probes in which pictures of the birds were presented with the spoken name of the state (e.g., "Point to the state bird of Idaho"). An intraverbal baseline (e.g., "What is the state bird of Idaho?") was conducted concurrently. We then conducted transfer-of-control intraverbal training using either vocal prompts or picture prompts. We expected picture prompts to facilitate the emergence of the listener responses, because the picture of the birds and spoken state names are explicitly paired during that procedure. However, only one participant's listener post-test results supported that hypothesis, with the other three participants scoring 100% regardless of prompt type used during training. Thus, the participants were able to identify the pictures when presented with the state names, although that relation had never been directly trained. The learning histories and prerequisite skills that might be necessary for this kind of emergent relation will be discussed.

We present eight experimental analyses, in four papers, devoted to testing effects of verbal developmental interventions on emergence of verbal behavior developmental cusps and cusps that are capabilities in young children with language delays. In current verbal behavior developmental research, verbal capabilities are language developmental cusps that also result in the capability to learn by remote or indirect contact with basic principles. In Experiment 1, we tested the effect of the acquisition of generalized imitation cusp (GI) on preschoolers rate of learning. In Experiment 2, we tested (a) mirrored and non-mirrored GI emitted by adults to determine what should be accepted as accurate GI and (b) isolation of the use of a mirror in the induction of GI in preschoolers. In Experiment 3, we tested the effects of the induction of Naming on possible benefits of pre-learn unit demonstrations on rate of learning of correct discriminations of place value. In Experiment 4 we tested the effects of an auditory matching protocol that included matching rhymes and phrases on emergence of speaker and listener cusps and the intercept of speaker and listener.

We report two experiments that tested the effects of teaching 2 to 5-year-old children with developmental delays to imitate adult actions in a mirror on the emergence of generalized imitation (GI) using a delayed multiple probe design. In both experiments the participants were selected because they achieved few objectives over numerous instructional sessions on motor imitation and did not demonstrate GI. The independent variable in both experiments was the participants mastery of imitating sets of adults motor actions while looking at an adult perform actions in a mirror. In Experiment 1, the dependent variable was the number of untaught imitative responses emitted by participants prior to and following treatment phases while facing the experimenter. The dependent variable in Experiment 2 was identical to those conducted in Experiment 1 with the addition of experimental probes that assessed participant curricular learning rates. A functional relation was found between mastering motor actions in a mirror and the emergence of GI.

In Experiment 1 we tested the presence of generalized imitation (GI) with the requirement of left/right discrimination in 100 typically developing adults, both male and female, aged from 19 to 56 years old. Only 38.6% of the adult participants responded with the correct left/right orientations. Therefore, left/right discrimination was not considered as a necessary component of GI in young children. In Experiment 2, using a combined experimental-control group design with a “nested” time-lagged multiple probe design across participants, We compared experimental (4 children, ages 3 to 4 years old) and control groups (4 children, ages 3 to 4 years old) while controlling for the amount of instruction and maturation to isolate the whether the use of the mirror facilitated the induction generalized imitation in the participants. The dependent variable in this study was numbers of correct novel imitative responses in pre and post-intervention probe sessions, and the independent variable was the mastery of imitation sets using a mirror through. The study is still in process.

We tested the effects of the absence and presence of naming, a verbal developmental capability that is a source for children to acquire language incidentally, on the rate of learning under model demonstration learn unit conditions using a counterbalanced time-lagged multiple probe design across matched pairs of participants. Eight elementary aged children ranging in age from 4 to 6 with autism were selected because they lacked Naming at the onset of the study. The dependent variable was the number of instructional trials, or learn units, required to meet criterion on six curricular objectives: three prior to the instantiation of naming, and three post the acquisition of Naming. The objectives were taught under conditions in which the experimenter modeled an exemplar of a correct response prior to delivering standard learn units. The independent variable was the induction of naming using multiple exemplar instruction across listener and speaker responses. The results of the study showed the participants learned curricular objectives two to four times faster after the instantiation of naming. Thus, the onset of naming allowed the students to benefit from demonstrations, whereas, prior to naming, demonstration presentations did not affect learning.

We tested the effects of an mastery of an advanced auditory matching protocol (matching phrases and rhymes) on the emergence of listener literacy, naming (incidentally learning contrived words for contrived stimuli), appropriate self-talk in free play, say-do correspondence, and the emission of conversational units in non-instructional sessions by first and second grade students with autism spectrum disorder. The completed experiment, and a systematic replication in progress, used time-delayed multiple probe designs across four participants respectively. During intervention sessions, participants were taught to match progressively more difficult target phrases and rhyming words by emitting match-to-sample responses using a touch screen, when the correct responses and rotated incorrect matches were present. Mastery consisted of errorless matching for a novel set of words on the first trial. Flash animation technology was used for presenting the auditory matching procedure. Results of the first study demonstrated that listener literacy, speaker as own listener cusps emerged, and accurate echoic repertoires of participants increased in number.

Attention deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) is a chronic mental health disorder in children that causes serious problems in relationships with teachers, parents, and peers, and school functioning, as well as other adverse outcomes through the lifespan. With a prevalence rate of 2-9%, ADHD is a major public health problem in the U.S. and worldwide. The vast majority of ADHD children are treated with psychoactive medication alone, and the rates of medication usage have increased exponentially over the past decade. Although medication is beneficial in the short term, it has no demonstrable long-term benefit and long-term side effects (e.g., permanent growth suppression). There are two other methods of treatment for children with ADHD: behavioral (non-medicinal) treatments; and multimodal approaches that combine behavioral and pharmacological treatments. Behavioral treatments have a solid evidence base for the short-term treatment of children with ADHD, but evidence of long-term impact is lacking. The combination of the two treatments has been understudied—especially with respect to the dosing and sequencing of each component. Important questions remain unanswered. Should high or low doses of treatment be employed, and what are the costs, risks, and benefits of different doses and lengths of intervention? Should non-medicinal treatments such as parent training and classroom interventions begin before trying medication or vice versa? If one or the other is begun first, does that influence the dose of the second component, its incremental effectiveness, and the societal cost of providing treatment? Does treatment sequencing impact positive outcomes and side effects? Are there individual differences among children that influence the answers to such questions? This presentation will describe a series of studies designed to answer such issues. The implications for treatment of children with ADHD and the costs and benefits to children, families, schools, and society at large will be discussed.

Heinz G. Buschang, Ph.D., Marius M. Rietdijk, Ph.D., and Jun Ishida each found a home in behaviorism that has profoundly changed the way they approach their life's work. They are opening upbehavior analysisto a wide audience: Dr. Buschang as Dean of Regis University School of Management, with 5,000 students internationally, creating the first curriculum-wide degree program of any business school in America designed from a behavior analytic framework; Dr. Rietdijk as an assistant professor of economics, in establishing a university-sponsored institute for research and study in behaviorism (the Aubrey C. Daniels Institute) at Amsterdam University and finding that his Ph.D. thesis has become a best-selling book about behaviorism in business-opening up channels to economists and business leaders at the tops of corporations; and Ishida-san as an entrepreneurial business man who opened many educational remediation schools across Japan in the mid-1990s and continuing (visiting our best models for applying BA to teaching in the United States), then becoming a business partner with Aubrey Daniels International to apply his knowledge to training business leaders in Japan, while also studying with some of the best experimental and applied behavior analysts in Japan. He is the author of approximately 20 books on behaviorism in Japan (best BA education practices and OBM), producing several # 1 best sellers. Their stories are told in relation to how BA shaped the context of their work, example-based stories of passion and impact. Behavior analysts talk about the end of formal degree-granting university BA programs. That may indeed be true (hopefully a temporary blip) but if there is to be the kind of vigor and demand for more Ph.D. programs and more universities granting degrees in basic and applied BA, the vision and work of people like these are the way back to relevance. Demand to know more is created by their work. Their students and business leaders will want to know as they do about the foundation of the science. They each believe it is essential for business leaders, employees, students, parents and teachers to understand this science. The study of behaviorism taken up by these individuals with little formal training as we might view it-and its life-changing and profound effects should help us recognize that there is much going on outside our direct line of sight- such energetic and like-minded individuals can help us change the way the world works.

This presentation will provide an overview of a comprehensive model of behavior analytic education as it has been implemented and replicated in schools in the State of Virginia. The Faison School, initially established as an affiliate program of Virginia Commonwealth University, has grown from a program offour students to nearly 100, all diagnosed with an autism spectrum disorder or other developmental disability. The school is now affiliated with the applied behavior analysis program at Teachers College Columbia University and the Department of Behavioral Psychology at the Kennedy Krieger Institute. Through these affiliations, the school offers a comprehensive behavior analytic model of education and training alongside more intensive intervention services for students removed from public education settings. The school's data-driven and individualized system allows for immediate data collection and analysis of the behaviors of teachers and students, which allows participants to receive the most appropriate services and tactics for all areas of learning and teaching. In total, the school maintains data on learn units, Teacher Performance Rate Accuracy Observations, teacher decisions, student and staff achievement toward goals, as some examples. The model has also recently been replicated in the public schools. In this presentation, the CABAS components, including learn units, teacher data, decision analyses, and assessments, will be reviewed and discussed as well as future needs and directions of the model overall.

A 6-year-old boy with autism engaged in "hitting" when preferred items were not delivered quickly and when removed after prescribed periods of access. A combination of verbal and visual antecedent prompts with a progressive differential reinforcement of other behavior (DRO) schedule was used to teach the child to sit quietly and wait for delivery of the preferred item and to return the preferred item to the therapist, without hitting, after contingent access. Duringeight baseline sessions, hitting occurred an average of 16.1 per session (waiting and removal of preferred items). During intervention the child selectedone oftwo items and was then verbally prompted to wait quietly and the therapist provided visual cues (countdown with fingers) to indicate the time requirement. A DRO program was implemented with progressive time requirement, beginning with 3-s and increased to 25-sec. Hitting decreased tozero occurrences per session and the verbal and visual cues were successfully faded.

Functional communication training (FCT) is a commonly used intervention for problem behavior; however, it is often necessary to thin the dense schedule used during training. We conducted a functional analysis of aggressive behavior exhibited by an 8-year-old child diagnosed with autism. The results suggested that aggressive behavior was maintained by social-positive reinforcement in the form of adult attention. FCT was conducted to teach an appropriate communication response (i.e., card exchange). Next, we evaluated the use of a multiple schedule to increase the practicality of the treatment. A mixed schedule was included as a control condition. The multiple schedule maintained sufficient rates of the communication response and relatively low rates of aggression; by contrast, elevated rates of aggression continued to occur during the mixed schedule. The effects were extended to his primary caregiver (mother) and his home and the duration of the extinction component was thinned to 9 min. These results provide initial evidence that initial treatment gains can be sustained using a multiple schedule with a relatively thin reinforcement to extinction component ratio without a history of schedule thinning. Therefore, the results have important implications for practitioners with respect to the efficiency in which a practical treatment can be achieved.

The purpose of this study was to evaluate a treatment for apparent masturbation in two young females with disabilities. April, age 8, was diagnosed with pervasive developmental disorder and mental retardation. All procedures were conducted in a one day behavioral outpatient clinic. During Phase 1, a brief functional analysis was conducted and showed that masturbation was maintained by automatic reinforcement. During Phase 2, a forced choice treatment was conducted. Choices included sitting with legs uncrossed (absence of masturbation) to gain access to attention and toys versus sitting alone with no programmed contingencies for masturbation. Results showed that April initially chose to sit alone. As treatment progressed, she began sitting with her legs uncrossed in order to gain access to attention and toys. Jill, age 6, was diagnosed with autism and moderate mental retardation. All procedures were conducted across days in a community health center with coaching from a therapist via telehealth technology. During Phase 1, a functional analysis was conducted within a multielement design and showed that masturbation was maintained by positive and negative reinforcement. During Phase 2, functional communication training was conducted for the escape function and is continuing to occur.

We used a three-component multiple-schedule to assess levels of vocal stereotypy before, during, and after intervention with response interruption and redirection (RIRD). Results from the second components indicated that RIRD produced an immediate decrease in vocal stereotypy for 2 participants. In addition, results from the third components indicated that RIRD did not produce a subsequent increase in vocal stereotypy for either participant. The potential clinical implications of these findings for the treatment of vocal stereotypy are briefly discussed.

We evaluated the extent to which 18 participants exhibited two or more forms of stereotypy that covaried. The results indicated that over half of the participants exhibited two response forms that were at least moderately correlated and statistically significant. This finding provides further support for the position that different forms of stereotypy may produce complementary sources of reinforcing stimulation.

Differential reinforcement of alternative behavior (DRA) is an intervention for problem behavior in which the reinforcer maintaining problem behavior is delivered only following an alternative desirable behavior (e.g., a communicative response). Although this intervention is highly effective when implemented by trained clinicians, it is generally assumed that caregivers will not be able to implement this intervention with maximal fidelity. Thus research has been dedicated to evaluating the impact of likely fidelity failures in highly controlled environments (e.g., delayed reinforcement of alternative behavior) and in evaluating intervention modifications to make treatment effects withstand these likely challenges (e.g., gradual exposure to delays to reinforcement). However, research has not evaluated (a) the forms of integrity failures that are present in natural environments or (b) the efficacy of additional training in allowing interventions to withstand these challenges. This current study was conducted in multiple parts. First, following a demonstration of the efficacy of DRA at reducing problem behavior in a controlled environment, we then trained parents to implement DRA and conducted descriptive observations of them implementing DRA in their natural environment across at least 2 days with a minimum of 2 hours of total observation time. From these data we were then able to determine the prevalence of varying forms of procedural fidelity failures. Next, we evaluated the impact of these integrity failures in a controlled environment. Third, we implemented additional training and examined the effects of these additions at minimizing problem behavior in the natural environment.

The non-contingent delivery of food or liquid is often recommended to suppress rumination, the repeated regurgitation and rechewing of partially digested food. However, it is unclear how long this reduction endures once the non-contingent delivery is terminated. The current study examined the direct and distal effects of non-contingent juice upon rumination by measuring the duration of rumination during juice delivery and after delivery was terminated. The results indicated that non-contingent juice suppressed rumination, but this suppression was brief and did not maintain upon terminating delivery. The current results raise concerns regarding the use of FT food or liquid to produce lasting decreases in rumination.

Bruxism is a significant behavioral issue since it can lead to tooth wear, facial pain, gum damage, and tooth loss. The purpose of the current study is to evaluate the effectiveness of various procedures in reducing bruxism episodes in a 21 year old male with autism. A reversal design was used to evaluate verbal and physical cues (Bebko & Lennox, 1988), reinforcement schedules alone (i.e., NCR, DRO-5, -10, -20, and -30 min) and reinforcement schedules and verbal and physical cues in combination on bruxism episodes. Two 15 minute probes were conducted daily to assess the effectiveness of the interventions. Reinforcement schedules alone resulted in greater reduction in bruxism episodes and reduced variability when compared to verbal and physical cues. The final condition will examine bruxism episodes when verbal and physical cues are combined with various schedules of reinforcement. A functional analysis was conducted prior to the initial baseline condition demonstrating automatic reinforcement as the function for bruxism.

Research suggests that antecedent variables, such as characteristics of the therapist, may affect behavior in functional analysis and treatment sessions (Ringdahl & Sellers, 2000; Progar et al., 2001; McAdam, DiCesare, Murphy, & Marshall, 2004). The purpose of the present study is to evaluate if the size and familiarity of the therapist produce different rates of darting behavior for a 17-year-old female diagnosed with autism. Four therapists were selected based upon size (those who were physically equivalent versus those who were more petite than the participant) and familiarity (novel versus familiar to the participant). A reversal design was used to evaluate the effects of different therapists and frequency data was collected on each instance of darting. In phase one of treatment, all therapists followed the participant when she darted and responded with playful verbal and tactile attention. During phase two, all therapists followed the participant when she darted and responded with a verbal reprimand. Results will be discussed in terms of the effect of therapist size and familiarity on the behavior of the participant and the implications for treatment.

Rapp (2004, 2007) has shown that prior access to stereotypy may decrease subsequent engagement in the behavior, but the effects are not always consistent within and across participants (e.g., Lanovaz, Fletcher, & Rapp, 2009). One potential predictor of the effects of prior access on subsequent engagement is initial levels of stereotypy. Given that stereotypy is automatically reinforced, high initial levels may produce abolishing effects decreasing the occurrence of the behavior and its reinforcing value whereas low levels may produce the converse. We examined 24 datasets from 14 children with autism who displayed one or more forms stereotypy. Each dataset contained ten or more baseline sessions divided into three components of equal duration. For each dataset, we identified the median duration of stereotypy during the first component and separated the sessions into two groups (i.e., lower and higher than the median). Then, we graphed changes in stereotypy from the first component to third component for each group (as in a multielement design). The analysis is ongoing, but our preliminary results suggest that initial levels higher than the median were associated with larger reductions in subsequent stereotypy. The implications of the results for the assessment and treatment of stereotypy will be discussed.

The purpose of the present study was to compare the method of task presentation during demands and its effects on tantrum behavior for a 12-year-old female diagnosed with autism. Tantrum behaviors included any combination of aggression, self-injury, and disruptive behavior. During baseline, frequency data was recorded on tantrum behaviors and demands were presented one at a time from a bin of academic materials for 30 minutes. In the first treatment phase, a timer was set for 30 minutes and remained on the table as the participant completed academic work. The therapist presented academic activities one at a time from a bin and placed them back into the bin when completed. In the second treatment phase, no timer was used and no time limits were communicated to the participant. The therapist placed all academic activities on the table and put them into a bin as they were completed. The same materials were used in each session, sessions lasted for 30 minutes, and the same discriminative stimulus was given to begin working ("It's time to work"). The effects of how tasks were presented on tantrum behavior will be discussed along with the implications for treatment.

Elopement behavior is a serious problem that often leads to placement in a more restrictive setting due to the safety risk (Garner, 1991). The present study is a replication and modification of functional analysis procedures for elopement as identified by Piazza et al. (1997) for a 9-year-old female diagnosed with autism. The participant reportedly engaged in elopement behavior while laughing and turning to make sure someone was following her, which ultimately necessitated treatment at aresidential program to ensure her safety. A functional analysis was conducted using a multi-element design across attention, demand, ignore, tangible, and control conditions. Sessions were conducted on her living unit in an effort to replicate the natural environment and were 10 minutes in length using frequency recording for each occurrence of elopement. Elopement behaviors were defined as any part of the participant's body moving through a doorway or beyond 5 feet from the therapist (when in hallway situations). The results of the functional analysis will be discussed along with the implications for treatment.

The present study evaluated the implications of blocking and not blocking self-injurious behaviors, as well as rates of successfully blocked self-injury in a 16-year-old boy with autism. The participant resided in a behavioral stabilization unit for the treatment of self-injurious behavior to the head. Rates of self-injurious behaviors averaged 340 instances per hour leading up to treatment. As a result the participant wore a soft padded helmet and padded gloves to prevent injury. At the time of evaluation, the staff response for self-injury, as prescribed by the behavior plan, was response prevention. Anecdotal reports suggested that the blocking often resulted in prolonged episodes during which there was an increased intensity and change in topography, and upon observation it was evident that staff was unable to prevent all instances of self-injury. Sessions were conducted in an ABA design using a blocking condition in which all attempts to self injure were blocked and a condition in which self injury was not blocked for 15 minutes, rotating conditions at each 5-min interval. Data was recorded for successful and unsuccessful blocking as well as rates of self injury when blocked and not blocked from occurring. Results are discussed.

A descriptive analysis of self-injurious behavior (SIB) was conducted for a 14-year-old male student diagnosed with autism to determine potentially relevant variables maintaining SIB. In this particular case, a functional analysis would have been an inappropriate assessment because previously conducted indirect assessments indicated that there would be 18 different conditions to test. The descriptive analysis examined various prompt types (verbal, gestural, partial physical, full physical), positive touch (tickle, hug, high five), access to tangibles, attention, and praise. Results of the descriptive analysis demonstrated that physical prompting methods were correlated with SIB, whereas other prompting techniques and physical touches were not. SIB only followed physical touches in a demand context, never after positive touches. Results also provided information to suggest further evaluations and interventions to reduce levels of SIB. A traditional functional analysis would have shown a strong functional relationship between demand and SIB, however, SIB only occurred after a demand was paired with a physical prompt.

Kuhn, Hardesty, and Luczynski (2009) suggested that manipulating environmental events during assessment conditions, while variables such as deprivation states and consequences remain constant, may provide valuable information regarding situations in which problem behavior occur. The participant in the current study, Ace, was a 12-year-old boy diagnosed with disruptive behavior disorder admitted to an inpatient facility for the assessment and treatment of self-injurious, aggressive, and disruptive behavior. Although Ace's initial functional analysis yielded inconclusive results, anecdotal observations suggested when others engaged in disruptive behavior, his problem behavior increased. The purpose of the current study was to measure the effects of others' disruptive behavior on Ace's problem behavior. Pairwise comparisons were conducted where confederates' behaviors and consequences were manipulated. Results indicated that Ace engaged in more problem behavior when the confederate engaged in disruptive behavior, despite whether or not he/she was reprimanded (on average 4.19 rpm and 4.42 rpm, respectively), when compared to the control condition (on average, 0.40 rpm). Reliability data were collected for 36.4% of observations and averaged 96.4%. This study supports previous research, advocating the assessment of idiosyncratic variables and extends research by Kuhn et al. (2009) isolating the effects of confederate disruptive behavior on problem behavior.

Elopement can be a particularly dangerous problem behavior emitted by individuals with developmental disabilities. In the current study, a functional analysis of elopement was conducted for an individual diagnosed with an autism spectrum disorder who did not demonstrate general safety or self-preservation skills. Latency to elopement was the primary dependent measure for the functional analysis. Results of the functional analysis indicated that elopement was maintained by access to tangible items and locations. Latency to elopement and latency to emit an appropriate communication response were measured during treatment. Functional communication training and timeout contingent on elopement were used during treatment.

This experiment examined the effects of access to matched stimuli on automatically reinforced behavior of an 8-year-old male student with autism. Data from direct observations, Functional Analysis Screen Tool and Motivation Assessment Scale, suggested the participant engaged in hand mouthing behavior maintained primarily by automatic reinforcement. Studies have shown the importance of conducting functional analysis and preference assessment to identify the specific source of reinforcement (oral vs. tactile stimulation). The participant was exposed to variety of items and activities that differ in dimensions during the preference assessment to identify the stimuli that matched the hypothesized sensory consequence of hand mouthing. Treatment for the participant consisted of differential reinforcement in a reversal design (ABAB). Results of the experiment supported previous studies and demonstrate the benefits and the lasting effects of identifying the specific source of reinforcement and that matched stimuli were associated to lower levels of aberrant behavior (hand mouthing).

The purpose of the present study is to compare the effectiveness of non-contingent reinforcement (NCR) and differential reinforcement of incompatible behavior (DRI) on reducing self-injurious behavior (SIB) exhibited by a child with autism. The participant is a 43-month-old female with a primary diagnosis of autism. She is non-verbal, but uses signs and gestures to communicate. When denied access to preferred item or denied escape from unpleasant social situations (i.e. discrete trial training therapy sessions), she engages in SIB in the form on hitting her head with a fist or hitting her legs with her fist. Using an alternating-treatment design, researchers will assess treatment efficacy. During baseline, data indicated SIB was occurring roughly 142 times per day. During Condition 1, staff reinforce the participant on a time interval of 15 seconds for 1 hour to see if frequent reinforcement reduces target behavior. During Condition 2 staff will prompt and reinforce engagement in incompatible behavior. Efficacy for using NCR and DRI procedures have been investigated, however little research exists that directly compares these two methodologies. The present study is designed to assess which treatment package shows to be more efficacious for reducing SIB related to direct access and escape functions.

The complexity of the central nervous system is abstract; yet, neuroscientists demonstrate evidence that sensory input evokes physiological changes in the body and at time severe reactions (Ben-Sasson et al., 2008). Although the severe reactions to various external sensory stimuli have been discussed in the literature for decades (Baranek, Wakefield, & David, 2008), there is little to no empirical evidence or systematic interventions to address the supposed sensory problem. Furthermore, those that purport sensory interventions work, typically point to internal, non-observable reasons such as self-regulation. The purpose of this study was to analyze a series of sensory interventions as antecedent interventions, particularly working as abolishing operations as noncontingent reinforcement prior to engaging in high demand tasks. An alternating treatment design was utilized to show a functional relation to the identified intervention compared to other interventions (Kennedy, 2005). The researchers trained data coders to collect data who were blind to the study. As evidenced by the differentiated effects in the alternating treatment design, aberrant behaviors were at zero levels and correct responding to academic tasks were near 100% as measured with permanent products.

Stereotypy can interfere with a students ability to access and receive instruction, which gives way to learning new, adaptive and age-appropriate leisure skills. A procedure utilizing a response blocking procedure with delivery and access to a competing stimulus was implemented to reduce stereotypy in a 15-year-old male student attending a specialized school for children with autism. Stereotypy consisted of persistent hand flapping, finger tapping, finger rubbing, and rocking of the upper body. The initial (competing stimulus) assessment consisted of measuring engagement in stereotypic responses as well as engagement with the presented item. Results of this preliminary assessment indicated multiple, viable stimuli, which were subsequently chosen for the intervention. The intervention itself consisted of the application of response blocking procedure with noncontingent access to a competing stimulus. As a result of this intervention, the student was more eligible for instruction and classroom interaction. The overall results are discussed in relation to existing research on behavior reduction strategies.

This presentation will focus on a recent study examining the effectiveness of a verbal query intervention (VQI) procedure in decreasing motor and vocal stereotypy in four students with moderate to severe autism. An ABC multiple-baseline across subjects design was used to examine whether the VQI procedure, when combined with behavioral intervention strategies, leads to an incremental decrease in stereotypy. The VQI procedure involved the presentation of behavior-specific questions that the students were required to answer correctly. The questions were presented both proactively and reactively. It was found that two participants demonstrated a decrease in stereotypy of 21% and higher. Graphical analysis indicated that the VQI procedure did lead to a decrease in stereotypy. The author provides several theories as to why the VQI was effective, with particular emphasis on the cognitive-behavioral implications of the study. A discussion regarding the use of the VQI procedure in the school settings is also presented.

The purpose of this experiment was to evaluate the effectiveness of extinction procedures, specifically planned ignoring, as a method to decrease vocal stereotypy. A preschool student with autism, described as a speaker with low conversational units in her repertoire of verbal behavior participated in the experiment, utilizing a multiple baseline across settings design. The independent variable was the implementation of planned ignoring as a tactic that involved the removal of attention contingent upon the student's emission of the behavior. The dependent variable was the rate of inappropriate and tangential vocalizations during instruction and playtime. During baseline conditions, the participant emitted reliably high levels of inappropriate utterances described as vocal stereotypy during free play and instruction. Following the implementation of the intervention, the rate of inappropriate utterances decreased, while the rate of appropriate vocal responses followed a reliable, steady, ascending trend. A functional relationship was demonstrated and the results of the study suggested an effective procedure for decreasing inappropriate behaviors maintained by the positive reinforcement function in the form of access to attention.

Behavior reduction procedures are a large part of programming for students with autism and related disabilities. Applied practitioners are often faced with an emerging challenging behavior that requires immediate intervention. While attempting to determine the function of the challenging behavior, clinicians often implement a non-function based procedure. This research asked if implementing a differential reinforcement of other behavior (DRO) program for a 12-year-old girl with autism would reduce spitting behavior? With the onset of the spitting behavior, Jane had tissue damage to her face and lips within 2 days prompting the need for immediate behavioral intervention. Staff implemented the DRO in sessions similar to "discrete trial" sessions every 10 minutes throughout the day, with the initial interval of 45 seconds. For Jane, upon implementation of the DRO data indicated the absence of spitting behavior in 44% of measured intervals. After 24 sessions, Jane was averaging absence of spitting in 76% of intervals. The interval was then increased to 1 minute and in 12 sessions Jane reached 100% absence of challenging behavior as measured over the last three intervals.

Functional analysis revealed that motor stereotypy (i.e., tapping fingers or objects on hard surfaces, hand flapping) was undifferentiated and elevated during the alone conditions, likely indicating an automatic function in a 5-year-old boy with autism. Noncontingent reinforcement (NCR) with matched and unmatched stimuli, as identified by a paired-choice preference assessment and competing stimulus assessments, was unsuccessful in decreasing motor stereotypy below baseline levels. Therefore, NCR combined with a visual screen was then implemented. All sessions were conducted in a center-based preschool for children with autism. The treatment package consisted of a 30-second NCR condition with access to a highly preferred stimulus, followed by a 5-minute punishment condition, in which all instances of motor stereotypy were consequated with a visual screen for at least 30 seconds. Within session analyses were conducted to assess pre- and post-session effects of the intervention. Results indicated that NCR + visual screen significantly decreased motor stereotypy across pre-session, treatment, and post-session conditions.

We compared outcomes of functional analyses (FA) conducted in home settings and through telehealth to evaluate the effectiveness of telehealth in conducting FA with children with autism spectrum disorders (ASD). Participants included 7 children with ASD receiving in-home behavioral assessment and 9 children with ASD receiving behavioral assessment via telehealth. Participants were between 2 and 6 years old and displayed problem behavior. The FAs were completed within a multielement design. In the in-home project, the FA was conducted in the home by the parents with coaching from a behavioral specialist. In the telehealth project, the FA was conducted at a regional clinic by the parents with support from an onsite coach and coaching from a behavioral specialist via telehealth. Inter-rater agreement was assessed across 30% of sessions and averaged over 90%. Mean number of sessions to complete the FA was 14 for the in-home and 20 for the telehealth group. Mean number of visits before completing the FA was 4 for the in-home and 5 for the telehealth group. A function was identified for 71% of the in-home participants and 89% of the telehealth participants. Preliminary data suggest that telehealth practices are effective in conducting FAs with children with ASD.

Bowman et al. (1997) demonstrated effective assessment and treatment procedures for participants whose destructive behaviors functioned to direct activities (i.e., "my way"). Our study applied these procedures to a higher functioning adolescent and included generalization across multiple environments and individuals. The participant was a verbal 13-year-old female diagnosed with autistic disorder. The participant exhibited frequent and intense aggressive, disruptive, and self-injurious behaviors that led to multiple injuries. Problem behaviors were assessed through several functional analyses. Results indicated that the participant engaged in target behaviors to escape demands and to gain or maintain verbal and physical direction of activities. The treatment package contained multiple components including stimulus control, differential reinforcement of other behavior, and extinction. Initially, treatment was assessed across mand and demand sessions from the functional analysis baseline data; it was later generalized across her entire day (i.e., school, leisure activities, nonpreferred activities) with multiple staff and family members. Problem behaviors in the clinic were reduced by more than 80%. Follow-up data at 3 and 6 months post-discharge are being collected. From this presentation, attendees will learn a treatment targeting problem behaviors maintained by access to adult compliance with mands for an adolescent with severe problem behaviors.

This poster examines the effects of a reverse demand fading protocol on the occurrence of the target behaviors of physical aggression towards others and property destruction as well as the rate of skill acquisition for an 11-year-old boy with autism. After initial baseline recording of the occurrence target behaviors and baseline testing of the subject's skill set, goals and objectives for behavior reduction and skill acquisition were determined for one school year following the implementation of the demand fading protocol. Demand sets were determined through a hierarchical ranking of the projected yearly goals and objectives. Criteria for subsequent demand set implementation was determined to be 3 consecutive days of target behavior occurrence within a range of 0% to 10% below average baseline percent per target behavior. Rate of skill acquisition was determined by the number of newly mastered targets per week across all skill acquisition programs. Initial results suggested that the implementation of a reverse demand fading protocol may reduce the occurrence of maladaptive behaviors while increasing the rate of skill acquisition.

Imitation training is often included in programming for children with autism. However, relatively few studies have evaluated the extent to which acquired responses generalize or maintain across time. In this study, a multiple baseline across responses design was used to evaluate the effect of training on generalization and maintenance of responses for one child with autism. The results indicated that acquisition of programmed imitative responses did not lead to increased acquisition rates for subsequently trained imitative responses. The introduction and training of new responses was correlated with temporary disruption of correct responding to previously acquired imitative responses.

Little to no research to date addresses the inability to form conditional discriminations that is sometimes exhibited by young children with autism who are in the process of building simple skill repertoires (i.e., motor imitation, receptive identification of body parts, etc.). The inability to discriminate conditionally can significantly slow the acquisition of new skills in a child's developing repertoire and may be attributed to a lack of stimulus control. The current study investigates the use of a blocked trial procedure (Saunders & Spradlin, 1993) to facilitate conditional skill discriminations.

Restricted, repetitive, and stereotyped patterns of behavior, interests, and activities are among the core diagnostic criteria for autism. As a result, some students with autism repeatedly select a small number of available reinforcers, and are often unwilling to select novel items that could potentially function as reinforcers. This creates a challenge for educators of individuals with autism, especially when the student repeatedly selects an item or activity that is in short supply, or takes a long time to consume/complete. In the current study, participants were trained to increase the number of novel items and activities they selected using a schedule thinning procedure. Novel item and activity selections were defined as the student selecting an item or activity that was not previously selected that day. The schedule thinning procedure involved increasing the amount of work that was required before the selected item or activity was delivered. Experimental control was demonstrated using a reversal design. Additionally, pre- and post-intervention stimulus preference assessments were conducted to assess for changes in preference. Results will be discussed in relation to increasing reinforcer variability, and modifying individual preferences.

Video modeling has been an effective tool for the last three decades to teach studentswith autism spectrum disorders (ASD). It has been used as an effective tool in teaching children with autism pretend play, conversation, and perspective. We have used video modeling to teach life skills with three teenage boys with autism. A task analysis was created and a video was completed by a staff member based on the task analysis. A baseline of steps completed correctly was obtained. Verbal and visual prompts were used to introduce the students to their tooth brushing task. We then assessed the effects of video modeling on increasing the amount of steps completed independently in the task analysis. A multielement design was use across subjects. Results support video modeling as an effective tool to teach life skills to students with autism. Recording was done by two observers. This provided reliability of the data recorded.

Several studies have documented an inverse relationship between aggressive behaviors and appropriate responding to structured teaching activities, suggesting that aggressive behaviors negatively impact social integration and interfere with learning processes. Behavioral programs applied to reduce aggressive behaviors have shown that aggression can be reduced in frequency. However, it is thought that use of the Wilbarger brushing protocol may be used to further reduce aggressive behaviors and increase attention to task during structured teaching activities. This study used the Wilbarger brushing protocol to reduce aggressive behaviors and increase attention to task in a 12-year-old with autism. An alternating treatment design is being used to evaluate effectiveness of the treatment. During a 30-min interval, the brushing protocol will be added to his current behavior plan to determine if targeted behaviors are reduced. The brushing protocol will then be removed to evaluate if targeted behaviors increase. Reliability will be calculated by using two independent observers.

Previous research has indicated that new forms of vocal behavior can be emitted as a function of a conditioning procedure consisting of the temporal pairing of a vocal model with a preferred stimulus. This stimulus-stimulus pairing procedure results in the development of an early repertoire of vocalizations which, through subsequent mand instruction, can result in the emission of this and eventually other verbal operants. This intervention has previously been conducted primarily with younger children using automatic and direct reinforcement operations such as tickling, singing, and talking to the participants during the pairing procedure. For some students with less advanced verbal repertoires, other reinforcement operations such as edibles and non-edible tangibles may be needed in addition to the type described above to further condition and strengthen a vocal-verbal response form. This study examined the effects of stimulus-stimulus pairing to acquire new forms of vocal behavior using edible and non-edible tangible reinforcement operations during the pairing procedure. A multiple probe across participants design was employed and the results are discussed as they relate to the current literature on conditioning and early mand training.

Brain Gym is an intervention designed to improve various outcomes including attention, memory, and academic skills. This intervention requires the participant to engage in a variety of movements to help the body recall the movements from the first stages of life when the body was learning to coordinate the hands, eyes, ears, and whole body (Brain Gym International, 2009). While there are many qualitative studies that support use of this intervention, few empirical research studies are available. Additionally, existing empirical studies contain multiple methodological flaws which obscure the true effect of this intervention (Hyatt, 2007). The current investigation will compare three interventions to promote academic engagement among children with disabilities. Interventions will take place during the first few mintues of each session. Baseline consists of no movement activity. During intervention, two movement activities (Brain Gym and non-Brain Gym movements) will be alternated using an alternating treatments design. The subjects are three males (ages 7-9) with developmental disabilities. On-task behavior will be measured using momentary time sampling. Please refer to the attached Figure in which the first two days of baseline are displayed. This study will help practioners to accept or reject Brain Gym as an effective intervention to improve academic outcomes for children. References Brain Gym International, (2009). Brain Gym International. Retrieved from http://www.braingym.org/. Hyatt, K.J. (2001) Brain Gym: Building stronger brains or wishful thinking? Remedial and Special Education, 28(2), 117-124.

The current study describes an intervention sequence that may be used to develop individualized and effective interventions for improving delayed verbal comprehension skills in individuals with autism. The study also suggests strategies for promoting the generalization of novel verbal comprehension skills into the natural environment. The purpose of this study is to examine the generalization to novel stimuli after teaching identification of picture absurdities, verbal comprehension, and vocabulary in a male child with autism. Using a multiple baseline design across skills, the intervention attempts to increase the rate and complexity of participant verbal responses to novel verbal comprehension questions posed. Baseline measures indicate that the participant is responding to comprehension questions at near zero rates across all three skill domains, with intervention data currently in progress. This study hopes to show that an intervention simultaneously targeting multiple components of verbal comprehension will improve a participants generalization of existing skills and increase their spontaneous initiation. The findings are likely to suggest that teaching verbal comprehension skills alone may be insufficient for generalization of those skills into the natural environment; however, teaching in combination with embedded strategies for generalization may be successful.

Errorless learning refers to a set of procedures used to promote learning by minimizing incorrect responding during acquisition (Mueller, Palkovik, & Maynard, 2007). Research suggests that for some children, incorrect responding during a learning task can have detrimental effects on motivation, skill acquisition, and behavioral control (Lerman, Iwata, & Wallace, 1999; Lovaas, Koegel, & Schreibman, 1979; Schreibman, Charlop, & Koegel, 1982). Therefore, errorless learning aims at increasing acquisition while attempting to minimize the negative effects of incorrect responding. The purpose of this poster is to present a description of an errorless learning procedure used to increase receptive language acquisition and teach stimulus discrimination to a 3-year-old boy with autistic disorder. A changing criterion design is currently being implemented to assess a procedure utilizing stimulus fading and response prevention errorless learning techniques. Discussion will focus on results from the intervention as well as a review of important considerations when developing and implementing errorless learning procedures.

Self-modeling uses images of oneself engaged in adaptive behavior (Dowrick, 1999). Of several forms of self-modeling, feedforward modeling extends an individuals repertoire by exposing her/him to depictions of themselves performing novel behavior or behavior in novel contexts, created by manipulating video of current performances. Sixteen spider-phobic adults were assessed for phobia severity using behavioral avoidance tests (BAT) and self-report measures of spider phobia, anxiety and depression, and self-efficacy. Eight pairs were formed by matching on initial phobia severity. Blue screen and other video editing procedures created self-modeling videos for one member of each pair, depicting him/her (a) successfully completing the BAT, (b) removing a spider from a wall and releasing it outside, and (c) calmly observing a tarantula crossing a desk to within 12 cm. After baseline assessments, participants viewed a video once every 2 days for 14 days. One of each pair observed themselves (self-modeling) and the other watched the same video (peer-modeling). Subjective units of discomfort ratings were recorded in baseline, at each viewing, at post-test and follow-up, along with BATs and self-report measures at post-test and follow-up. Both types of modeling reduced behavioral avoidance and increased spider self-efficacy, but self-modeling produced somewhat more clinically significant changes in phobic beliefs and symptoms.

The motivational effects of mood-altering verbal events on the consequential value of various activities were investigated in a within-subjects, repeated-measures experimental study. Specifically, participants completed explicit and implicit measures to determine whether preferences for pleasant and unpleasant activities changed from baseline after positive and negative mood-induction procedures. The implicit relational assessment procedure (IRAP) was used to minimize demand characteristics while assessing cognitive preferences that participants were unaware of or reluctant to report. Data from 30 never-depressed university undergraduates were analyzed. Results show differential preference of pleasant and unpleasant activities after positive and negative mood induction. Pleasant activities were more reinforcing after positive mood induction and less reinforcing after negative mood induction, when unpleasant activities increased in reinforcing value. Interestingly, although many participants did not explicitly report a negative affective state after negative mood-induction procedures, they nonetheless preferred pleasant activities less. In other words, activity preference was dependent on contact with verbal environmental events rather than reported affective state. These findings contribute to existing evidence that verbal mood-altering antecedent events can function as motivating operations. Additionally, this study underscores the importance of implicit assessment, and highlights the potential utility of the IRAP as a clinical tool.

Acceptance and commitment therapy asserts that in clinical problems such as rumination and depression, making sense continues despite accompanying aversive consequences because it is reinforcing (Hayes, Strosahl, & Wilson, 1999). Preliminary empirical evidence for this hypothesis has recently been established (Wray, Dougher, & Hamilton, under review). College students preferred a solvable laboratory task with response-contingent reinforcement to a formally similar but unsolvable task, on which equal or greater amounts of reinforcement were presented independent of performance. The current study replicates these earlier findings using both self-report and two additional behavioral measures of preference (i.e., condition chosen most and first). Additionally, the current study investigates whether individuals preferred the solvable condition because it was positively reinforcing or because avoiding the unsolvable condition was negatively reinforcing by introducing a neutral task, which provides an alternative to the solvable and unsolvable conditions. It was anticipated that, across all3 measures, solvable conditions would be preferred most, followed by neutral and unsolvable conditions, respectively. Using both concurrent chaining and forced choice procedures, results from 17 college students show that participants preferred solvable conditions more than unsolvable conditions, but there was no difference between solvable and neutral conditions. Results suggest that making sense serves both positively and negatively reinforcing functions.

In this functional magnetic resonance imaging study, we examined the neural correlates of avoidance and extinction and how levels of experiential avoidance modulate activation during extinction. Seventeen adult subjects responded under a multiple FR9 avoidance (AV)-extinction (EXT) schedule, with each component 16 s in duration. As expected, high rates of responding occurred during AV, with little or no responding during EXT. First, results showed striatal activation occurred to the AV cue and decreased during EXT, suggesting that the striatum supports both avoidance maintained by negative reinforcement and behavior maintained by positive reinforcement. Second, results showed EXT recruited ventrolateral and inferior frontal regions, insula and amygdala, which suggests that extinction of avoidance recruits some of the same regions reported in studies on extinction of conditioned fear. Lastly, results showed that increased activation during EXT in the amygdala and bilateral insula (emotional processing regions) was correlated with increased experiential avoidance (AAQ-II and TCQ-self punishment scores). The heightened limbic system response suggests that people with learning histories (reported) characterized by extensive avoidance may show more reactivity to EXT; which contributes to between-subject variability.

Acceptance and commitment therapy (ACT; Hayes, Strosahl, & Wilson, 1999) is an empirically-based approach to therapy which posits that when one's life consists of value-congruent behavior, there is less psychological distress. It has since been suggested that the intense and overt focus on symptom reduction designed to change or replace thoughts may not lead to the most optimal treatment outcome (Hayes et. al. 1999). Given this information, a new treatment rational has been proposed (Hayes et. al 1999). Clients are encouraged to accept both the pleasure and the pain as natural and even necessary elements of a well-adjusted individual. Given this emphasis on values as it relates to behavioral outcomes, it is important that the relationship between personal values, values-based behavior, and psychological distress be further investigated. The current project seeks to evaluate the roles of acceptance, psychological distress and coping style with values-based behavioral congruence. As part of a larger project, the baseline information obtained can provide supportive conclusions to the abundance of empirical data supporting the ACT framework. Preliminary data suggests a positive relationship between value-based behavioral congruence and acceptance in those who present with low values behavioral concordance.

The Bull's-eye is a measure that clarifies values and assesses movement toward these values in spite of barriers (Lundgren, 2006). The Bulls-eye has been used in a recent study on acceptance and commitment therapy and the reduction of epileptic seizures (Lundgren, Dahl, and Hayes, in press). Alternatively the Valued Living Questionnaire (VLQ) is a measure that has been used in clinical settings to assess behavioral concordance with values. The present poster analyzes the correlation between the Bull's-eye and Valued Living Questionnaire. The measures were given to a sample (r= .203, n= 148) of introductory psychology students at a large Midwestern university. The results show a significant correlation (P<.05) between total concordance on the VLQ and Bulls-eye. Subsequent tests were run to analyze how well specific items on the VLQ correlated to the 4 domains of the Bulls-eye. Results show that the work items were not correlated between the two tests, leisure was correlated with recreation (r= .269, P<.01), the Family and Friends items were slightly correlated (r= .165, p< .05), and Physical Self-Care was correlated with Personal Growth/Health (r= 2.64, p< .01). This data suggests that the two measures are measuring the same thing but are likely tapping into it in different ways.

One method that has been successful in managing pain is mindfulness. For the purpose of this experiment, mindfulness refers to an active non-judgmental process wherein private events and external stimuli are observed as they arise (Baer, 2003). With regard to painful stimulation, mindfulness techniques train people to differentiate physical stimulation from their verbal behavior concerning such stimulation. This experiment examined the effects of a brief mindfulness package on functioning during a cold pressor task, an extension of Hayes et al. (1999). Participants were exposed to two conditions (mindfulness vs. placebo condition) in a multielement design over eight sessions. The independent variable of interest was a mindfulness-based experiential exercise and brief 60 minute group mindfulness training. Dependent variables assessed were pre and post Kentucky Inventory Mindfulness Scale (KIMS) scores, the duration of the cold pressor task, and the rate of randomized math computations completed via a computer program.

Smith (2005) has asserted that the relaxation state (R-state) aware is a form of mindfulness. The current research examined the magnitude and direction of relations between direct observation of relaxed behavior and self-reported awareness, and cognitive, somatic, and physiological relaxation. Twenty-four undergraduates took part and were assessed on two occasions, one week apart. Correlation analysis revealed: (a) direct observation of relaxed behavior was not related to self reported awareness (mindfulness) or self reported relaxation, (b) the physical tension scale of relaxation was related to reported mindfulness, and (c) the reliability and validity of self-reported measures of relaxation was not replicated.

Chronic tic disorders are of biological origin but can be brought under operant control. Several studies have shown that differential reinforcement of other behavior (DRO) contingencies can decrease tic frequency (i.e. increase tic suppression), but none have systematically investigated the effects of other kinds of contingencies. The present study compares the effects of DRO and response cost contingencies on tic suppression. In this study children and adolescents with tic disorders are exposed to twelve, five-minute conditions of baseline, DRO, and response cost. A multielement withdrawal design with counterbalancing across subjects is used. Results will demonstrate the relative effects of DRO and response cost schedules on tic suppression. Results will also further knowledge of the conditions under which the tic rebound effect, in which children reportedly tic at a higher rate following periods of suppression than at other times, may or may not occur. Findings from this study will be of both basic science and translational interests within the field of tic disorders.

Tourette's syndrome is a neurological disorder. A majority of patients seek medical treatment to manage tics (Piacentini & Chang, 2001). Tic symptoms, however, also fluctuate as function of the environment (Leckman & Cohen, 1999) posing the possibility that a behavioral intervention may be effective in managing tics. Habit reversal training (HRT) (Azrin & Nunn, 1973) is a multi-component behavioral treatment package for suppressing nervous habits and tics by creating awareness of the behavior and engaging in an incompatible behavior, or competing response, to replace the nervous habit or tic. Studies using habit reversal training have found the procedure to be effective for tics (Peterson, Campise, & Azrin, 1994; Piacentini & Chang, 2001; Woods & Miltenberger, 1995, 2001). The current study will include HRT procedures to treat tics in a 9-year-old patient with Tourette's syndrome.

A number of researchers have used simplified versions of the original habit reversal procedures described by Azrin and Nunn (1977) to treat a variety of repetitive behaviors or stereotyped movements (e.g., nail biting, excessive scratching, and skin picking). However, research on the use of simplified procedures to treat these types of repetitive behaviors in children continues to be needed. In the current study, simplified habit reversal procedures were used within a brief (90-min) outpatient evaluation to treat chronic skin picking and nail biting with two children. A multielement evaluation was conducted to identify antecedent events that evoked the repetitive behaviors. A reversal design was used to evaluate the effects of a treatment package that included awareness, competing response, and social support components. Inter-observer agreemnent was collected during at least 25% of sessions and agreement was above 90%. Repetitive behaviors were reduced to zero or near zero levels within a 90-min outpatient evaluation. Implications of using a simplified variation of habit reversal procedures with children in an outpatient clinic setting will be discussed.

Universities have a commitment to training future professionals, and in recent years have suggested that multidisciplinary education is one of the main points to guide its work. The aim of this study was to analyze the effect of multidisciplinary training in the care of children with disabilities. Thirty-seven psychology students, 19 optometric students and 18 medicine students participated in this study. These students attended 20 children with a multidisciplinary approach for a semester. A questionnaire was applied for assess the quality of service and the impact on students' professional training. It was performed a quantitative analysis of the data. The results showed that psychologists, optometrists and doctors considered important to participate in a multidisciplinary intervention for children with disabilities, because this contributes to a better quality of life and too they develop as professionals with skills needed to provide attention to this population. An important aspect about multidisciplinary work is related with the benefits to offer quality service, and generate knowledge in the students, as well as serves as experience for those professionals who are in training.

Sign posting and container proximity manipulations have been shown to be effective methods of increasing recycling in university and corporate settings. The generalizability of these methods to other populations is unknown. The current study used an ABCDEAB reversal design to examine recycling behavior in an adult mental health population at a local socialization center. During baseline (A), the amount of recyclable materials placed in trash containers was monitored. Recycling containers were then introduced to the center. During intervention phases, recycling and trash containers were placed adjacent to each other without signs (B), 4 meters apart without signs (C), adjacent to each other with signs (D), and 4 meters apart with signs (E). A brief reversal to baseline was then implemented followed by reinstating the least intrusive-most effective treatment. Results indicated that placing recycling and trash containers in close proximity (with or without signage) yielded the greatest overall increase in recycling behavior. Moreover, patrons of the center were able to reliably assist in data collection and maintain the project following the withdrawal of intervention. Techniques for increasing recycling behavior can be extended to a novel population and setting, albeit with some unique challenges to data collection (e.g., can theft).

This study, a systematic replication of Manuel et al., (2007), used an assessment tool to guide intervention selection to increase the use of reusable cups by staff members in a school cafeteria. Behavior analysts implementing interventions designed to protect the environment have been encouraged to shift their focus from recycling to reducing and/or reusing consumer goods (Lehman & Geller, 2004), and research, though limited, has suggested that assessment tools may be helpful when selecting community-based interventions (e.g., Rohn, Austin, & Lutrey, 2002, Pampino et al., 2003, Manuel et al, 2007). In the present study staff members filled out a survey regarding their use of disposable cups and interventions were chosen based on the results of the survey. Survey-suggested interventions were primarily antecedent interventions. A multiple baseline across settings was used in two different cafeterias at the same school. Data suggest that interventions guided by the assessment tool could effectively decrease the use of disposable cups.

Global warming has a destructive effect on the earth, air, water, and weather around us as large amounts of greenhouse gases pollute the world. Recycling has been shown to help lower greenhouse gas emissions by reducing methane released by landfills. Behavioral researchers studying recycling employ the use of convenience, proximity, and prompts and rewards in order to create compliance in residential, academic, and business settings. These factors were included in an AB design with follow-up, which examined three theories of behavior modification to determine the best approach to convince students to recycle. These theories included applied behavior analysis (i.e., prompts and rewards), the theory of planned behavior, and social capital. Groups were presented information via posters and brochures that was consistent with one of these theories of behavioral change. Environmental values and recycling attitudes were also measured. The applied behavior analysis group showed the greatest increase in recycling. The social capital and theory of planned behavior groups showed modest increases in recycling. This would suggest that applied behavior analysis with the use of reinforcers creates the greatest increase in recycling for a college population. Reinforcers could be used to increase recycling on other college campuses as well.

In Baer, Wolf and Risley's (1968) seminal article on seven important dimensions in behavior analysis, the applied dimension directs behavior analysts to commit to the enhancement of people's lives. The dimension is also in accord with general ethics in basic science. Behavior eligible for change and interrogation must be changed in socially and clinically significant directions, and also in line with the client's values. In earlier studies (Arntzen, Lokke, & Lokke, 2008; Lokke, Arntzen, & Lokke, 2010) we presented data from two administrations of one survey (based on Bailey, 2006). The main finding was that the participants assessed effective, evidence based treatment and improvement in quality of life as the most important aspects of applied behavior analysis. In the current presentation we have refined, reformulated and added new items to the instrument. The new items represent mainstream science and generally accepted rules of conduct (Helsinki declaration). The new instrument includes values relevant both for applied behavior analysis and experimental behavior analysis.

Event attendees typically have one choice to make when disposing of waste, a trash can. If other choices are present, the added response cost of making a decision about the placement of waste often results in improperly sorted waste bins. Subsequently, designing a program to accurately collect recycling and compost in addition to landfill waste can be challenging. This study was designed around a program used at a large music festival where waste bins were organized into "pods" consisting of three bins for recycling, compost, and landfill. Three pod variations were tested and the accuracy of waste placed in each bin was measured in an effort to establish which condition resulted in the most accurately sorted waste. The conditions consisted of (a) a simple labeling sign located above pod, (b) a simple sign with the addition of a detailed sign outlining what types of waste should go in each bin, (c) a simple and detailed sign with the addition of a staff member positioned behind the pod. Results show two interesting trends with accuracy of sorted waste higher overall for the staffed pods but decreasing over time while accuracy of the detailed and simple signs lower but increasing.

We address the practical and ethical issues of usingapplied behavior analysisin practice to help a 26-year-old woman with a history of severe self-injurious biting behavior, and other self-injurious behaviors (SIB), that often occur prior to a biting episode, for over 20 years. The Self-Injury Trauma (SIT) Scale was utilized to quantify surface tissue damage. This person scored 4 for Number, 3 for Severity with inter-rater reliability of 91%. Elbow and carpal tunnel wrist splints and leather jackets fastened backward were used as restraints or to block biting of hands and arms in the past. After completing a historical review, interviews, and observing, we hypothesized the behavior served an attention seeking function. Afunctional analysiswas completed comparing no attention with attention. In the second attention phase, behaviors escalated resulting in additional attention via intervention/blocking of SIB. Partial interval data was used in which each minute was divided into 10-s intervals. Data was collected on escalating levels of SIB ranging from pulling hair to biting. We then intervened using differential reinforcement of low response rate (DRL) and non-contingent reinforcement to attempt to reduce the intensity and rate of SIB biting episodes. Preliminary data do show a decrease. The poster presentation will include all treatment data follow up probes.

Characteristics derived from a sample of 50 participants with developmental disabilities who receive behavioral services in a rural service area are summarized according to gender, age, primary disability category, history of institutionalization, preferred reinforcers, comorbid psychiatric and medical conditions, problematic behaviors, primary functions of behavior, and type and number of medications prescribed. Relevant treatment characteristics such as number and type of behavioral interventions, number and severity of target behaviors, average treatment integrity, and number and category of replacement behaviors are assessed and categorized across characteristics. General conclusions resulting from these analyses include (a) more emphasis tends to be placed on behavior reduction than on increasing skill repertoires and preventing challenging behavior (e.g., the use of antecedent modification) and (b) the "fair pair rule" (White & Haring, 1980) is underutilized in regard to the design and implementation of appropriate replacement behaviors. Summative recommendations for behavioral professionals and service delivery agencies follow from the conclusions and include (a) institute systematic analyses of the setting events that may be contributing to challenging behavior, (b) place more programmatic emphasis on assessing and modifying the antecedents to problematic behavior, and (c) increase instruction in and reinforcement of functionally-equivalent, appropriate skills and behaviors.

Elopement, or running out of a classroom or other designated area without supervision, poses a serious risk for students with developmental disabilities who do not respond appropriately to safety signs and rules in the community. The purpose of this study will be to evaluate the effectiveness of a treatment for elopement hypothesized to be maintained by stereotypy. First, a functional analysis will be conducted to evaluate the relation between elopement and stereotypic behavior. Next, we will evaluate the effectiveness of functional communication training as a treatment for elopement maintained by access to stereotypy. An ABAB reversal design will be used to assess the effects of the functional communication training on elopement. One participant, a 9-year-old male with developmental disabilities, will be the participant in this study. The results of this study may provide practitioners with methods which may be used to reduce elopement and increase the safety of their students and clients.

Few studies have examined the adherence to behavioural treatment plans implemented by care providers in natural settings, and this concept is often left unexamined in both research and practice. Lack of treatment adherence data is often described as a limitation in research studies and is frequently suggested as an area for future research, yet there remains a dearth of research on this topic. As part of a systematic program of research being developed to address the need for more emphasis on treatment adherence in applied behavior analysis (ABA) research, an online international survey of the perspectives and experiences of behaviour analysts on treatment adherence is being conducted. This poster will provide a summary of practicing behaviour analysts' opinions on the degree to which treatment adherence is a problem in their practice, the strategies that they use to improve adherence, and the barriers to adherence in family, educational and treatment settings. This poster will also summarize the opinions of behaviour analysts on the relevance of research and clinical emphasis on treatment adherence in ABA.

Chaining procedures have been used by behavior analysts for many years in teaching skills to individuals with developmental disabilities and autism. Introductory behavior analytic texts primarily teach the use of three types of chaining procedures: forward, backward, and total task. One type of chaining procedure, reverse chaining, has previously been identified in the literature, but has been underutilized as a teaching strategy since its introduction. This poster will present suggestions for programmatic use of reverse chaining to include considerations of learner skill level, responses to prompting, and graphing and data collection considerations. When a learner can complete many of the steps in a task independently, the use of reverse chaining could be beneficial depending on which steps are already being completed independently. The addition of a leaps-ahead technique could be utilized to allow the learner to complete those steps already in their repertoire independently while the others are trained with the reverse chaining technique. The reverse chaining procedure additionally provides the benefit of a practice effect, especially important for learners who have a long history of completing a task incorrectly, for example, self-care skills. Real case examples where reverse chaining was used in clinical practice will be presented.

Identifying a level of arm restraint rigidity that reduces self-injurious behavior (SIB) but does not inhibit adaptive behaviors is important. Previous research has varied the rigidity of the arm restraints with bendable, metal stays (Irvin et al., 1998) while measuring SIB and adaptive hand to mouth behavior in order to determine the optimal level of restraint. The current investigation conducted a pre-fading restraint analysis, similar to procedures used by Wallace et al. (1999), with an 8-year-old boy admitted to an inpatient unit for the assessment and treatment of SIB. He was diagnosed with a movement disorder, severe mental retardation, and chromosome 13 deletion. Due to NPO restrictions, an adaptive behavior was identified (i.e., placing a pacifier into his mouth) and measured as an alternative to consuming food or drink. The pre-fading analysis determined that empty sleeve arm restraints were effective in reducing the occurrence of SIB while still allowing the participant to place the pacifier to his mouth. Reliability data were collected on SIB and pacifier to mouth for 67% of sessions and averaged 96.5%. Results support literature suggesting that these methods are helpful in determining the least restrictive level of restraint prior to initiating restraint fading.

Low response efficiency when attempting to consume food can lead to severe problem behavior in individuals with disabilities. Errorless learning strategies are one method that have been proven to be effective in decreasing rates of problem behavior. In this study, a multiple baseline across settings design was utilized to evaluate treatment with a 19-year-old female diagnosed with cerebral palsy, who engaged in high rates of self-injurious behaviorduring meal times. After collecting baseline data, the individual was provided with full physical prompts to decrease her effort and increase the magnitude of the reinforcer she consumed. Next, on the recommendation of a licensed occupational therapist, weights were added to decrease ataxia related to her cerebral palsy. Then, a fading procedure was used to increase the individual's independence with feeding by decreasing the level of prompting needed. Results show that errorless teaching was effective in reducing self injurious head banging during meal time; also the fading procedure was effective in increasing mealtime independence. This study adds to the literature on errorless leaning strategies, as well as increasing independent feeding skills.

Previous research has demonstrated the effectiveness of stimulus fading in increasing the consumption of solids and liquids in children with pediatric feeding disorders. A child who was admitted to an intensive interdisciplinary feeding program progressed from taking drinks with a syringe at admittance, to taking drinks independently with a cup at discharge with the use of stimulus fading techniques. The latency to accept drinks decreased across sessions as presentations were altered from drinks fed with a spoon, straw, cup (non-self feeder), and finally a cup during independent drinking. In addition to stimulus fading, differential access to a preferred activity and a chin support were present during phases of the treatment. These components were subsequently removed as stimulus fading continued while maintaining a low latency of drink acceptance. This treatment effect was demonstrated across therapist and caregiver, as well as with varying types of drinks. Results demonstrate the effectiveness of stimulus fading to decrease latency of drink acceptance and increase overall independence with cup drinking.

Intensive interdisciplinary feeding programs have been found to be effective in reducing overall tube dependence and inappropriate mealtime behavior for children with food refusal. The present study examined medical, nutritional, and behavioral factors contributing to participant treatment outcomes. Participants included 159 children with tube dependence admitted to an intensive interdisciplinary feeding program over the course of 5 years. A retrospective chart review was conducted. Potential predictors of treatment outcome collected at admission were age, caregiver report of stress and mealtime behavior, medical diagnoses, and oral consumption with caregivers. Treatment outcomes were defined as difference in percentage of tube dependence and difference in food refusal from admission to discharge. Multiple regression analyses will be conducted to examine predictors. Findings from this study may provide insight in determining which children may benefit most from an intensive feeding program. These results may have implications for determining the costs and benefits of intensive admissions for children with tube dependence.

We assessed the extent to which false positives could be produced in multielement designs. To address this question, we created graphs that varied the number of data paths and the number of data points. In total, we created 1,200 multielement designs using a random number generator. In Experiment 1, we visually analyzed the graphs for the presence of false positives. Results indicated that graphs depicting only two sessions for each condition produced the highest percentage of false positives. Conversely, graphs with four or five sessions for each condition produced the lowest percentage of false positives. In Experiment 2, we developed two new rules and applied them to each graph in an attempt to decrease the percentage of false positives. The results showed that the new rules decreased false positives to less than 5% for all of the graphs except for those with two data paths and two data points.

Experimental functional analyses rely on the manipulation of environmental variables to identify the maintaining reinforcers of behavior and are often used to predict effective interventions for decreasing problem behavior. One crucial aspect of this procedure is that individuals discriminate between each test condition, in order to reveal orderly responding as a function of the different programmed contingencies. Condition correletated stimuli (e.g. colored poster boards) are one method for facilitating discrimination between conditions. The procedural variation of including contingency stating rules prior to test conditions has not yet been studied. Rules have been shown to be effective in quickly bringing behavior under stimulus control in other experimental contexts, however it is unclear whether the statement of rules would result in an altered performance in a functional analysis procedure. The purpose of this study was to compare two functional analysis protocols, one containing and one without verbal description of the contingencies for each test condition, in an effort to determine which procedure yields more clearly differentiated results. The practical and theoretical implications of these data are discussed.

When determining the function of behavior, more often than not, the experimenter is required to expose the individual to a number of reinforcement contingencies (i.e., antecedent manipulations) suspected of maintaining the behavior (i.e., functional analysis). In most cases, session length is usually limited to 5 or 10 minutes. However, under circumstances in which the individuals target behaviors are severe (e.g., self-injury, physical aggression), sessions lasting 5 to 10 minutes may unnecessarily expose the individual to high-rates of responding. In the current investigation, a latency analysis was used to identify the behavior function for a 6 4, 250 lb, 15-year-old male diagnosed with autism, whose target behaviors consist of physical aggression and self-injury. Programmed consequences for this individuals target behaviors were evaluated across two test conditions (i.e., tangible & demand) and one control condition (i.e., toy play). All sessions were 5-minutes in duration. The latency analysis used the duration to the first occurrence of the target behavior as the primary dependent variable rather than using frequency or rate. The latency analysis allowed for a determination of function without evoking high rates of problem behaviors.

When contact with individuals is limited, as in outpatient and consultation work, it may be impossible to obtain repeated measures across an extended series of assessment sessions. A brief functional analysis (BFA) (Northup et al., 1991) was developed exactly for these situations. The purpose of this functional analysis was to determine more effective interventions for a client's aggressions to his housemates. A brief functional analysis (BFA) and probe observations were completed of aggression, defined as pinching, scratching, pushing, biting, kicking and eye poking. Three months before these BSP and Care Plan changes the rate of aggression was 219 per month, but this data also included aggression toward staff. Monthly rates of aggression toward housemates two months before the BSP and Care Plan changes were 42 per month and 58 per month. Peer aggression data started two months before the BFA was completed. Monthly rates of aggression toward housemates after the BSP and Care Plan changes ranged from 5 to 3 per month.

A number of studies have demonstrated a relationship between self-injurious behavior and self-restraining behavior. Due to this comorbidity, there is a need to assess the functional relationship. The purpose of this study was to assess the contingent application of protective equipment in maintaining rates of self-injury. The participant in the study was an 11-year-old boy, residing in a behavior stabilization facility who exhibited self-injurious behaviors in the form of biting to arms, hands, and shoulders. As a result he continuously wore protective arm guards. The participant also engaged in a variety of self-restraint behaviors, all of which involved the restriction of movement to his arms. Six functional analysis conditions, including those conducted by Iwata (1982/1994) were conducted in a multielement design. These conditions included demand, attention, toy play, tangible, modified alone, and an access to restraint condition. During the access to restraint condition, contingent upon an attempt or successful self-injurious behavior, the protective arm guards were reapplied for 30 seconds. Results indicate consistent rates of self-injurious behavior in the access to restraint condition. Implications for function-based treatment are discussed.

The functional analysis (Iwata et al., 1982/1994) is integral to determining the maintaining variables for problem behavior and correctly identifies behavioral function in the majority of cases (Iwata et al. 1994). However, additional analyses may be necessary to identify idiosyncratic or contradictory functions of problem behavior. In the current study, we assessed the aggression and self-injurious behavior (SIB) of one participant diagnosed with autism and mental retardation. Results from several functional assessments determined that SIB was maintained by access to attention while aggression was maintained by escape from social interaction. That is, different topographies of problem behavior served contradictory functions for this participant. Functional communication training (FCT) was conducted to teach the participant to communicate for access to attention as well as to terminate social interaction. Results suggested that functional communication and extinction resulted in clinically significant reductions in SIB and aggression even as the schedule of reinforcement was thinned.

Lottery tokens were used to improve cigarette management skills for an individual with moderate mental retardation. Tokens (business-sized cards) were developed with varying amounts of points (1-500) covered with a scratch-off sticker. The individual was having difficulty managing the carton of cigarettes that she received from her guardian each week. Typically she would receive cigarettes on Friday evening and by Thursday morning of the following week she would be out of cigarettes. Thursdays and Fridays were very difficult for her and her peers at her adult day training (ADT) program. She would display disruptive behavior (mild physical aggression, property disruption, and verbal disruption), beg strangers, staff and peers for cigarettes and steal cigarettes. In Phase I, this individual was told that she would receive a lottery token for each pack of cigarette that she brought to the ADT on Thursday and Friday. This procedure produced mild success. She would bring one pack in on most (75%) of the Thursdays but not on Friday. In Phase II, the individual was told that she would also receive lottery tokens on Tuesdays for each pack of cigarettes that she brought to the ADT. This procedure produced very good results. The individual brought 5-7 packs of cigarettes on Thursday and 2-4 packs on Friday.

This study investigated the effect of implementing high-probability (high-p) request sequences prior to the delivery of instructions to transition in a child with severe mental retardation. Data were collected on latency to comply with a low-probability (low-p) request to transition and a modified version of the low-p request to transition. Implementation of high-p request sequences resulted in shortened latencies to comply with the modified low-p request that instructed the participant to engage in a relatively higher preferred activity located at the endpoint of the transition.

Behavior plans often serve multiple functions (Carr, 2009). Not only do they document the appropriate treatment for an individual, but often they are required to meet state and federal guidelines as well. As a result, behavior plans end up as lengthy documents potentially making it difficult for individuals assigned to implement them to find necessary information quickly. This may result in poor integrity of plan implementation. A possible solution would be to provide the plan implementers with an abbreviated supplement that includes only the information required to implement the plan in an easy to reference format. The purpose of the current study was to identify whether the integrity with which direct care staff members implemented behavior plans was higher when they had access to an abbreviated supplement of the behavior plan. Participants were direct care staff members working in a pediatric residential program where most individuals served had a behavior plan designed primarily to reduce severe problem behavior. A multiple-baseline design across three behavior plans was used. Results and a discussion of the findings specific to their applied implications will be presented.

The relationship between ambient noise and screaming in a four-year-old girl with Retts syndrome was assessed using functional analysis. Results indicated that ambient noise evoked differentiated levels of screaming as evidenced by highest levels of screaming when three adults in the room engaged in conversation, intermediate levels of screaming when others in the room sat quietly, and lowest levels of screaming when others sat in the room quietly and a noise generator emitted white noise. Screaming was ignored across conditions. These results were consistent with previous functional analysis data suggesting that screaming was at least partially maintained by adult attention (i.e., why others engaging in conversation was relevant to screaming whereas white noise was not). These results highlight the importance of considering idiosyncratic variables which set the occasion for behaviors that interfere with learning when conducting functional analyses. Interventions to target screaming based on these data will be presented and discussed.

Procedures for training the conditional discriminations prerequisite for testing for stimulus equivalence may involve delayed matching-to-sample (DMTS). The delay can be held constant during the course of the training or it can titrate. In titrating DMTS the delay between sample disappearance and the availability of comparisons is adjusted as a function of the behavior of the participant. Such delays can start at 0 ms and titrate upward as a function of correct responding or it can start higher and titrate downward as function of correct responding. The current study compares these two variations. Adult participants were, using a one-to-many training structure, either exposed to a 0-3000 or 0-12000 ms ascending titration procedure, or a 3000-0 or 12000-0 descending titration procedure. In addition two control groups where exposed to either descending or ascending titration involving time lengths thought not to be discriminable. While all participants responded according to the defining properties of stimulus equivalence in the two descending titration groups, far fewer did so when using the ascending procedures. As such, these results indicate that descending titration is superior in generating stimulus equivalence responding. Results will be discussed in relation to other findings concerning DMTS and stimulus equivalence.

This study investigated the issue of resurgence in the context of equivalence class formation and reorganization. In the first study, six undergraduate students participated, and were taught conditional relations between stimuli of sets A, B and C. After this, tests for equivalence class formation were introduced. During training and testing the background color of the screen was blue. Next, the classes were reorganized via conditional discrimination training similar to the previous phase, followed by tests for reorganized classes. During this phase, red was the background color. Finally, equivalence tests were introduced with varied background colors: blue, red and also green. The results showed that in the three final tests, five subjects showed 90% consistent selections with the reorganized classes, regardless of background color, showing no control of the background colors over performance. In order to develop this control a second study was designed. In this study, five undergraduate students participated, two of whom were naïve to the experimental procedures. The procedure was identical to the first study except that during the final tests, all test trials were interspersed with baseline trials with background colors blue, red and green. A greater consistency with reorganized classes was observed with some discrepancies.

The aim of the current study was to adapt the Relational Completion Procedure (RCP; Dymond & Whelan, 2010) to investigate derived comparative relations of more than and less than. The present variant RCP employed a constructed response format in which participants dragged and dropped samples and comparisons to construct a sentence, with all stimuli presented sequentially from left to right. Phases 1 and 2 consisted of nonarbitrary relational training and testing designed to establish the contextual functions of more than and less than for two arbitrary visual stimuli. Next, during arbitrary relational training (Phase 3), participants were exposed to one of three training schedules, in which the trained relations differed between the groups: All More: (E more-than D, D more-than C, C more-than B, and B more-than A); All Less: (A less-than B, B less-than C, C less-than D, and D less-than E); and Less More (A less-than B, B less-than C, D more-than C, and E more-than D). Finally, during arbitrary relational testing (Phase 4), a variant of the simple-to-complex testing protocol was employed, whereby probes for mutual entailment were followed by tests involving one- and two-node combinatorially entailed relations. The present findings demonstrated that the RCP was successful in establishing responding in accordance with the derived comparative relations of more-than and less-than. Results are discussed in terms of the development of novel procedures to train and test multiple stimulus relations.

This study investigated if the amount of training trials interferes with the induction of meaning among equivalent stimuli. College students were divided into two groups, labeled Single Group and Double Group. They were trained to establish equivalence classes comprising one set of faces expressing emotions (A) and four sets of arbitrary stimuli (B, C, D and E). The Double Group was submitted to two times more trials than the Single Group. Participants who showed the establishment of equivalence classes used a semantic differential to evaluate stimuli from the set D. These evaluations were compared to evaluations made by control participants, who evaluated the D stimuli and the faces. In general, happy faces produced highly positive scores, angry faces produced highly negative scores, and D stimuli produced neutral scores in the control group. The same D stimuli when included in equivalence classes produced scores that were similar to those produced by the faces equivalent to them, but the Double Group assigned average values closer to the values assigned to the faces than the Single Group. It is discussed that transfer of meaning between equivalent stimuli may be more intense when the participants are subjected to a higher number of training trials.

Simple discriminations with compound class-specific reinforcers will be trained for five children with developmental disabilities. Compound class-specific reinforcers will be a printed number word and spoken number word. Choosing stimulus A1 will produce the printed word four (R1) and spoken word "four" (S1), choosing A2 will produce the printed word seven (R2) and the spoken word "seven" (S2), choosing A3 will produce the printed word ten (R3) and the spoken word ten (S3), and choosing A4 will produce the printed word zero (R4) and then spoken word zero (R4). The A stimulus set will be numerals zero, four seven and ten, presented with inverted and upside-down distracter stimuli. Reinforcer probes will test for emergent relations between each element of the class-specific reinforcer and the A discriminative stimuli, and between the visual and auditory elements of the reinforcer. The B stimulus set will be plus-one math facts, each totaling the numeral presented as a corresponding A stimulus (e.g., if A1 is 4, B1 will be 3+1). Selection of B1 will be followed by R1 and S1, selection of B2 will be followed by R2 and S2, and selection of B3 will be followed by R3 and S3. Emergent relations between B stimuli and compound class-specific reinforcer elements, as well as between B and A stimuli will be probed. Lastly, simple discriminations with C1, C2, and C3 stimuli, or plus-two math facts, will be trained with R1 and S1, R2 and S2, and R3 and S3, respectively. Emergent relations between C stimuli and each element of the compound class-specific reinforcer, as well as emergent relations between A and C stimuli, and B and C stimuli, will be probed. If equivalence-class formation takes place, a class-specific response of either bead-counting on an abacus, numeral-writing, or number-word writing will be trained to A stimuli. Class-specific response selection will depend on baseline skill level. Probes will assess whether the class-specific response transfers to B and C stimuli. Findings in this study will constitute important tests of Sidmans (2000) theory that all members (class-specific responses and reinforcers included) of any reinforcement contingency can become equivalent, and thus interchangeable with one another. Likewise, it will provide further evidence that any reinforcement contingency, including three-term contingencies, can generate equivalence.

In this study, typically developing pre-school-aged children were taught conditional discriminations using class-specific consequences and responses. The trained conditional discriminations involved matching quantities of familiar objects with one another or with numeral-plus-one or numeral-plus-two math problems. The experimental participants were exposed to AA (quantity-quantity), AB (quantity-+1 math problems), and AC (quantity-+2 problems) conditional discrimination training. Prior to training, each participant completed a battery of pre-tests and after training, post-tests were administered to assess the emergence of relations between the response and all elements of the reinforcement contingency, as well as the formation of equivalence classes. The final stage of the study involved probe trials to test for the recombination of trained elements with novel math problems. The results show one representative experimental participant, who has demonstrated the formation of equivalence classes including the A, B, and C stimuli, as well as the elements of the class-specific reinforcer and response; this participant also demonstrated class-consistent responding to recombinative generalization probes. These data support Sidman's (2000) theory of equivalence, which states that all positive elements of the reinforcement contingency, including class-specific responses and reinforcers, can become members of an equivalence class.

Perkins et al. (2007) showed that using multiple exemplar training, the forms of the stimuli acquired differential control over specific discriminative functions acquired indirectly or via transfer of function. The aim of this study is to replicate the finding of Perkins et al. (2007) with decreased number of stimulus sets to keep the length of the sessions within limits and to prevent exhaustion and boredom among participants. Furthermore to extend the results of Perkins et al. (2007), we used the different type of stimulus functions to be trained. Three 3-member stimulus equivalence classes, each consisting of three topographically distinct visual stimuli were established for undergraduate students using match-to-sample (MTS) task. Following the MTS training and testing, participants were provided with many trials in which behaving in accordance with transformation of function was differentially reinforced or punished depending on the presence of a class of physical features of the stimuli. Finally, new equivalence classes were then established and tests for generalized contextual control were presented. Data presented here will contribute to empirical verification of how generalized stimulus control over function transformation might arise in natural settings.

Research has indicated that escape-maintained behavior can be analyzed through manipulating task presentation and probability (Cooper, et al., 1992; Roscoe, et al., 2009). The purpose of the present study was to analyze escape-maintained aggression of a 16-year-old male with autism. Initially, a multi-element functional analysis was conducted which indicated that the individual's aggression was maintained by escape from demands. A second phase of analysis compared the presentation of a whole-task demand and a partial-task demand. A whole-task demand had a clear beginning and end with limited verbal instructions while a partial-task demand consisted of high rates of instruction with no clear beginning and end. The participant exhibited high rates of aggression during the partial-task presentation while no aggression was observed during whole-task presentation. To further analyze aggression the participant was presented with novel and familiar tasks within a partial-task presentation. It was concluded that the participant is likely to exhibit higher rates of aggression when high probability tasks are presented in a partial-task formation. Implications for treatment will be discussed.

Research has indicated that functional communication training can provide individuals with replacement behaviors to reduce the rate of problem behaviors (Carr & Durand, 1985). The present study involved a 12-year-old male diagnosed with pervasive development disorder, mild mental retardation and mood disorder-not otherwise specified who displayed self-injurious behaviors which required him to wear a protective helmet and gloves. Functional analysis results indicated that self-injury was maintained by escape from demands. Treatment was implemented to teach the individual to request a break or help in place of engaging in self-injury. Reinforcement was provided for independently requesting break, help or when he expressed his emotions in the moment. If self-injurious behaviors occurred, the instructor delivered prompts to request for a break or help but reinforcement was not delivered for prompted communication. At the end of each session there was a debriefing to review how the participant felt during the sessions and pair these emotions with the need for functional communication. Rates of self-injurious behaviors decreased to near zero rates after treatment was implemented.

In two separate instances a first and a third grade teacher requested assistance with classroom management procedures. Consultants worked with the teachers to apply the Color Wheel (CW) classroom management procedure that includes three different sets of rules for different classroom activities and procedures for switching from one set of rules to another as activities are changed. Using A-B-C-B and A-C-B-C designs we evaluated the effects of the CW procedures when applied with and without independent group-oriented reward (IGOR) procedures. Results confirmed previous research by showing that the CW procedure caused large reductions in inappropriate vocalizations. The results extend this research by showing that the additional rewards provided via the IGOR procedures did not enhance the effectiveness of the CW procedure. These results suggest that CW procedures may reduce instances of inappropriate behavior and instances of educators punishing often benign, incidental, inappropriate behaviors, as well as teacher and student frustration, while increasing time available for educators to teach and students to learn.

Previous research has demonstrated that manipulation of antecedent conditions within a functional analysis will aid in determining the stimulus control of problem behavior (Iwata, et al., 1994; Kennedy, 1994). The purpose of the present study was to compare two different presentations of a demand condition in relation to rates of self injurious behavior. The participant was a 12-year-old male diagnosed with pervasive developmental disorder not otherwise specified (PDD-NOS), and mood disorder-NOS. The demand conditions were categorized by whole task presentation and partial task presentation. Within the whole-task condition the task was presented with a clear beginning and end with limited instructions. The partial-task presentation consisted of high rates of instruction with no clear beginning and end to the overall task. A hierarchical prompting sequence was utilized in both conditions. Initially, these conditions were presented in a multi-element design followed by a pair-wise design. Results indicated that demands presented in a partial task presentation produced higher rates of self-injury than whole task presentation. A behavior contract including differential reinforcement of other behavior was implemented in partial task presentation treatment sessions. The results indicated that treatment implemented was effective in reducing rates of self-injury.

Under the behavior analysis perspective, teaching reading may be programmed through procedures derived from the stimulus equivalence paradigm. The standard procedure is called matching-to-sample (MTS), which has been used to teach a number of academic skills to children. This study is an attempt to investigate what repertoires are necessary so that individuals without knowledge in behavior analysis can implement MTS to teach children in applied settings. Three undergraduate students participated. A set of three stimuli was used to teach participants to: (a) program AC (dictated word-printed word) training (b) implement AC training and (c) analyze data performance. Teaching sessions were composed of demonstration followed by instruction to follow demonstration. Correct responses were followed by verbal praise and incorrect responses by the end of the task and reintroduction of the demonstration. Criterion to finish session was 100% of correct responses. Later, generalization tests were introduced with new sets of stimuli, in which there were no programmed consequences for correct and incorrect responses. All participants met criterion in the three phases of training, and showed generalization to news sets of stimuli. The results suggest that the procedure may be efficient to teach teachers to implement MTS procedures.

The present study was designed to investigate the relationship between stimuli in a chain schedule. Pigeons were exposed to a two-component multiple schedules with chain schedules of reinforcement in each component. The stimuli in both chains were identical except for a middle link stimulus. Initially, the probability of reinforcement was 0.50 for both chains but later was switched to 1.0 for one chain and 0.0 for the second chain. When the probabilities were 1.0 and 0.0, pigeons responded more to the middle-link stimulus correlated with food than to the middle-link stimulus correlated with extinction demonstrating responding was affected by the change in the probability contingency. Of particular interest was how responding was affected in other links of the chain. We predicted subjects would not respond differentially to links preceding the differential middle links and that they would respond differentially to links following the differential middle link. This latter finding would support the conclusion that an associative relationship existed between chain links. Preliminary data indicate that there were no differences in responding in any of the links except the different middle link challenging our hypothesis.

Stimulus control of self-controlled eating behavior was studied in three food-deprived pigeons that were exposed to 4 s illuminations of a response key followed by 3-s food-hopper presentations. The key illuminations occurred within a 64-s time cycle and were followed by the food hopper once the cycle elapsed, and the pigeon could eat from it according to the following contingency. When the key was white the pigeon could eat from the food hopper, but when the key was red trying to eat interrupted its presentation. The key was randomly illuminated in red or white and 50 T cycles were programmed per session. With this procedure a discrimination between white-then-eating behavior versus red-then-not-eating behavior was trained. A higher percentage of food-hopper interruptions after white than after red key illuminations was evidence of the discrimination training. Thus, to present a black out after food-hopper interruptions preceded by the red key was necessary to train the discrimination. Variable black-out durations were more conducive to the formation of the discrimination than fixed black-out durations. To vary the temporal location of the response-key illumination within the T cycle did not seem to contribute to the formation of the discrimination.

The purpose of this experiment was to investigate the effects of pre-training (visual experience) on visual scanning (VS) and visual discrimination learning (VDL) in adults. In addition, a heart rate (HR) model of visual learning has been proposed. In the model, it is predicted that during discrimination learning there are distinct visual attending behaviors that occur and are represented by changes in HR deceleration below baseline and HR acceleration above baseline. It is predicted that discrimination learning, as well as these changes in HR, are effected directly by prior pre-training experience (CONTINGENCY or HABITUAL). Forty-three participants were assigned randomly to one of two experimental groups or a control group. The two experimental groups received two different types of visual pre-training prior to a VDL task while the control group received no pre-training. Contingency pre-training involved the presentation of a simplified VDL task. Habitual pre-training involved the presentation of the most salient stimulus features used in the subsequent VDL task. Overall, the pre-training experiences were effective in increasing VS, and altering the direction and magnitude of HR. These results are interpreted as supporting, in part, Mitchell's (2005) HR model and Mitchell's (1990) "limited scanning hypothesis."

Two groups of participants were exposed to a matching-to-sample task and three transfer tests. For one group correct matching responses produced feedback and incorrect matching responses produced a blank screen. For the other group, incorrect matching responses produced feedback and correct matching responses produced a blank screen. For both groups feedback included a description of the ongoing matching relation in terms of relevant modalities. Accuracy was higher than chance level during transfer tests for the group exposed to the task in which only incorrect matching responses produced feedback; however, performance progressively decreased along such tests. For the other group, the percentage of correct responses was near or equal to zero along the experiment. These results are discussed in relation with previous studies on generalized second-order conditional discrimination, the functional role played by blank screens, and rule-governed behavior development.

Pinkston, Saulsgiver, and Branch (2007) recently showed that within-session changes in operant responding can be attenuated by explicitly-described, strictly-imposed session-entry criteria. Pinkston et al. exposed pigeons to a VI 30-s VI 30-s schedule of reinforcement in 2 conditions: one in which weight across sessions was tightly controlled and one in which such control was minimal. They reported minimal within-session decreases in operant responding when the deprivation level was strictly controlled. The current study attempted to replicate Pinkston et al.s study using four food-deprived Long-Evans rats. Rats responded on a VI 30-s VI 30-s schedule of reinforcement in order to earn access to a 10% sucrose solution. In both conditions, robust within-session decreases in operant responding were observed. Our results refute the claim that strict food deprivation prevents within-session decreases in responding, and suggest that the proper use of counterbalancing and explicitly-described stability criteria be used when studying within-session patterns of responding.

The present experiment tested the hypothesis that habituation contributes to within-session changes in operant responding. Twelve rats responded on either a FI 8- or a VI 8-s schedule in which pressing a lever produced 10% sucrose reinforcers during 30 min sessions. During the treatment conditions, the schedule of reinforcement was changed from an FI 8- to a VI 8-s, or from a VI 8- to a FI 8-s schedule. Late-session increases in responding followed the switch from an FI to the VI schedule, but decreases were observed when the schedule switched from a VI to a FI schedule. The results of the present experiment are consistent with the idea that habituation to the reinforcer contribute to within-session changes in operant responding (e.g., McSweeney & Roll, 1998).

The two-factor theory of avoidance behavior predicts that a warning signal that precedes shock will have an aversive function, and if this is true then presenting a warning signal contingent upon a response should punish that response. In the present study, five rats responded in a two-component multiple schedule of free-operant shock avoidance. Both components used a response-shock (RS) interval of 30 s, and a shock-shock (SS) interval of 5 s. A distinct warning signal was presented in each component, and signals differed primarily in terms of their respective durations. In one component, the signal appeared 29 s before RS shocks, and in the other component the signal appeared 5 s before RS shocks. Following the establishment of stable baseline responding under this arrangement, a conditioned punishment phase was conducted. The 5-s signal was presented briefly (0.5 s) following responses in the component with the 29-s signal. For all five rats, this had no effect on the response rates and interresponse time (IRT) distributions in the 5-s-Signal component; and for four of the five rats conditioned punishment had little effect on response rates and distributions in the 29-s-Signal component. Relative to baseline, the fifth rat had lower overall response rates and fewer short IRTs in the 29-s-Signal component during conditioned punishment. When this fifth rat was introduced to a sham punishment condition, in which an arbitrary stimulus was presented for 0.5 s following responses in the 29-s-Signal component, response rates and IRT distributions in that component approximated baseline results. However, subsequent attempts to replicate baseline and sham punishment conditions with this rat were not successful. Taken together, the results do not show that presenting a warning signal contingent upon a response will suppress that response.

Students who are academically engaged tend to have better learning outcomes. Several researchers have documented the influence of environmental factors on engagement including teachers' instructional practices. We know less, however, about how instructional and cultural practices interact to affect student engagement. We examined the relationship of instructional and cultural practices with students' behavioral engagement at the classroom level. Participants included 16 elementary teachers in an urban magnet school serving 300 students. We measured teachers' instructional and cultural practices, using the Universal Instructional Practices checklist, during 60 min observations. In order to measure students' behavioral engagement we used the Multi-Option Observation System for Experimental Studies (MOOSES) during 15 min sessions. Interobserver agreement for both methods was at or above 80%. Preliminary results indicated that several instructional and cultural practices were significantly related to behavioral engagement. Our discussion will focus on the independent and unique impact of instructional and cultural variables on engagement, and will include limitations and directions for future research.

While there have been a multitude of studies showing that stimulus equivalence can be an effective and efficient means of teaching several concepts such as math and spelling, most research has been limited to single-case designs with a small number of participants. The current study extends the literature by implementing a pre-test, post-test randomized group design. Further, this study uses a simple computer program to train equivalence classes. This study also extends the current literature base by attempting to use stimulus equivalence to teach students a second language. Specifically, the researcher examined whether a stimulus equivalence computer program could be used to teach unknown Ojibwe and Dakota words to pre-kindergarteners. Results suggested that all of the participants who received the computer training demonstrated the development of an equivalence class. Further, students in the treatment group performed significantly better on both a computerized posttest and a generalized posttest than those in the control group. This study provides further evidence that stimulus equivalence procedures can be used to teach equivalence classes to groups of young students. In other words, a computer program similar to the one utilized in this study could potentially be used by whole classrooms to efficiently teach equivalence classes.

Previous research has shown that teacher practices affect student academic outcomes. However, little is known about the impact of culture-specific instructional practice and student academic performance. This study examined the relationship between culture-specific instructional practice and student academic performance in a Native American heritage school. Culture-specific practices were measured during 20-minute sessions using the Universal Instructional Practices checklist, while student academic outcomes included standardized assessments in reading and math given throughout the year. Participants included 16 elementary teachers in an urban magnet school serving 300 students. Preliminary results indicated that several culture-specific instructional practices were strongly related to academic growth. The discussion will focus on those culture-specific instructional practices, and will also describe limitations and areas for future research.

Students who are academically engaged tend to have better learning outcomes. Several researchers have documented the influence of environmental factors on engagement including teachers' instructional practices. We know less, however, about how instructions affect student engagement. We examined the relationship of instructions and students' behavioral engagement at the classroom level. Participants included 16 elementary teachers in an urban magnet school serving 300 students. To measure teachers' interactions and students' engagement, we used the Multi-Option Observation System for Experimental Studies (MOOSES) weekly during 15 min observation sessions. Interobserver agreement for observations was at or above 80%. Preliminary results indicated that several teacher interactions were significantly related to students' engagement. Our discussion will focus on the influence of teacher interaction on student engagement, and will include limitations and directions for future research.

There is currently a wealth of literature available through sources found online. Many of these sources are publicly accessible and their libraries are growing larger every year. Furthermore, the search capabilities of these online resources are growing more sophisticated all of the time. Unfortunately, these libraries and search tools are only valuable to researchers and practitioners that are aware of their existence and the proper way to interact with these online databases. There are many search techniques which may have been overlooked by a vast majority, knowledge of these techniques can help researchers more easily find the literature they are looking for without sifting through countless articles that do not hold any relevance to their research. Our purpose was to contribute to the dissemination of these tools by providing behavior analytic scientist practitioners with a practical guide on how to conduct very effective literature searches using the latest online technologies.

This study investigates the generalization of student academic behavior shaped in a supportive classroom on student academic behavior emitted in the general education classroom. Supportive classrooms consist of teacher/aide pairs who operate under the context of a token economy to develop academic skills such as staying on task, following instructions, appropriately gaining teacher attention, and cooperating with peers while working to reduce undesired behaviors such as blurting out, engaging in off-task behaviors, and destroying school and personal property. Participating students divide their time each day between a supportive classroom and the general education classroom. Students are middle- and high-school students enrolled in the Social Intervention Program at the Washoe County School District. Data are compared across teacher/aide observations in both supportive and general education rooms, as well as from behavior analytic staff observations of student behavior. Special attention is paid to treatment adherence, inter-observer agreement of data collection, across both teachers and aides, and behavior analytic staff.

A common challenge reported by teachers is managing a large number of students in a single classroom. This problem is exacerbated in classrooms where multiple students exhibit problem behaviors. Addressing problem behaviors is a critical aspect in assisting students to achieving academic success; as such behaviors interfere with the learning process. Implementing a classroom-wide intervention to target multiple students can be a daunting task, and requires additional resources to manage teacher training in regards to individual behavior goals. A self-contained high school classroom in the Washoe County School District was utilized for this analysis. This analysis examined the effects of training one teacher on the implementation of a token system and verbal praise protocol with one student on the generalization of the teachers behavior toward other students. The token economy was designed to promote attending to positive skill development with a combined level-system to track student progress. Several behavior classes are examined, including academic, social, and work-related behaviors.

This presentation includes a study directly comparing differential reinforcement of alternative behavior (DRA) interventions with and without a pre-teaching component. The two DRA interventions were designed to decrease inappropriate behavior while simultaneously increasing appropriate behavior for four preschool students referred for behavioral consultation due to disruptive classroom behavior. DRA interventions were based on functional analyses and evaluated through BCBC designs counterbalanced to reduce order effects. Intervention data suggest clear differences in terms of beneficial outcomes for each child. Specifically, DRA with pre-teaching consistently resulted in the lowest levels of inappropriate behavior and the highest level of appropriate behavior across participants. Inter-observer agreement and treatment integrity data were collected and indicate that data were reliably collected and interventions were implemented with integrity. The current study provides an example of how functional behavior assessment and analyses can be utilized within preschool settings to facilitate development of DRA interventions. Attendees will be provided with detailed information on the rationale for this study, methodology, and implications for practice and future research.

The present study investigated the sequential introduction of a compliance training package based on the compliance training for children (CTC) Model on three students with hearing impairments in the classroom setting who were referred by their teachers for exhibiting noncompliance. All participants were enrolled at a residential school for individuals with hearing impairments or deafness. Baseline compliance levels were less than 40% with first time delivered teacher commands for each student. A nonconcurrent multiple baseline across participants design was used to assess the effectiveness of effective instruction delivery (EID), EID with contingent praise for compliance, and EID with contingent praise for compliance and time-out contingent on noncompliance. Each participant demonstrated substantial increases in mean levels of compliance with the introduction of EID. Although overall mean levels of compliance increased with subsequent phases, data overlapped and were more difficult to differentiate. All participants reached 100% compliance by the second intervention phase, therefore time-out was not introduced. Findings indicate that the use of these compliance training procedures may be applied to individuals with hearing impairments or deafness to increase compliance. Potential limitations and directions for future research will be discussed.

The present study investigated the effectiveness of two time-out (TO) procedures in reducing escape maintained noncompliance of four children in a classroom setting. Participants were screened to assess that compliance with teacher-presented instructions was low and escape maintained. Teachers were then trained to use two TO procedures, one without escape extinction (EE) and one with escape extinction following TO release. Two nonconcurrent multiple baseline across participants designs with a crossover element were used to compare levels of compliance across baseline, TO, and TO-EE phases. Increases in compliance were seen from baseline to the first intervention phase and these increases were maintained in the second intervention phase, regardless of the order of the phases. Small increases in compliance or decreases in variability were seen for some participants from the first to second intervention phase. Results indicate that TO with or without escape extinction may be an effective treatment for escape maintained noncompliance. These results are discussed within the context of previous research on the use of TO with escape maintained noncompliance.

Positive behavior interventions and supports (PBIS) is an assortment of techniques used to achieve important social and learning outcomes for students. The fundamental element of PBIS is the prevention of problem behaviors. Research provides support for PBIS in improving academic performance and reducing office discipline referrals. PBIS will be implemented on buses from 5 elementary/middle schools and 1 high school located in a rural school district in the southeastern United States. The 6 schools are currently involved in PBIS implementation. PBIS was implemented by bus drivers with the assistance of the district's PBIS consultant. Bus drivers read the expectations and rules to the students daily, and students who were observed exhibiting appropriate behavior were rewarded with bus bucks. Students were given the opportunity to exchange their bus bucks at their school's PBIS store on a bi-weekly basis for a variety of prizes. A consistent minor discipline ladder was implemented for inappropriate behaviors. The PBIS consultant graphed and analyzed referrals monthly as a method of data-based decision making. PBIS integrity checks were also conducted throughout the year. Bus drivers referred for assistance with behavior management were retrained in PBIS procedures or trained in additional intervention techniques. The data shows a decrease in referrals.

This study uses multiple baseline design across students to demonstrate the reading fluency of three, fifth grade students. While controlling for instructional time, three studentsin a individualized instructional session participated in a baseline condition, a 5 minute decoding instruction, then in the third phase a 5 minute comprehension lesson was presented. A 1-min fluency timing was used following each of the instructional conditions.

Reading is the most important skill that students learn in school. Children in poor urban schools are at greater risk of reading failure (Moats, 2000). These students often need and respond to specialized instruction (Carnine, Silbert, Kameenui, & Tarver, 2004). Empirical evidence has shown that explicit systematic instruction can have significant positive effects on children's ability to read (Shaywitz, 2003). Reading intervention has the best potential for positive outcomes when implemented during the early years of elementary school (Moats & Foorman, 2008). This poster will provide data for first and second graders who were identified by their teachers as having reading deficits and who were in danger of reading failure. The children were paired with Ohio State Universitystudents in a special education program for tutoring. The students were taking a reading course from the presenters. The course required a field placement, in an urban school, where students tutored children in reading twice a week. Most children were tutored for two quarters. This poster will provide pre- and post- benchmark DIBELS data, CBM (i.e., oral reading fluency and comprehension), and DIBELS progress monitoring data. The data indicates that all students improved their reading skills and most students reading failure risk level decreased.

Research on the effectiveness of direct instruction (DI) programs, characterized by the integration of a variety of effective instructional practices largely based on principles of behavior analysis, has spanned over 40 years, consistently supporting the assertion that all children can learn. With the need to make conclusions about which educational practices are evidence-based, meta-analysis holds promise for combining the results of many studies within an area. The most recent meta-analysis that comprehensively evaluated the effects of DI programs on student achievement was conducted 14 years ago. Since 1996, more than 120 articles involving direct instruction curricula have been published, with 11 of these studies employing random assignment and many others utilizing strong quasi-experimental designs. This paper will present the results of an updated meta-analysis conducted on the effects of DI programs, drawing from an extended research base, to explore whether DI continues to impact student achievement. Conclusions based on the results of this proposed meta-analysis have the potential to carry more weight, not only due to the inclusion of more recent studies, arguably providing a more valid assessment of DI effects on today's children, but also by exploring additional variables that may act as mediators of the effects demonstrated.

The purpose of the present study was to evaluate the effects of the direct instruction flashcard (DIF) procedure combined with the Reading Racetrack procedure on accuracy of first-grade core words by two elementary students diagnosed with learning disabilities within a resource room setting. A single subject multiple baseline design across three sets of core words was used to evaluate the effects of theDIF and Reading Racetrack procedures. A clear functional relationship was shown between reading accuracy and implementation ofDIF and Reading Racetrack procedures. During baseline the students had mastered 13 to 17 out of 38 words, but by the end of the study, they had mastered 29 to 31 words. The procedures used were inexpensive and required little time or effort to implement.

Computer touch-screen technology determined if overselective attention occurred in four young children when words were presented. Assessing whether a child can attend to individual letters within words is critical for reading instruction. Multiple stimulus-control tests were automatically administered. One test assessed how many letters of word discriminations were attended to by recording response choice when letters comprising the S+ and S- words were presented separately. In a second test, word choice was determined when the S+ word appeared with three words that differed from the S+ word by only one letter. Another test measured response topographies by recording which letters the children touched when words were presented. Nondifferential (NDR) and differential-reinforcement (DR) contingencies were employed during the stimulus-control tests. Although most children demonstrated overselective attention when words were presented, they differed in the degree of their overselective attention. In addition, the effect of repeated testing on whether the children attended to all three letters of training words depended on the type of reinforcement contingency. Repeated testing with nondifferential-reinforcement did not result in attention to all three letters of the S+ words. In contrast, although most children revealed overselective attention during the differential-reinforcement test trials, repeated testing with differential-reinforcement eliminated their overselective attention. Assessing visual attention under different test conditions revealed the intensity of overselective attention in children and not merely its presence as previous investigations have done.

This study evaluates the effectiveness of repeated readings with contingent reinforcement on improving reading fluency of an English Language Learning (ELL) student. ELL students often experience significant difficulty in reading and may fall behind their peers in multiple academic areas. While a phonics-based approach to reading instruction is ideal for long-term gains, quick approaches, such as sight-word training, are beneficial in making immediate gains in reading fluency. This enables the student to continue to operate on grade-level with his or her peers in various academic areas while addressing core reading skills (i.e., phonics) in other training programs. A sight-word training program was developed to use contingent reinforcement for performance improvement over repeated readings. At the beginning of a training session, the student selected a prize from a set of options. The student was required to improve reading accuracy and speed with each reading. Meeting criterion progressed the student toward acquisition of the prize. Rapid and significant gains were observed with each training session. The effects appeared to generalize to some new passages, but not all. The results suggest repeated readings with contingent reinforcement are beneficial for rapidly improving reading fluency in struggling students. Results and implications are discussed.

We investigated the effects of two types of intervention combined with repeated reading on reading fluency and accuracy of six fourth-grade students with learning disabilities: (a) repeated reading with corrective feedback (RRCF) and (b) repeated reading with word study (RRWS). Each RRCF session consisted of the teacher's corrective modeling contingent upon the students error during the first passage reading and three additional practice readings with the same passage, followed by the fifth reading for data collection. The RRWS intervention was similar to RRCF except that the corrective modeling was replaced by explicit instruction with intensive scaffolding. Using a multiple-baseline design, data were collected on the fluency (i. e., the number of words read correctly per minute) and accuracy (i.e., percent of words read correctly in the total number of words read correctly and incorrectly), using unpracticed and practiced AIMSWeb passages. The results indicated that the two interventions were equally effective on practiced passages on both measures. However, no evidence was found to demonstrate their effectiveness on the unpracticed passages, suggesting that the effectiveness of both interventions was limited to practiced passages. Implications of the results will be discussed along with the results on the social validity survey.

Developed by Ogden Lindsley and his graduate students in 1964, precision teaching measurement procedures, which are based in the principles of behavior analysis, are a robust set of measurement practices used to pinpoint skills needed in schools, provide a consistent and standard method for data collection and visual analysis of student's performance, and advocates a dynamic decision making process based on the student's actual performance of these skills within the curriculum already used within the classroom (Cooper, 2005; Lindsley, 1990; Sweeney, 1992). Most of the school based literature in the area of Precision Teaching focuses on the development of basic skills, such as math (Oskar, 2008), reading (Heath, 2007; Sweeney, 2003), and writing skills (Brunner et al., 1993). Even so, Precision Teaching approaches are flexible enough for use with a variety of other pinpoints (e.g., foreign language acquisition - Bolich, 2006), in a variety of different settings (e.g., gymnasium- Ward et al., 1992), and to improve a variety of creative behaviors (e.g., Ladenburg, 1994). Music educators often advocate repeated practice approaches for the acquisition and to build proficiency in playing an instrument or in a choral ensemble, recognizing musical notation in a composition, and performing in front of an audience, as well as a host of other important skill related areas related to musical appreciation. Although repeated practice approaches are often advocated by music educators, after a thorough review of the literature, the authors discovered a significant void in the music education research related to empirically based research to validate these pedagogical approaches Additionally, although the technology of precision teaching is very robust measurement approach, little empirical research was available on the effectiveness of combining repeated practice techniques with precision teaching measurement approaches. The purpose of this study was to investigate the effectiveness of using a SAFMEDS (i.e., Say All Fast One-Minute Each Day Shuffle) flashcards combined with precision teaching measurement approaches to build fluency in the recognition of musical notation with elementary students during a summer school program. Three first- and second-grade students participated in this study during a structured summer day-school program in a small university town in the upper Midwest. Results from the study show promising results related to the combination of SAFMEDS.

This study examined the effects of a modified version of "spellography" (Moats & Rosow, 2003) on the spelling skills of elementary school students with learning difficulties. Spellography is a program that teaches spelling rules explicitly and systematically and includes exercises to promote not only improved spelling but phonemic awareness, decoding, reading fluency, written expression, and vocabulary as well. We modified the program by (a) scripting the lessons, (b) incorporating mastery criteria that would allow students to "test out" of lessons once mastered, and (c) adding a research-based practice/self-correction procedure (copy-cover-compare) for students who completed a lesson without mastering the rules/words taught in that lesson. Findings suggest that our scripted version of spellography was effective in improving the spelling skills of struggling spellers. We also found that adding the copy-cover-compare practice component may be necessary for some students. Limitations, recommendations for practice (including for whom this program is appropriate), and directions for future research will be presented.

Staff training and development are issues that directly impact the quality of an applied behavior analysis program. Many studies have documented strategies to train staff in the use of effective teaching methods, such as role playing, instructions, feedback, reinforcement, self-monitoring, or prompting techniques. Training approaches and skill development differ vastly throughout the literature. Wood, et.al., (2007) and Sarokoff & Sturmey, (2004) believed that instruction and feedback were key elements to train employees. Others used the literature to validate that staff training would be successful in conjunction with direct feedback (Bolton & Mayer, 2008), reinforcement (Ducharme & Feldman, 1992), or with the use of prompting techniques (Browder, et.al., 2007). The focus of this study is to provide a literature review of staff training for individuals working within an applied behavior analysis program model. Training provided on specific educational interventions such as fluency training, discrete trial instruction, and self-monitoring will be reviewed. There is also discussion about the use of varied training methodologies and the need for further research.

A modeling agency operating in the UK was found to have a high rate of workers dropping out of bookings with little or no notice to the employer. We used an ABAB reversal design to study the effects of implementing a short-delay fee payment. Under standard company policy (baseline conditions: a), workers at the agency (n=1,049) received payment for each booking approximately six weeks after the job completion. During the short-delay phases (Interventions: b) the workers were paid the next day following the completion of a booking. Worker 'drop-out' rates decreased from between 15 and 66.5% in baseline to between 4 and 28.5 % during the first and the second intervention phase. The decrease in workers 'drop-out' rates further resulted in a decrease in the amount of hours used by office staff to rectify the problems, from an average of 4.8 per week down to an average of 0.33 per week. The combined effects of both resulted in an average weekly savings of £138.00 and a potential annual savings of over £7,000.00. Results are discussed in terms of the practicalities of short-delay payment for companies, the implications of high rate cash flow, the relation to net profit as well as turnover, and the potential effects on company reputation that are more difficult to quantify.

The current study looked at customer service and up-selling in a large home improvement store. Prior to the intervention, these customer service and up-selling were only assessed once a month with a simple and lenient mystery shopper checklist. Task clarification on proper greetings, closing and up-selling was provided to participants in the first phase of the interventions. Feedback and goal setting were then provided using a performance matrix. The effects of task clarification, goal setting, and individualized feedback were assessed using a multiple baseline across departments of the store.

Group contingencies can be an effective means of changing behavior. In the workplace, group contingencies have proven to save time in administration and have demonstrated effectiveness in producing behavior change. Group contingencies have also been proven effective due to the peer influence component which allows peers to act as change agents. A state early intervention system devised a method of performance improvement that utilized monetary incentive awards for attainment of ten specific criteria relative to components of Federal Part C Law. To earn these incentives, a regional entity of the system was required to perform better than thirteen other regional entities within the state. A data based system of tracking individual performance and group performance was created within the entity. Baseline data was obtained and posted for each of the ten dependent variables so that individual employees could see their specific performance in comparison to others in the group. The independent variables were measured through once-monthly queries, graphed and posted for employees to examine. Improvement in performance and achievement of each of these measures resulted in an interdependent group contingency in which all members of the group were rewarded upon meeting the criterion as a group.

Currently three methods of assessing staff preference are found in the orgnaizational behavior management(OBM) literature. Preference for items has been assessed by stimulus ranking procedures, stimulus survey, and modified multiple stimuli without replacement. The current study will evaluate each of the three methods by means of reinforcer assessments across several participants.

Goal setting, task clarification and performance feedback is an area that has been researched and results support its effectiveness when applied appropriately. The company that participated in this study manages trucks that carry cargo from one place to another and allots a certain number of miles. Overage miles are those miles that exceed the allotted miles per route, and that is the focus of this study. Overage miles increase time of delivery, and fuel expenses. This study is aimed at decreasing overage miles and fuel expenses. Goal setting was already in place during baseline. Task clarification included providing drivers with a form to identify mileage and fuel expenses of the trip. Feedback is used in the form of drivers tracking their own mileage and fuel expenses, then reviewing that with the manager to determine how far over miles and fuel expenses the truck accumulated per trip. Results from this study should show by adding task clarification and feedback, overage miles and excess fuel expenses per trip will decrease. Implications should suggest applicability of this treatment package to other areas of behavior management, including organizational and corporate settings.

A supervisor mentor program (SMP) was implemented as a step toward developing internal resources to meet the growing needs of applied behavior analysis (ABA) community based service provision and teacher training. In order to meet the burden of internal quality control and shrinking budgets a proactive approach to providing supervision and training to community- based teachers was developed. Teachers were selected and then taught higher-level behavior analytic skills and then provided supervision and training to less experienced teachers in the field as part of their training program. The SMP assessed the trainee teachers skills and basic behavior analytic knowledge prior to training and then again after the training program was completed through both self evaluation and trainer observation. Supervision consisted of individual and group supervision/monitoring opportunities. Competency and mastery of principles were assessed throughout the 9-month training program both in situ and in group supervision meetings. Although only pre-test and post-test measures were collected, the SMP provides a model of training and supervision that can be used by other community based agencies as new regulations are formed and less funding is available for ABA services.

Functional behavior assessment (FBA) is defined as a range of behavior assessment procedures that are used to identify or clarify functional relationships between behavior and environmental events (Carr, 1994). Assessment procedures are used to identify specific environmental contingencies operating on the individual to implement a function-based intervention to reduce problem behavior and increase appropriate behavior (Gresham, Watson, & Skinner, 2001). The current literature regarding the psychometric properties of descriptive assessment methods, functional analysis and treatment based-interventions is varied. Current reviews of the literature have identified a need for the evaluation of functional assessment methodology to validate the procedures used (Floyd et al., 2005; Sturmey, 1994). The overall purpose of this study is to extend the current FBA research to provide preliminary support for the psychometric properties, including reliability, content validity, and convergent validity of FBA methods with both school and clinic-based assessments. The evaluation of newly designed functional assessment interviews (Functional Assessment Informant Record series; Edwards, 2001) is included. Preliminary results suggest appropriate psychometric evidence that support the utility of functional behavior assessment methods across settings.

Prinicples derived and applied in the study of public health can, often surprisingly, be found to be directly applicable to the focused change of behaviors of the individual. Haddon's Strategies and Matrix, foundation concepts of injury control, can be easily applied to theapplied behavior analysisprocesses of functional assessment, determination of reinforcers, and development of alternative behavior sequences. Those developing evaluation and treatment plans can utilize the matrix to force consideration of approaches relative to the targeted individual, the environment, or the presenting stimuli that would perhaps not be readily apparent .

For a teaching demonstration, we have been working on shaping/acquisition of novel behaviors with koi fish. Koi can consume a large quantity of food pellets so satiation is minimal. Some of the procedures are operant shaping but others employ sign tracking-mechanisms. We have shaped swimming vertically up into a hollow tube, farther and farther, to obtain food, with data collection on-going and progress being made. We are also shaping swimming through a series of tubes laid out in a pattern resembling a simple maze for rodents, and we are working on shaping a nose poke response for mouse pellets using off-the-shelf operant equipment designed for mice. Originally a RotaRod operandum was employed but we found that the fish would never bump the rod with sufficient force to operate the pellets dispenser. Now we are using a hoop equipped with IR sensors to detect a head-nose poke by a fish, contingent upon which a 14 mg mouse pellet is delivered or which can be delivered with a hand-shaping switch. The hoop can be immersed into the water and we are developing a stand alone operant chamber for use with koi using components developed for use with mice.

This study is an extension of a series of articles by Harcum, Rosen, and their colleagues. In these studies, the authors concluded that the Skinnerian analysis of freedom and dignity was incorrect and did not account for reported innate dignity. This study aims to correct for several methodological flaws found in the original research, and to up hold the Skinnerian conceptualization of perceived freedom and perceived dignity. To accomplish this, prominent behavior analysts utilized the Skinnerian definition to rank order collections of vignettes. Based on the amount of perceived freedom, and the amount of credit earned by the individual in each vignette, participants were then asked to assign the vignette a number 1-10, on a Likert scale, across several components of freedom and dignity. The pilot data support the Skinnerian analysis stating that the less aversive the control that is observed, more freedom is ascribed to the behaviors, while the more overtly controlled a behavior, the less credit the behavior is ascribed. Participants were undergraduate students in psychology courses. This study was conducted as an online study.

This study was designed to address the integration of speaker and listener relations involving signed tacts and signed intraverbals and categorization. Specifically, the current study investigated the emergence of signed tact and intraverbal categorization in three normally developing five-year-old boys. The experimental stimuli consisted of colored pictures of animals, fruit and tools. Teaching was introduced first and consisted of imitating signs (duplic) and choosing a picture in the presence of the sign of an item or of a category through automated matching-to-sample tasks (listener relations). After criterion was met on all teaching relations testing was introduced and consisted of (a) presenting a picture and the instruction for the child to sign (tact) the corresponding item or category, and (b) presenting the question "What signs of [sign of category] can you remember?" for which the child should sign (intraverbal) the items. Results indicated the emergence and maintenance of all tact responses (items and categories) and the emergence of most intraverbal responses for the three categories used. Teaching imitation and listener behavior may generate verbal responses not directly taught, showing functional dependence among verbal operants under the specified arrangement.

The present study employed a multiple probe design to assess the effects of tacting and sorting training trials on learners' ability to intraverbally list items according to common categories (e.g., furniture, body parts, things you write with), a language concept typically included in language intervention for young children with autism. Three children with autism, ages 4 to 6, were taught to tact the category of common items when presented with pictures and then sort pictures of items according to category. Post-test probes were conducted to determine if the children could answer questions about categories without pictures present based on a history of learning to tact items according to category and sorting trials. Preliminary data indicate that this instructional sequence is effective in developing derived intraverbal responding.

Verbal behavior is significantly present in the most important aspects of a person's life (Cooper, Heron, & Heward, 2007), and it makes possible "socially significant" behavior such as language acquisition, academics advancements, problem solving, and others. Multiple exemplar training (MET) has been used as an instructional tool to teach skills across different verbal operants and considered as the responsible for the emergence of untaught verbal operants. Using a multiple probe design across participant, the current study evaluated the effect of MET in the emergence of intraverbal response (vocal spelling) when taking dictation was taught to young adults with developmental disability at a living developmental center in the Midwest. Instruction session in taking dictation involved verbal praise for correct response and modeling and repeated trials for incorrect response. Preliminary data showed that untaught intraverbal responses emerged when participants reached criterion for taking dictation and that MET was not necessary for such outcomes. The results show that intraverbal in the form of vocal spelling is a verbal operant related to taking dictation and can be acquired without direct training.

We tested the effects of multiple exemplar instruction training sets across selection and production behaviors on the induction of Naming and Observational Learning capabilities for elementary school students. The participants were selected because pre-intervention probe data indicated that the participants lacked Naming, the ability to learn language incidentally, and observational learning, the ability to learn new and higher order operants by observing contingencies delivered to a peer. The design of the study was a delayed multiple probe design across participants with the study being conducted concurrently across second and third grade classrooms. The study took place in an elementary education setting approximately 30 miles outside of a large metropolitan area in a school district that received Title 1 funding. The dependent variables in the study were Naming and observational learning. The independent variable was multiple exemplar instruction across selection and production responses delivered in a small group instructional setting. The design of the study will provide insight into the assessment and induction of the observational learning and Naming capabilities using research based tactics in a group educational setting. The capabilities assessed in this study are essential for academic readiness and success in a general education setting.

We tested the effects of multiple exemplar instruction (MEI) on the emergence of untaught mands or tacts for two-dimensional stimuli, using a multiple-probe design across three participants with developmental disabilities. Prior to the study, instructors conducted probe trials to ensure that participants did not emit mands or tacts for the three stimuli sets. During the baseline condition, instructors taught mands or tacts (Set 1) to mastery and probed participants' responses to the untaught function. During intervention, participants mastered a different set of stimuli (Set 2), via multiple exemplar instruction that alternated across establishing operations for mand and tact functions. Next, instructors probed for the untaught speaker functions that were not present in participant repertoires' during the initial baseline condition (Set 1). Post-experimental probe data indicated that the untaught speaker function emerged for each participant, following MEI. Subsequently, instructors taught a novel set of stimuli to mastery under mand or tact conditions, and probed for the untaught function. All three participants achieved mastery of the untaught speaker responses for the novel set of stimuli, demonstrating transformation of establishing operations across mand and tact functions.

Horse trainers suffer from a lack of a clear basis in the science of behavior, relying instead on folklore and myths about horse behavior. Although there has been some behavior analytic work with horses (e.g., Ferguson & Rosales-Ruiz, 2001), compared to other species (e.g., dogs) literature on evidence-based horse training is limited. Current horse training methods range from harsh, cruel tactics intended to break a horse's "spirit" to gentler methods that attempt a greater behavioral orientation (e.g., Parelli Method) but lack a theoretical underpinning. The folklore often asserts that behavior is the product of something within the horse rather than from its environment. Such explanatory fictions can become especially problematic when dealing with so-called problem horses who, because of such a label, may be more likely to become victims of harsh methods by trainers. In this presentation, I will discuss our collaborative efforts with expert horse trainers, the complexities of working with horse trainers, and our model of disseminating behavior analysis by training trainers on principles of behavior and working with them one-on-one. I will discuss our current efforts, various challenges, as well as future directions in working with horse trainers.

Approximately two billion people have been exposed to tuberculosis, but it often goes undetected, and landmines constitute a problem in 70 countries. This presentation discusses the use of pouched rats (Cricetomys gambianus) to detect tuberculosis and to find landmines in sub-Saharan Africa. Data are presented from a study showing that the rats detected 180 landmines and cleared nearly 100,000 square meters of land in Mozambique without missing a single mine while exhibiting a false alarm rate of 0.5 responses per 100 square meters. Data are also presented from a second study showing that the rats increased tuberculosis detection rates by 44% relative to sputum smear microscopy. The techniques used to train the rats and to use them operationally, which are based on principles of operant and classical conditioning, are overviewed. Finally, problems associated with conducting researching in developing countries and in using rats for humanitarian purposes are considered, as is the appeal of such work.

Chronic drug use is associated with a range of cognitive deficits, including elevated levels of impulsive and risky decision-making, but the causal relationships between these two phenomena have not been clear. Our laboratory uses rodent models to investigate relationships between drug use and decision-making. In one line of research, we have found that chronic cocaine self-administration causes long-lasting increases in impulsive choice in a delay discounting task, and that chronic cocaine exposure results in decreased sensitivity of the task to dopaminergic manipulations. In another line of research, we have developed a "risky decision-making" task, in which rats choose between small "safe" rewards and large rewards associated with varying risks of punishment. Preference for the large "risky" reward is associated with lower D2 dopamine receptor mRNA expression in dorsal striatum, and this preference is reduced by activation of D2-like receptors. Preliminary data also indicate a relationship between greater preference for the large risky reward and acquisition of cocaine self-administration, suggestive of links between risk-taking, drug use, and striatal D2 receptors. Considered together, the data indicate the presence of bi-directional relationships between drug use and decision-making deficits that have the potential to further the process of addiction.

This panel's main objective is to share from clinical experience the professional and ethical challenges applied behavior analysis (ABA) providers face when dealing with a rare disorder. A rare (orphan) disease is defined under the United States Orphan Drug Act amendment as a disorder that generally affects less than 200,000 individuals (0.07% of the US population). Approximately 7,000 rare diseases have been identified and a list is maintained by the Office of Rare Diseases Research (ORDR) at the National Institutes of Health (NIH). The majority of rare diseases has a genetic origin component, has little or no treatment options, and is not rigorously studied. Due to the success of ABA withautism spectrum disorderand other developmental disabilities, many families with children diagnosed with a rare disease look into ABA clinics as an option for treatment. In many cases a clinic has just one individual with the particular diagnosis so the assessment and intervention process is unique and challenging. Replication, a core element in single subject research designs, is often not available. Therefore, dialogue between service providers who have similar cases may provide vital information.

In 1977, Ted Carr described five major hypotheses regarding the motivation for self-injurious behavior (SIB) and provided a comprehensive review related to each hypothesis. What followed was the development and evolution of a robust technology for examining the influence of the first two hypotheses Carr described, namely, operant mechanisms. Functional analysis technology can be effective for specifying positive and negative social reinforcers, and in turn, effective intervention for socially-maintained SIB. Far less is known about the third and fourth hypotheses; namely the sensory and neurobiological bases of chronic SIB among individuals with intellectual and developmental disabilities (IDD). In behavioral models of SIB, sensory mechanisms function as putative positive or negative automatic reinforcers but there is little evidence directly linking behavioral and biological mechanisms. Evidence from both clinical and animal studies of chronic pain and its behavioral sequelae support the hypothesis that some forms of SIB may be regulated by altered pain mechanisms. We know that pain can lead to SIB in individuals with IDD, but we do not know whether chronic SIB leads to pain and the resulting neurobiological cascade of effects. This talk will describe several sets of recent findings pertaining to the relationship between pain and SIB.

Continuing education is a natural step for individuals seeking to grow professionally in the field of applied behavior analysis. However, for many prospective graduate and post-graduate students, the application process can seem daunting. The purpose of this presentation is to provide attendees with information and advice on how to select and apply for graduate school in behavior analysis. Members of this panel will be students that represent a variety of schools that offer traditional on-campus and distance education graduate programs. Panelists will provide helpful tips on how to identify a program that meets the needs and interests of the student and what to expect during the application process. Various components of a graduate school application will be discussed and will include transcripts, Graduate Record Exams (GRE), letters of recommendation, and admission essays (i.e., highlighting work and research experience). Attendees will be encouraged to ask questions and participate in the discussion.

Since the publication of the book Nudge, governments world-wide have become increasingly interested in behaviour change. Nudge was written not by behaviour analysts, nor even by psychologists, but by an economist (Thaler) and a law professor (Sunstein) and, following their lead, there has been a stream of further publications by other academics setting out to show that the most pressing health and social problems of our time can be effectively addressed only by changing people's behaviour. So the message of behaviour change is at last getting through. But where are behaviour analysts in this enterprise? Are they among those helping to influence health and social policy? And, most crucially, are they playing their full and vital part in delivering programmes of behaviour change? This paper will consider how academic research can assist governments and other agencies to bring about large-scale and positive behavior change in whole populations. To illustrate key issues, it will examine the history of a behavior analysis-based programme designed to combat obesity and improve children's eating habits internationally-the Food Dudes Programme. There are lessons that need to be learned from this and related enterprises, both within and outside behavior analysis, if we really are to change the world.

Functional analysis is a form of behavioral assessment for which the results of the evaluation provide direct and highly specific information from which the behavior analyst can prescribe an effective intervention for problem behavior. Increasingly, analogous behavioral assessments are being developed that can be used to prescribe effective treatments for acquisition and maintenance of desirable responses or for interventions that target problem behavior associated with specific conditions, such as autism. In the current symposium, data from three research investigations will be presented and discussed in which specific behavioral assessments were developed to evaluate skill deficits or behavioral excesses associated with autism and also to develop effective interventions for ameliorating these problems. In each investigation, the behavior assessment data helped to delineate the behavioral mechanisms responsible for the skill deficit or problem behavior and the prescribed intervention proved to be highly effective.

Previous research has demonstrated that individuals diagnosed with an autism spectrum disorder (ASD) are less likely to accurately identify emotions (e.g., happy) and subjective states (e.g., itchy) than their same-aged, typically developing peers (Parron, Da Fonseca, Santos, Moore, Monfardini, & Deruelle, 2008). Furthermore, individuals with ASDs more reliably identify actions compared to emotions (Hubert et al., 2007). Previous research has focused on assessing the differential accuracy in labeling actions and emotions among children with ASDs. The purpose of the present study was to evaluate (a) pre-treatment accuracy in identifying 2- and 3-dimensional actions (2D and 3D) and emotions/subjective states, and (b) any differences in response to intervention for 2D actions and emotions. Three children diagnosed with an ASD that ranged in age from 5- to 8-years-old participated in the study. The experimenter conducted a brief assessment of 2D and 3D actions and emotions (i.e., presenting pictures or acting out, respectively). Results of the assessment replicated previous research in that participants more accurately identified actions compared to emotions. Next, the experimenter taught 2D actions and emotions in a multiple-baseline across participants and embedded alternating treatments design. The experimenter implemented additional intervention components to teach emotions due to consistent error patterns.

Previous research has shown that individuals with developmental disabilities generally prefer edible items over leisure items (Bojak & Carr, 1999; DeLeon, Iwata, & Roscoe, 1997). Other research has reported that sensory leisure items facilitate acquisition and maintenance of behavior better than do edible items for individuals with autism (Rincover & Newsom, 1985). Although these findings seem contradictory, the data are not comparable because studies on preference were conducted with subjects without autism, whereas data on performance (acquisition and maintenance) were collected for subjects with autism. The current study examined preference and performance of children with and without autism using sensory and edible reinforcers.

Transitions, changes in activity or location, have been reported to be problematic for individuals with developmental disabilities. A popular antecedent intervention for transition behavior is providing advance notice of the upcoming change, although research has shown that it is generally an ineffective treatment. We examined the effects of advance notice under several arrangements as a means of increasing compliance and decreasing an analogue of problem behavior during transitions. Study 1 examined the effects of advance notice on compliance when advance notice functioned as (a) a signal of the upcoming transition per se versus (b) a discriminative stimulus associated with enhanced reinforcement for compliance. Study 2 examined the effects of advance notice on escape behavior (button pressing) when advance notice functioned as (a) a signal only, (b) a discriminative stimulus for compliance, and, if necessary, (c) an S-delta for problem behavior via a history of extinction.

Although there are now meta-analytic evidence reviews in support of the use of intensive behavioral intervention (IBI) for pre-school children with autism and/or in center or home settings, there are fewer data available on outcomes of behavioral intervention from school-based models. In this symposium, we present data from four different Applied Behavior Analysis school models where the teaching interventions were based on and extended from autism programs using an IBI approach. In the first presentation, standardized test data from baseline to the end of one year are presented for children in an ABA class attached to a mainstream school. In the second presentation, standardized test data are summarized for children who attend a small ABA center-based school designed to supplement the teaching delivered for children with autism in mainstream school settings. In the third presentation, 12 month changes in standardized test data are presented for young people across childhood and adolescence. This third paper focuses on typical change in a large ABA special school over the course of an academic school year (rather than from intake to the end of the first year of intervention). The final study focuses on outcomes for children with autism who continue or do not continue with ABA intervention across the transition from pre-school to school settings.

The applied behavior analysis (ABA) class at Westwood School is a provision for children with autism 4-7 years of age within a mainstream school setting. In the present study, 11 children were tested at intake to the ABA class (typically at 4 years of age) and again after the end of their first and second years in the setting. Data on IQ, adaptive skills, and learning and language skills were collected. After one year of intervention, the sample had marginally significantly higher intelligence quotient (IQ) scores than at baseline (p = .051) and this improvement was of a moderate effect size (Cohen's d = .58). Consistent positive results were also obtained for changes in standardized Vineland Adaptive Behavior Scales (VABS) scores. The sample's VABS adaptive behavior composite score was significantly higher after one year of intervention (d = .52, a moderate effect size), and after two years of intervention when the effect was stronger and large (d = 1.11). All of these group effects were reflected in positive changes for individual children over time. These data will be discussed in the context of considering how outcomes from highly controlled intervention trials can be transferred into practice, and the potential advantages of delivering ABA-based education for children with autism in a mainstream setting.

A new model of provision has been developed for children with autism at the Highfield Centre, combining behavioral intervention at the centre with placement in mainstream pre-school/school. The three children in the present study had the following characteristics: a) age between six and eight years at intake, b)a diagnosis of autism, c) all had received early intensive behavioral intervention (EIBI) in home settings for several years prior to enrollment at Highfield. Intervention was provided for a total of 30-40 hours per week by full-time, permanent staff trained and certified by the Centre. The children attended mainstream school on average 10 hours a week, the rest of the week they were at the Centre. Standardized testing was done annually to evaluate progress and make adjustments in intervention. The results of the testing show that clinically significant gains in the children's intelligence and adaptive behavior scores were seen even in this older sample of children.

Research evaluations of early intensive behavioral intervention (EIBI) for children with autism have typically adopted careful inclusion criteria, often screening out those children with significant challenging behaviors and those with more severe intellectual disability. In applied behavior analysis (ABA) school settings in the UK where children's placements are funded by local education departments, there is a necessity to admit and to teach any child with autism and to apply ABA teaching methods across childhood and into adolescence. Students are also admitted at any time during their school years. We present the results from outcome data collected in TreeHouse school in London over the course of a 12 month school year. Fifty three students with autism were tested and then re-tested with the Assessment of Basic Language and Learning Skills (ABLLS-R), and for 24 students a repeated Vineland Adaptive Behavior Scales (VABS) assessment was available. Repeated measures t tests revealed statistically significant improvements over time on all ABLLS domains and for all VABS scores. These changes were reflected in change in individual students: 51/53 improved on the ABLLS over 12 months, and 18/23 increased their VABS composite scores over 12 months.

A project was started in Norway whereby children who had received intensive behavioral intervention (IBI) in preschool, were either reintroduced to IBI or continued to receive IBI in school. For two children IBI was reintroduced in school after 2 and 4 years respectively of other educational provision, and for 15 children IBI was continued into school without interruption. These 17 children are compared to six children who stopped IBI abruptly when they started school, and where IBI has never been reintroduced. The results suggest that transition from pre-school to school may lead to maintained and continued gains for the children continuing to receive IBI when compared to children ending IBI.

Children with autism often present with both academic and social skill deficits as well as the communication deficits and behavioral excesses that typically define the disorder. With the increased availability of video technology, many researchers have begun to investigate the use of this technology to teach students with autism. Two techniques will be discussed in this symposium: video-based instruction and video modeling. In video-based instruction, instruction is provided to the student with autism via a recorded video rather than by a live instructor. Two studies comparing the relative effectiveness of video instruction and live, teacher-led instruction will be presented in the symposium. Video modeling is a technique that involves the creation of a recorded video example of appropriate behavior which is then played for the student with autism to imitate. Two studies investigating the effectiveness of two types of video modeling will also be presented. The information presented in these research studies will provide BCBAs and BCaBAs with detailed information about these teaching procedures and the research that supports their use.

A large body of research has demonstrated that video modeling is an effective tool to teach a variety of skills to children with autism. However, there is limited research on video instruction, in which there are embedded instructions to prompt the individual to respond immediately. Video instruction may be a more effective tool than video modeling to teach some skills, such as expressive object labeling, because the video can break skills down into smaller components and the individual will get immediate feedback for each stimulus. Little is known about the effectiveness of video instruction for teaching expressive language skills to children with autism and how this tool compares to the teaching methods that are currently in use (e.g., in vivo teacher presentation). The purpose of this study was to compare the effects of video and in vivo teacher instruction on the acquisition and generalization of expressive object labeling skills in preschool children with autism. Our results indicate that teacher instruction facilitated faster acquisition of expressive object labeling in all four participants however, the results were mixed regarding generalization of expressive object labels. Most importantly, this highlights the need to individualize interventions for students with autism. Although video instruction is an evidenced-based practice, it was not as effective for all four learners, so clinicians should be very cautious when choosing interventions.

While there is a great deal of research on effective treatments and teaching procedures for children with autism, there is little research examining the effectiveness of video instruction for teaching children with autism expressive object labeling skills. Video instruction may be an effective teaching procedure due to the ease of implementation and the reduced resources needed for delivery. However, previous research that has been conducted in this area suggests that systematic teacher instruction (in vivo presentation) is more effective than video instruction. In these studies, participants acquired tacts at a faster rate in the teacher condition as compared to the video instruction condition. One reason for these results may be the participant's prior history with in vivo teacher instruction. Therefore, the purpose of this study is to examine the effectiveness of video instruction to teach tacting to children with autism who do not have a prior history with systematic teaching procedures (in vivo presentation). Currently we have two participants in this study and thus far the results indicate no difference in the rate of acquisition of across the two methods. These results highlight the need for additional research in this area as well as the importance of individualized instruction.

There is a large body of research documenting the positive effects of behavioral interventions on the social interactions of persons diagnosed with autism; however there is limited information on the relative utility of the commonly used procedures. Three different relevant investigations will be presented in this paper. In one experiment, the effects of using textual prompts on spontaneous initiations to play games were evaluated. During Experiment 2, conversation initiations and reciprocations using a voice output augmentative communication device was evaluated. The third experiment focused on the effects of a video modeling procedure on social interactions demonstrated by a child in the school setting. Improvements in social behavior were observed in all three experiments, and tests for generalization produced mixed results. Taken together, these investigations have implications for the relative utility of these various procedures. Implications for home and school programming for children with varying levels of developmental delay will be discussed.

This study evaluated the effects of video self-modeling with feedback on generalization of skills across the school and home settings for three individuals diagnosed with developmental disabilities. Skills that reliably occurred in the school setting but per parental report were not observed in the home setting were included. Video self-modeling was defined as the participant viewing a recording of him/her self successfully engaging in a target skill in the school setting and the intervention consisted of the parent setting the occasion for the skill to occur pre and post viewing the recording with their child in the home setting. Generalization was observed for one participant, however the behavior decreased contingent on removal of the video. The remaining two participants did not meet the criteria for intervention. Results are discussed in terms of implications for parent training and maintenance of video self-modeling procedures.

Developing strategies to improve performance of direct service staff continues to be a focus in the field of applied behavior analysis. This symposium will look at strategies to improve staff performance in private and public school programs that utilize the principles of behavior analysis to teach students with autism. The first presentation will address improving staff performance in common problem areas such as attendance and tardiness. Strategies used to decrease staff turnover will also be discussed. The second and third presentations will focus on the use of an outcome management program (Reid & Parsons, 2002) to improve performance on a variety of staff behaviors such as implementing natural environment teaching, correctly completing required documentation and maintaining students' work areas. Student outcomes and how they are directly affected by the changes in staff behavior will also be discussed in the third presentation. The last session will describe a comprehensive, competency based model of supervision for BCBA candidates that can be used to improve performance and expertise of teachers and direct service staff. [Reid, D. H., & Parsons, M. B. (2002). Working with staff to overcome challenging behavior among people who have severe disabilities: A guide for getting support plans carried out. Morganton, NC: Habilitative Management Consultants.]

Achieving peak performance in human services staff requires intensive training and ongoing evaluation; however, its effectiveness is impacted by the work ethic and inherent motivation of the direct care staff. Three indicators were identified as determining employees most likely to be successful in retaining and implementing training in applied behavior analysis (ABA): regular attendance, timeliness, and increased education, particularly in a related education field. A focus on the recruitment and retention of quality employees targeted reducing turnover, promoting consistent attendance, reducing tardiness, and increasing the education level of entry-level direct service providers in a private day school for children with autism and other developmental disabilities. Implementing policies on tardiness and attendance, standardizing the interview process, and offering tuition assistance and BCBA supervision cultivated the work ethic and inherent motivation required for peak performance. Standard employee record data measured policy effectiveness. Results indicate decrease in turnover in the first 90 days of employment, sharp declines in tardiness and use of unscheduled leave, and increase in entry-level employees with advanced degrees or pursuing degrees in a related education field.

Research shows that monitoring and improving the performance of direct care staff is difficult and time consuming. An on-going outcome management program has been proposed and implemented to evaluate the performance of direct care staff in a private day school. Key variables thought to be imperative for good performance were objectively defined and monitored. As staff performance was monitored a scheduled feedback loop was created along with a quality assurance review from administration. A multiple baseline design across staff members was used. Some of the variables being measured include intensive teaching procedures, attendance, tardiness, data entry, documentation, natural environment teaching, student progress and involvement in weekly team meetings. In addition to the performance of direct care staff, the program was also developed to identify the quality of treatment each student receives throughout the school year. Results indicate improvements among staff performance and ability to identify quality of treatment. Discussion will include involvement of supervisors and administration, difficulties of data collection and quality of education and treatment of students.

Due to the typically less structured methods of natural environment teaching and/or incidental teaching, monitoring and improving these skills can be challenging to supervisors. Natural environment teaching is a complex skill that is typically less structured than conventional teaching methods and calls for some form of "finesse", or skill, to be effective. Currently, natural environment teaching is one of the key indicators within an overall staff performance monitoring system. For the current study, the natural environment teaching was re-defined and re-trained using a simple six step training procedure. A multiple baseline design across staff was used to evaluate engagement during natural environment teaching. A momentary time sampling method was used to measure direct care staff's execution of the natural environment teaching skill and student engagement in functional activities. Changes needed within the evaluation process and difficulties of data collection will be discussed along with future research possibilities to enhance natural environment teaching skills.

With the rapidly growing nature of the field of behavior analysis, it is more important now than ever that a comprehensive model of supervision be made available to guide potential behavior analysts toward certification. Commonwealth Autism service has developed a competency based model of supervision that is results-driven and provides measurable tasks broken into content areas based on the Behavior Analyst Certification Board Third Edition Task List. Learning units place the competencies into a curriculum that is based on level of difficulty. Each unit includes specific competencies from different content areas, suggested readings, checklists to measure competency completion and additional activities to assist with the thorough completion and understanding of the competencies. Together, these materials and tools provide a comprehensive guide to successfully completing BCBA and BCaBA supervision in preparation for the BACB certification exam. After completing all units, supervisees will leave this process with a portfolio of permanent products, extended knowledge of field-relevant information, and practical experience in the application of each task list item.