Behavior Analysis in Practice

Behavior analysts in research and clinical practice are interested in an ever-expanding array of topics. They are compelled to explore the social validity of the interventions they propose and the findings they generate. As the field moves in these important directions, qualitative methods are becoming increasingly relevant. Representing a departure from small-n design favored by behavior analysts, qualitative approaches provide analysts a unique set of tools to answer questions that prioritize voice, experience, and understandings in context...

UNLABELLED: The practice of clinical informed consent in America is governed by over 100 years of case law. Although predominant ethics resources for behavior analysts offer some guidance regarding the provision of clinical informed consent, such guidance remains limited. The goal of this article is thus to expand the contemporary literature on clinical informed consent in behavior analysis by providing a historical and contemporary guide to relevant case law. The article will highlight seminal moments in the history of case law regarding clinical informed consent, discuss their applicability to the process of clinical informed consent in behavior analysis, and provide an enhanced understanding of the ethical and legal obligations related to informed consent in the therapeutic context...

UNLABELLED: Given the advancement of behavioral research in culture and social behavior, it seems natural for the community of behavior analysts to progress towards increased political engagement and a dedication to social justice. To reach this goal, it is necessary to act inside one's own communities and organizations. The purpose of this article is to report on the efforts of the Brazilian Association for Behavioral Psychology and Medicine (ABPMC) to increase equity and social justice during the 2017-2018 term...

Artificial intelligence (AI) is increasingly a part of our everyday lives. Though much AI work in healthcare has been outside of applied behavior analysis (ABA), researchers within ABA have begun to demonstrate many different ways that AI might improve the delivery of ABA services. Though AI offers many exciting advances, absent from the behavior analytic literature thus far is conversation around ethical considerations when developing, building, and deploying AI technologies. Further, though AI is already in the process of coming to ABA, it is unknown the extent to which behavior analytic practitioners are familiar (and comfortable) with the use of AI in ABA...

The present study used a multiple baseline across skills design to evaluate use of an adapted LIFE skills curriculum (Dixon, 2021) to teach various cooking tasks to a young adult diagnosed with ASD, schizophrenia, and bipolar disorder. The participant learned and completed recipes and related vocational tasks. Results showed efficient task acquisition for all recipes and maintenance of vocational tasks during follow-up probes. Results have implications for the LIFE program, suggesting that it is a viable method for teaching LIFE skills to neurodivergent young adults...

Among individuals with a diagnosis of autism spectrum disorders (ASD), conversation topic preference could influence social skills in many ways. For example, an individual with advanced vocal-verbal skills, but just learning to join a conversation, might be less inclined to participate if the topic chosen is not preferred. However, commonly used preference assessment procedures have not been applied to evaluating conversation-topic preferences. Therefore, the purpose of the current experiment was to conduct three different types of assessments that varied in efficiency, the degree of certainty they allow, and clients with whom they are likely to be applicable and acceptable...

The extant literature demonstrates that individuals with intellectual and developmental disabilities (IDD) exhibit preferences among communication modalities when multiple modalities are available and produce reinforcement on identical reinforcement schedules. High- and low-tech communication options, such as voice output devices and picture cards, are commonly recommended for individuals with limited vocal communication skills. In this study, we conducted a systematic literature review of research studies that implemented mand modality preference assessments (MMPAs) that included both a high- and low-tech communication option with individuals with IDD...

UNLABELLED: There is a dearth of published research evaluating behavior-analytic assessment and treatment of avoidant/restrictive food intake disorder (ARFID) given the recent revisions in the Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders , Fifth Edition. In this study, therapists conducted periodic food preference assessments to help guide treatment for a typically developing child with ARFID and food selectivity. Further, therapists evaluated a treatment package including demand fading, escape prevention, and self-monitoring to increase food variety...

Interventions aimed at teaching composite dressing skills assess individuals' current abilities and improve their performance at more independent and fluent levels. The current case study aims to report on the improvements observed when specific component motor skills are targeted for improved performance using frequency building techniques. We extend previous research by including the measure of escape-maintained behaviors during task completion. Similar to those of previous research, the results of this study reveal a significant increase in speed and accuracy across all targeted composite skills and a reduction in escape-maintained behaviors...

Behavior-analytic toilet training (BATT) methods to support urine continence have been reviewed and replicated in numerous studies. Despite empirical validations of BATT, children with disabilities may not experience successful toilet training nor access the associated health and social benefits of urinary continence. It is possible these outcomes are partially due to practical barriers that arise throughout urine training. In practice, barriers may interfere with toilet training to the extent that training is postponed or discontinued, resulting in long-term incontinence and other related problems...

UNLABELLED: Cultural responsiveness is critical to providing high-quality behavior analytic services, particularly when providers and recipients have different cultural backgrounds. The purpose of this study was to systematically replicate and extend (Beaulieu et al. (2019) Behavior Analysis in Practice, 12(3), 557-575) by investigating the diversity among applied behavior analysis (ABA) service providers and service recipients in Ontario, service providers' training and experiences in working with diverse families, and service providers' and recipients' perceptions of behavior analysts' cultural responsiveness in practice...

UNLABELLED: The Performance Diagnostic Checklist-Human Services (PDC-HS) is a performance analysis tool used to identify barriers to performance in human-service settings. Multiple published studies have used the PDC-HS to determine effective interventions (Wilder et al.  Journal of Applied Behavior Analysis 53 (2), 1170-1176, 2020). However, in a recent discussion article proposing guidelines for administering the PDC-HS, Brand et al.  Behavior Analysis in Practice , 1-7 (2022) noted that procedural descriptions provided for administering the PDC-HS are somewhat ambiguous in the published literature...

Students, early career behavior analysts, and professionals who are retreading and interested in organizational behavior management (OBM) often seek guidance on potential career paths. In this article, we offer several factors to consider before pursuing a career related to OBM, including strategies to narrow interests, gain experience, and communicate those experiences to hiring organizations. Next, we outline potential career paths and give specific examples of job titles and duties. The job areas described are academia/research, operations, internal consulting, and external consulting...

This study assessed the use of behavioral skills training for teaching online safety skills to two children, 7 and 9 years old. In situ assessments took place while playing the popular online game, Among Us , and consisted of confederates presenting lures to the child participants. Before training, the participants scored 1s and 0s, indicating a lack of online gaming safety skills. Both participants scored at mastery criterion (i.e., three scores of 3 in a row) following training. During the first 2-week follow-up, one participant scored a 1 because he did not leave the game following the presentation of a lure; his mother immediately implemented in situ training (IST)...

This study aimed to compare the effects of echoic and listener responding in the emergence of complex intraverbal behavior in four children with autism spectrum disorder (ASD). Each participant was taught to provide an echoic response or a listener response for different discriminative stimuli for each condition. We used a nonconcurrent multiple probe design across participants and adapted an alternating treatment design to compare the effects between the two conditions. Pre- and posttests were used to evaluate the effects of the two different prompt types in the emergence of complex intraverbals...

Incorporating literature into practice can help behavior analysts provide better services and achieve better outcomes. In addition, behavior analysts have an ethical obligation to remain current with the scholarly literature and to use it to inform services. Despite the merits of maintaining regular contact with the published literature, barriers exist to doing so. In this tutorial, we present a system that was created for a human service agency to increase practitioner access to the scholarly literature. The system consisted of an electronic search request form, a literature team, and a liaison...

Telehealth is an acceptable service delivery mechanism for applied behavior analytic interventions and has led to positive outcomes for decreasing problem behavior and increasing skill acquisition in individuals with autism spectrum disorder. Literature regarding best practices for providing behavior analytic services via telehealth has increased; however, limited literature exists on training, best practices, implementation guidelines, and troubleshooting resources when providing supervision to supervisees via telehealth...

Developing and improving organizational processes is an important element for staff satisfaction, effective communication, and ultimately the success of an organization (Rummler & Brache, 2013). Human-service organizations are no exception and, in fact, could greatly benefit from process improvement. This article provides guided steps for using process maps as a means for improving processes in human-service organizations.

Schedule thinning is a necessary treatment procedure following the acquisition of a communication response during functional communication training. In this article, we update and extend the Hagopian et al. Behavior Analysis in Practice, 4, 4-16, (2011) review and recommendations on schedule-thinning procedures following functional communication training. Since their publication, substantial research has been published on the efficacy, efficiency, and social validity of schedule-thinning methods. We provide updated recommendations for schedule thinning based on contemporary literature that has been published since 2011, as well as discuss key areas for future research...

A portion of problem behavior is maintained by multiple reinforcement contingencies. Treating multiply controlled problem behavior may be more complex than treating problem behavior maintained by a single contingency. Several approaches for addressing multiply controlled problem behavior have been described in the literature. The purpose of this review is to provide practitioners with an overview of function-based approaches for addressing multiply controlled problem behavior. In particular, we present guidelines for functional analysis and treatment...