ABSTRACTStaff training is an essential component of effective behavior analytic interventions. This study examined behavioral skills training (BST) to teach staff in a juvenile residential facility to conduct appropriate room searches. The participants in the study were four staff members over the age of 18 years old who worked in the facility. All staff increased the fidelity of room searches after BST, however, room searches took less time when an observer was not present. A feedback component was implemented after behavioral skills training if the durations of room searches were shorter when the participant was unaware that they were being observed. Room search duration increased after feedback was delivered.

ABSTRACTFunctional communication training is an effective and well‐established intervention for socially maintained challenging behavior. Previous research determined that preference for functional communication responses (FCRs) influences treatment durability. This study extends previous research by evaluating the use of a sequential extinction procedure to establish a hierarchy of preference for FCR modalities within a treatment context. We taught participants different FCR modalities to access the same reinforcer maintaining challenging behavior and assessed modality preference via a concurrent operant mand modality preference assessment measuring FCR modality response allocation and challenging behavior. We then sequentially placed preferred modalities on extinction to establish a preference hierarchy and evaluate persistence of communication and challenging behavior during treatment challenges. Preference hierarchies were established for all participants within the context of treatment (functional communication training). Additionally, some challenging behavior was observed when preferred modalities were placed on extinction; however, effects were temporary and did not always persist across sequential extinction phases. These findings provide preliminary evidence to support teaching multiple communication modalities may lead to a more durable treatment. Implications for clinical practice and future research are discussed.

ABSTRACTImmediate echolalia is a communication excess often associated with children with autism spectrum disorder (ASD). Most studies evaluating immediate echolalia have focused on antecedent manipulations to address deficits in stimulus control. However, most research on function‐based interventions for immediate echolalia has focused on antecedent analyses to hypothesize the potential maintaining variable, without including a functional analysis (FA) to formally evaluate the maintaining variable of immediate echolalia. The purpose of the current study was to extend the antecedent analyses that have been previously used to develop interventions for immediate echolalia and determine if a maintaining variable for immediate echolalia could be determined through a functional analysis. In the second phase of the study, an alternating treatments design was used to compare the effectiveness of a nonfunction based intervention to a function‐based intervention.

ABSTRACTPairing, sometimes called rapport building, is a technique used to contribute to therapeutic relationships and help establish instructional control with clients. While these skills have been explicitly trained in previous studies, engaging in these skills in natural therapeutic settings could be difficult due to environmental stressors common to these environments. In this regard, acceptance and commitment training (ACT) can be a useful supplement to traditional performance management techniques (e.g., training, feedback). The present study examined three operationalized presession pairing skills with three Registered Behavior Technicians (RBTs). A concurrent multiple probe design across participants was used to evaluate the use of ACT training on these skills. Participants were first exposed to a brief ACT module. Following monitoring of performance, participants whose percentage of skills fell below inclusionary criteria were provided with supplemental behavioral skills training (BST). Results suggest that ACT alone may result in temporary performance increases, however, 2 of 3 participants required additional support with BST to reach acceptable levels. In short, ACT may be an effective methodology to improve employee performance, but it likely should be a complement to effective training and performance management processes.

ABSTRACTWhen social interactions do not function as efficacious reinforcers, it may impede learning in environments that rely on differential social consequences. Although researchers have evaluated methods of improving the function of social interaction, these methods are not always effective, perhaps because they are inconsistent with principles of Pavlovian conditioning. In the current study, we evaluated whether a basic‐research‐informed approach could increase the reinforcing efficacy of social interactions for two children with developmental disabilities. Specifically, we evaluated the effects of conditioning procedures that ensured large C/t ratios by using progressive ratio schedules to quantify changes in the reinforcing efficacy of play with and without social interaction. The C/t ratio represents the temporal contiguity between stimuli, where C is the average time between unconditioned stimulus (US) deliveries, and t is the average time between the neutral stimulus and US deliveries. Improvements in absolute and relative reinforcer efficacy of social interaction were obtained for both participants, suggesting that methods which ensure large C/t could result in more efficacious conditioning interventions. We discuss the need for further translational and applied research as well as potential clinical implications.

ABSTRACTEffective staff training and supervision are vital in human care services, influencing staff performance and the quality of care. This study explores the effectiveness of an 8 h training program for Board Certified Behavior Analysts (BCBA) in providing performance feedback, specifically in the context of a Paired Stimulus (PS) preference assessment. The training consisted of 5 h of instruction, exercises, and discussions, followed by 3 h of Behavioral Skills Training (BST), emphasizing performance feedback as a pivotal component. Using a concurrent multiple probe design across four supervisors, the results demonstrated substantial improvement in supervisors' ability to provide performance feedback, which in turn enhanced supervisees PS preference assessment skills. Furthermore, two of the four supervisees demonstrated mastery of feedback‐giving skills after receiving performance feedback and observing their supervisors being given feedback. The remaining two supervisees required direct instruction in feedback delivery in order to meet the mastery criteria. The study contributes to the limited literature on training supervisors to provide effective feedback and the importance of incorporating specific feedback‐giving skills in supervision training programs.

ABSTRACTIn a synthesized contingency analysis (SCA), contingencies hypothesized to maintain problem behavior are combined into a single test condition; if the behavior occurs at a higher rate in that condition relative to the control, it is assumed to be maintained by a synthesized contingency. This study evaluated whether a single maintaining function could be determined using a SCA. Putative reinforcers were divided into three synthesized test contingencies in which target behavior was measured and compared to a single control condition. Next, abductive reasoning was applied to ascertain if a single maintaining function could be determined as a proof‐of‐concept demonstration. This procedure identified a single function for one of three participants, consistent with the results of a single contingency analysis (i.e., standard functional analysis). The utility of including more than one synthesized condition, when competing hypotheses about synthesized, multiply maintained, or singly maintained behavior, is discussed from these results.

ABSTRACTAccidental poisoning of children in the United States is a problem, especially for vulnerable children with developmental disabilities. Research has shown that active learning approaches such as behavioral skills training are more effective for teaching poison safety skills to children with disabilities. Some research also suggests that video modeling and video self‐modeling (VSM) may be effective for teaching safety skills to children with disabilities. As only one study has evaluated VSM for teaching gun safety skills, more research is needed to evaluate this intervention. Therefore, the purpose of this study was to evaluate the effectiveness of using VSM to teach poison safety skills to children with disabilities. The results showed that VSM was effective for one participant and VSM with in situ training was effective for the other two.

ABSTRACTActive engagement broadly refers to the use of incidental teaching strategies and reinforcement‐based procedures to promote appropriate behavior, language, and skill acquisition in naturalistic instructional settings. Teaching instructional personnel (e.g., teachers, paraprofessionals) to consistently engage in these practices can be resource‐intensive and difficult to scale. This study evaluated the effectiveness of a brief, group‐based behavioral skills training model, combined with in situ feedback, to increase the use of incidental teaching and contingent reinforcement among trainees working with preschool‐aged children with developmental disabilities in an inclusive classroom setting. Seven adults participated in the training, which included instruction, modeling, role‐play, and feedback. Participants who did not meet performance criteria received in situ feedback during classroom activities. Results showed that most participants required in situ feedback to reach mastery, but once achieved, performance improvements were maintained for up to 20 weeks. These findings support the use of scalable training models that incorporate in situ feedback to promote active engagement strategies among emerging behavior analysts in applied educational settings.