Verbal Requests Research Articles

Culturally and Linguistically Diverse Preschoolers Verbal and Nonverbal Requests

The purpose of this study was to identify the verbal and nonverbal strategies that preschoolers used to obtain objects from peers. Two Head Start classrooms of 41 Puerto Rican and African American preschoolers were observed and videotaped over 1 school year using qualitative methods. The preschoolers used three different strategies to obtain objects from peers during play, including movements toward objects, verbal intentions with movements toward objects, and verbal intentions. The students were able to obtain objects from classmates in 40% of their attempts and were most successful when they combined physical movements toward an object with a request, statement, or claim. The strategies used by the preschoolers and their rates of success varied between the sand, kitchen, and block areas in the two classrooms studied, with children obtaining the greatest success in the block area. The implications of this study's findings for intervention in the classroom by teachers or speech-language pathologists are discussed.

自閉症児の過剰般化した援助要求語に対する機能等価性の再構成 : モニタースキルの獲得を通して

本研究で対象とされた自閉症児は、本研究開始以前に即時性エコラリアと機能的に等価な援助要求語が形成され、エコラリアの消失には成功した。しかし、援助要求語が過剰般化し、不適切な場面でも高頻度で出現した。これは、質問が提示されたとき、その内容に自分の知識が対応するか点検した上で、援助が必要であるのか否かを決定する、モニターを本児が行っていなかったためであると考えられた。本児の場合、(1)モニタースキルはもっているが、指導者から質問されると援助を要求するという行動連鎖が強固であったために、モニターする機会が剥奪されていたか、(2)モニタースキルに障害があったか、このいずれかが援助要求語の不適切な場面への過剰般化の原因として仮定された。そこで、指導1において援助要求語が出現した際に、モニターする機会を新たに設定した。しかしながら、この手続きでは、援助要求語は機能的に使用されなかった。指導2において、課題の難易度によって、出現した援助要求語の強化の随伴性に差をつけ、本児がわかるものとわからないものを識別するための手がかりを提示した。その結果、本児は適切な場面で援助を要求することが可能となった。これらの結果より、本研究の手続きが、機能等価性を再構成したことが示唆された。

Perceptual Ambiguity, Gender, and Target Intoxication: Assessing the Effects of Factors That Moderate Perceptions of Sexual Harassment

Subjects read a passage which described an interaction between a man and a woman at an office party. The woman was either sober or intoxicated, and eventually the man engaged in 1 of 3 behaviors which involved varying degrees of sexual innuendo and/or aggression: (a) verbal comment, (b) verbal request, and (c) nonverbal physical display. The results indicated that perceptions did not vary as a function of target person's intoxication in the nonverbal‐display condition. On the other hand, in the verbal‐comment and verbal‐request conditions, subjects in the intoxicated‐target‐person condition perceived the initiator more favorably than subjects in the sober‐target‐person condition. In addition, they indicated that perceptions did not vary as a function of target‐person intoxication level in the nonverbal‐display condition. On the other hand, in the verbal‐comment and verbal‐request conditions, male subjects were more favorable toward the initiator than toward female subjects.

THE ROCKEFELLER REFUGE OIL SPILL: A TEAM APPROACH TO INCIDENT RESPONSE

ABSTRACT Rockefeller Refuge staff identified a potential petroleum pipeline leak on the evening of March 13, 1995. Approximately 40 barrels of condensate oil (API Gravity 40-42) and minimal produced water leaked from the pipeline, affecting 50 acres of brackish marsh. It soon became evident that vehicular traffic, human ingress, and mechanical cleanup procedures were negatively impacting the marsh. Refuge personnel made a verbal request to the United States Coast Guard to apply an in-situ burn to the spill-affected area. A tremendous cooperative effort between industry, state, and federal agencies ensued on March 17, 1995, to develop and implement a written burn plan. Regional Response Team VI approved the burn plan at 2:30 P.M., and the burn was applied to the area at 3:00 P.M. By 5:30 P.M. the in-situ burn had removed condensate oil from approximately 20 acres of spill-affected marsh.

Application of compliance techniques to direct-mail requests for charitable donations

The possibility that psychological compliance techniques might be applied to increase the effectiveness of direct-mail requests for charitable contributions is raised. Although there are few studies with direct bearing on this possibility, there is an extensive literature on compliance techniques in general and many studies on the effectiveness of such techniques when applied to verbal requests for contributions, most often in door-to-door campaigns. Research on the application of the foot-in-the-door, door-in-the-face, low-ball, and legitimization-of-small-donation techniques to verbal requests for charitable contributions is reviewed, and the relevance of these studies to potential direct-mail applications is explored. The few attempts to apply the legitimization of small contributions to the direct-mail mode, which have produced mixed results, are also reviewed and analyzed. It is suggested that successful application of compliance techniques to the direct-mail mode may depend on careful modifications of the techniques to calibrate them optimally to direct mail, and to the particular situations in which campaigns are to be undertaken. © 1996 John Wiley & Sons, Inc.

Expected death and unwanted resuscitation in the prehospital setting

To determine the outcome, location, preexisting conditions, and resuscitation wishes of prehospital cardiac arrest patients. Retrospective review of paramedic and emergency medical technician run reports. Urban area with a two-tiered emergency medical services response system covering an area of 2,128 square miles and serving a population of 1,413,900 (in 1988). All prehospital cardiac arrest patients to which the King County, Washington, Emergency Medical Services (KCEMS) system responded to during a 12-month period. Unless decapitation, decomposition, or dependent lividity existed, all cardiac arrest patients in the KCEMS system received full resuscitative efforts. We analyzed run reports from 694 cardiac arrest patients, excluding all cardiac arrests from trauma, overdose, or drowning, or obvious signs of extended downtime such as decomposition or dependent lividity. We defined an unwanted resuscitation as a resuscitation attempt despite written or verbal requests by the patient, family, or private physician. We defined a patient as having severe, chronic disease if the run report listed one or more conditions associated with poor survival rates after inpatient CPR. These included cancer, cerebral vascular accident, dementia, renal failure, dialysis, AIDS, thoracic or abdominal aneurysms, cirrhosis, or if the patient was bedridden or was receiving chronic home nursing care. Overall 16% (103 of 633) of all cardiac arrest patients survived to hospital discharge. Seven percent (47 of 633) of all cardiac arrest patients fit the unwanted resuscitation definition; 2% (one of 47) survived to hospital discharge. Twenty-five percent (158 of 633) of cardiac arrest patients fit the definition of severe chronic disease; 8% (12 of 158) survived to hospital discharge. Severe chronic disease and unwanted resuscitation patients comprised one-third of all resuscitation attempts by KCEMS during a 12-month period. Both groups had lower survival rates compared to cardiac arrest patients who did not have severe chronic disease or indications of unwanted resuscitation.

Disruptive behavior in elderly nursing home residents: a survey of nursing staff.

A significant number of nursing home residents exhibit behavior disturbances that are disruptive to the living and working environment in the nursing home. The most common disruptive behaviors cited by licensed nursing personnel included hitting/slapping, verbally aggressive remarks, screaming, pacing, wandering, and repetitive verbal requests. Self-injurious behavior, property destruction, and hiding things were not mentioned. Many of the nursing strategies listed by nursing staff as being used to alleviate disruptive behaviors are traditional care activities, eg, talking to and counseling patients, touching, or altering care. However, chemical and physical restraints were also frequently listed.

A typology of personal and environmental sexual harassment: Research and policy implications for the 1990s

Most of the research conducted on sexual harassment over the last decade and a half has used categories that are neither mutually exclusive nor exhaustive. This has created problems for researchers: it is difficult to compare results from one study to another, harassment types that have scholarly and legal-policy relevance are omitted, and the ability of researchers to inform legal and policy decisions is diminished as a result of these problems. A comprehensive categorization of harassment types that addresses these methodological problems is presented. Specifically, 11 specific types of harassment—4 types of Verbal Requests, 3 Verbal Remarks, and 4 Nonverbal Displays—are presented with examples from research and legal literatures. Recommendations for reconceptualizing research definitions of harassment as well as for diversifying the methodological approaches to the topic are made.

APPALACHIAN WOMEN

The findings from case study research conducted in a small, rural central Appalachian community during the winter of 1987-1988 suggest that standard definitions of wife abuse obscure the elements of social control inherent in violent activities, while obviating the relationship between violence and other forms of social control. Three categories of control are developed. The first, normative control, refers to socially accepted ways in which women's lives are constrained by norms and ideology. The second, persuasive control, refers to nonviolent means of social control, including repeated verbal requests, withholding transportation, forced parenthood, and the use of stereotypes and ideologies to isolate women. The third, violence, refers to the threat and use of physical assault and the use of weapons to instill fear. The context-specific approach is used to demonstrate that social control is dependent on a culture and social structure which condone men's domination of women and that without cultural acceptance of and structural support for men's authority over women, violence would be less effective as a means of social control.

Nursing management of urinary incontinence associated with Alzheimer's disease

"Incontinence in the patient with Alzheimer's disease is a multifaceted and complex problem." This article provides information on the management of incontinence through assessment and education of families. Included are causes of incontinence, instructions on toileting, and suggestions for supportive measures when the patient loses the ability to respond to verbal requests. This information will be helpful to many patients receiving home health care services.

The Effects of Preference on Spontaneous Verbal Requests in Individuals with Autism

Children with autism are characterized by the absence of functional spontaneous speech. This study assessed whether the type of stimulus materials (preferred versus nonpreferred) would affect the frequency of spontaneous verbal requests in these children. The results of the repeated reversals analysis revealed that the frequency of spontaneous verbal requests was higher in the preferred materials condition than in the nonpreferred materials condition. The results are discussed in relation to issues involving motivation and the development of naturalistic, context-appropriate speech training procedures.

Gender and Influence Strategies of First Choice and Last Resort

The present study attempted to resolve an apparent contradiction in the literature regarding gender differences in use of various influence behaviors by examining both between-gender differences, as reflected in differences in absolute rates of using various influence strategies, and between-strategy differences, as reflected in relative rates of strategy use within each gender. Two samples of subjects reported how frequently they used a number of influence strategies as strategies of first choice and last resort. A third sample of subjects rank-ordered the strategies from most used to least used. Results across all samples revealed significant correlations between women's and men's ordering of strategies from most used to least used, with verbal request and rational strategies reported as used most often, and high pressure strategies, including threats, as used least often. Within this invariant hierarchy, gender differences in frequency of use of various strategies were observed. The discussion suggests that none of the current theories of gender differences in influence behavior can predict explicitly both between-gender and between-strategy differences.

HMOs and utilization of emergency medical services: A metropolitan survey

A survey was conducted of a diverse group of health maintenance organizations (HMOs) serving a large metropolitan area regarding enrollee instructions for use of emergency medical services. Written and verbal requests for written information concerning emergency medical system instructions for enrollees were made to the 25 largest HMOs serving Chicago and surrounding suburbs. Sixteen responses, representing more than 95% of total HMO enrollees, were obtained. Options for access for prehospital care were reviewed and categorized: call 911, call toll-free telephone number, call HMO office or primary physician, go to the nearest HMO-affiliated hospital, and go to the nearest hospital. Of the 16 respondents, 15 HMOs responsible for 99% of the total HMO enrollees advised their subscribers to contact their HMO office or primary physician or to call a toll-free number in the case of an emergency. No HMO advised use of the 911 access as a first response for an emergency. Only two HMO brochures, responsible for 7% of the total HMO enrollees, recommended that 911 access be used. These data suggest that HMO enrollees may not be adequately informed regarding proper use of 911 and the emergency medical services system.

Teaching an Adolescent with Blindness and Severe Disabilities: A Correspondence between Requesting and Selecting Preferred Objects

Findings in the existing literature on the lack of correspondence between verbal behavior and subsequent learner actions refer primarily to learners' descriptions of their behavior. No data exist on another type of correspondence—the match between verbal requests and items selected by learners with severe disabilities. Often, such learners are taught to request objects without being required to then select the object requested. This study examines the efficiency of an intervention procedure designed to establish correspondence between requesting and subsequent reinforcer selection in an adolescent woman diagnosed as blind and severely mentally retarded. The results indicated that valid requesting could be established by reinforcement procedures which required a correspondence between verbal requests and subsequent object selections. The learner also was taught to use generalized and explicit requesting repertoires as a function of object availability. The results highlight a need to incorporate correspondence procedures when teaching requesting repertoires to learners with severe disabilities.

The understanding and use of interpersonal gestures by autistic and Down's syndrome children.

Autistic adolescents with mild, moderate, and severe degrees of mental retardation, Down's syndrome adolescents, and clinically normal 4-, 5-, and 6-year-old children were compared in their ability to understand a set of simple instrumental gestures. Almost all gestures were perfectly understood, that is, correctly responded to, by normal children from age 5 onwards, and by all the handicapped groups, regardless of diagnosis or degree of retardation. However, the ability to initiate such gestures on verbal request was generally less good, especially in the less able autistic groups. The same subjects were unobtrusively observed in the playground and during mealtime at their schools. Peer interactions were least frequent in the autistic subjects, regardless of degree of mental retardation. However, relative to interaction frequency, the autistic group used nonverbal instrumental gestures as a means of communication to the same extent as the other groups. Unlike Down's syndrome adolescents, or normal preschool children, no autistic adolescent ever used expressive gestures.

聾精神遅滞者における要求言語行動の実現 : 施設職員によるプロンプト付き時間遅延操作の検討

2名の施設居住の聾精神遅滞者における要求言語行動の獲得に関し、施設での日常生活における般化と維持を中心に検討した。対象者はすでに訓練室場面で、書字、サインを用いた要求言語行動を獲得している。当研究では、これまで訓練した言語的表現が、日常での「ちり紙要求」という特定の要求場面で、職員によるプロンプト付きの時間遅延操作によって生じ、また維持されるかについて、その操作の導入期を職員間で系統的にずらすマルチ・ベースラインの手法を用いて検討した。観察は、職員に対する質問紙をもとに、要求の絶対数、言語的表現による要求の比率、および職員による操作の実行率といった測度で約2年間なされた。その結果、プロンプト付きの時間遅延操作は言語的表現を促しかつ維持すると同時に、1名の対象者では、そうした新たな表現を促す職員に対して、従来どおりの方法をとる職員と同等あるいはそれ以上の頻度で要求することが確認された。

Does the format really make a difference? Didactic versus facilitative social skills training

One hundred and eleven (111) university undergraduates (25% male) reporting difficulties in making requests or refusing, participated in one of two cognitive behavioral social skills programs which included behavior rehearsal, modeling, coaching, cognitive restructuring, and emphasis on the transferability of skills. The participants were randomly assigned to the facilitative condition, which stressed individualized attention, informality, and emotional understanding and support, with attention to the personal needs of each participant, or to the didactic condition, which was more leader-centered, more formal, and less focused on personalizing the content. Dependent measures included self-reported Conflict Resolution and College Self Expression scores, and judges’ ratings of global verbal and nonverbal request and refusal behavior in standardized role-play scenarios with a live actor. In addition, participants provided anin vivo measure of request and refusal behavior. Results indicated neither self-report nor behavioral outcome differences between the facilitative and didactic approaches. On the other hand both programs produced impressive self-report and behavioral gains in comparison to pre-test scores; these gains were maintained one/two years after the program. The results are discussed as supporting the impact of cognitive behavioral training program elements which are compelling in themselves so that they operate independently of differences in training format. It may be that relationship factors may be less important in the treatment of reasonably functioning undergraduates when behavioral techniques are employed.

Communication Intervention Strategies for Autistic Children: Variations on Pragmatic Approaches Using a Behavioural Framework

Language intervention procedures used with autistic children have typically focused on teaching the structure of language using operant techniques. Recently, attention is being focused on procedures which emphasize teaching the function of language within an environment that highlights natural interactions. Both approaches offer valuable techniques while demonstrating essential differences in target goals and reinforcement systems. This paper outlines some essential contrasts and reports the results of a combined approach for communication intervention with six functionally mute autistic children. The intervention program emphasizes establishing routines that facilitate conversational exchanges while using intensive modelling of verbal responses and systematic reinforcers that are intrinsic to the communication act. Examples of activities and training procedures are given. Results from such a program reveal substantial increases in verbal skills, including verbal imitation skills, verbal requests, verbal ...

Social Validation of the Revised Behavioral Assertiveness Test for Children (BAT-CR)

The primary purpose of this study was to examine the social validity of the Revised Behavioral Assertiveness Test for Children (BAT-CR). In Part I, 38 children responded to the BAT-CR. Responses were videotaped and retrospectively coded for components of assertiveness and rated for overall assertiveness by expert judges. In Part II, child "judges" viewed these videotapes and rated the taped children on likeability. Results revealed that while components like eye contact, response length, and verbal requests for new behavior were related systematically to expert ratings of assertiveness, they were either not related or related differentially to child ratings of likeability. Further, boy judges differed systematically from girl judges. Such findings question the social validity of the component approach. In addition, they question whether we may be teaching skills that are useful and important from an adult's perspective, but less so from a child's viewpoint.

Operant procedures and the comatose patient.

Operant procedures were tested on three patients who had been in vegetative coma for 6 months, 10 months, and 38 months. A discrete trial procedure was used to test compliance to verbal requests for three behaviors for each patient, including lateral head movement or finger movement, eye focus or eye squeeze, and mouth movement. The design for each patient consisted of multiple baselines across three behaviors with a withdrawal phase and a reinstatement phase (ABAB) for one behavior. Baseline phases were followed by contingent music phases in which 15-second taped excerpts of patients' preferred music sounded immediately following the emission of targeted behaviors. The contingent music treatment affected all three behaviors for Patient 1, but was less effective for two out of three behaviors for the second and third patients who had been in coma for more extensive periods of time. Results are discussed in terms of the potential contributions of the use of operant assessment and treatment procedures in an area of medicine where they have not been used before.