Increasing efforts have been made in the field of special education to identify positive, evidence-based practices (EBPs) to meet the needs of students who engage in problem behavior, with a major goal being to eliminate or limit the use of reactive measures such as restraint and seclusion (Snell & Walker, 2014). Various stakeholders,…

Students with disabilities who engage in high rates of challenging behaviors require educators who employ function-based thinking and have a particular sensitivity to the wide range of factors that influence student behavior. In essence, educators working with special needs students need to know what makes their instruction "special"; they must…

The author is pleased to see that the future directions of the Council for Children with Behavioral Disorders (CCBD) are being addressed. The celebration of the 50th birthday of the inception of CCBD has set the occasion to carefully examine the status quo of the organization and to set future directions, as appropriate. The authors of "New…

This Reclaiming Intervention is an excellent example of the notion that life is a watercolor. Tricia Jump's interview demonstrates how a patient, caring adult can bring comfort and hope to a child experiencing some very difficult and painful life events. KC, a ten year old girl, is typical of many children whose home lives are turbulent. In some…

Explored through a focus on the behaviour and related experiences of a 9 year old Muslim Somalian boy called Zak, Woods offered a fascinating in-depth case study account of the rewards and sanctions systems in place at a culturally and religiously diverse London primary school. Over a period of 18 months, Woods employed a range of methodological…

Evaluates the concept of "establishing operation" (EO) in the functional analysis of problem behavior in people with developmental disabilities. Suggestions for detecting "conditioned establishing operations" are offered. Also discusses the development of treatment strategies that seek to modify EOs, extinguish EOs, and modify…

This discussion of positive behavior support for people with disabilities identifies four themes: (1) behavior support should reduce problem behavior and affect how a person lives; (2) functional assessment is the foundation for understanding patterns of problem behavior; (3) behavior support should be comprehensive in structure and scope; and (4)…

This article comments on a study that used functional assessment to reduce behavior problems in a child with multiple disabilities (Kern and Vorndran, 2000). It suggests additional principles need to be incorporated into an expanded model if functional assessment is to have a truly positive influence on naturalistic treatment planning. (Contains…

This commentary uses self-injurious behavior to illustrate the approach of the functional analysis of behavior as a guide to rational treatment strategies for individuals with autism, and to show that the characteristics of the clinical presentations can provide clues for underlying mechanisms that can be used for research and treatment. (Contains…

Summarizes advances in functional behavioral assessment of students with behavior problems that focuses on team implementation. Discusses issues such as practical difficulties in manipulating consequences, the complexity added by the need to also conduct academic assessments, and collaboration between applied researchers and practitioners. (DB)

This commentary discusses how existing technology and application of functional assessment can be expanded to improve the lives of more people with severe disabilities. It emphasizes how functional assessment can enhance life quality in typical settings in which people with severe disabilities and challenging behavior live, work, and play.…

The evidence for the psychometric adequacy of behavioral interviews in terms of traditional psychometric theory and generalizability theory are reviewed. The review resulted in the conclusion that behavioral interviews have some evidence for interrater reliability, content validity, and criterion-related validity. Additional research in several…

Several recent studies indicate that cheating has become both more prevalent and more socially acceptable. In this article I draw parallels between market values and student attitudes about cheating. They include: (1) reduction of a broad range of goods to their economic value, (2) use of non-reciprocity as a guiding principle, (3) valuing the…

The author found it very satisfying to reread "Toward a technology of 'nonaversive' behavioral support," written in 1990 by Rob Horner and seven of his colleagues. Their predictions of the critical themes for advancing positive behavior support (PBS) ring true. Fifteen years have passed since the publication of this article, and much has happened…

This article discusses the successes of behavior analysts in affecting challenging behaviors in persons with developmental disabilities. Three future issues are then addressed: the development of challenging behaviors, the role of rule-governance in challenging behavior, and the behavior of persons who directly apply functional assessment and…