Parents are unaware, or may deny the existence, of elective mutism in their children. School psychologists should inform them of the problem's severity and encourage family therapy. School personnel need to develop innovative strategies and reinforcers to ameliorate the disorder. A supportive attitude in conjunction with behavioral techniques are…

This introductory packet provides an introduction to anxiety problems, framing the discussion within the classification scheme developed by the American Pediatric Association. The variations in degree of problem are discussed with respect to interventions that range from environmental accommodations to behavioral strategies to medication. The…

B.F. Skinner applied his concept of operant conditioning to education. Skinner believed that people acted the way they did because they had been reinforced for behaving in a certain manner. His orientation to pedagogy was predicated upon the notion that a student's behavior could be modified by guiding the student through the learning process…

Media advocacy is an environmental strategy that can be used to support alcohol and other drug prevention and policy development efforts. It helps shift the focus from understanding public health issues as individual problems to understanding them as social conditions that require collective behavior changes. Successful media advocacy uses the…

A recent approach to dealing with adolescent problems is social skills training, which emphasizes specific prosocial alternative responses for problematic situational interactions. Research has shown that social skills training has positive outcomes. However, it is not known whether an emphasis on the cognitive might enhance maintenance and…

Student misbehavior problems in the classroom today cover a wide spectrum. Ways to deal with and help hostile-aggressive, passive-aggressive, and withdrawn failure-image students are described. A case study of a teacher's dealing with a hostile student is presented. (CJ)

The counselor, facilitating classroom development guidance lessons, may experience conflict and difficulty. The management system presented here allows for flexibility and provides sufficient behavioral structure, while encouraging individual expression from students. This behavioral management approach is supportive of, but secondary to,…

Provides an overview of one high school's program that integrates the services of more than eight major agencies to provide for students suffering from emotional and behavioral problems. Describes ways that teachers can form positive relationships with parents and the principles on which the program is based. (RJM)

Describes how a female student who was harassed by a male peer broke free of the victim role. Includes background information of this "Manipulation of Body Boundaries" crisis. Interview with the 12-year-old girl reflects the six stages of "Life Space Crisis Intervention," through which she learned strategies to resist…

Discusses problems of using applied behavior analysis for individuals with mental retardation who have behavior disorders and presents a sensitivity model of motivation that stresses analysis in terms of aberrant environments, aberrant contingencies, and aberrant motivation. Describes implications for communication theory, assessment, and…

Presents an overview of 12 reframing strategies that employment counselors have found to be useful. The strategies are organized along a temporal dimension to help organize them and are designed to support clients by facilitating a change of perspective. Discusses positive affirmation, externalizing the problem, decision making, and other…

The historical development of special education in Germany is summarized. Four cognitive teaching methods for special education are described: cognitive behavior modification with a focus on problem solving and metacognition, intelligence training based on inductive thinking, application of Piagetian concepts, and dynamic testing. (Author/JDD)

Reviews findings about effective treatment for cocaine addiction based on experience in a Beverly Hills out-patient clinic. Describes various therapeutic approaches, emphasizing that one of the most important components of successful treatment is tailoring programs to the needs of individual patients as they progress through the stages of…

Describes Calgary's Behavior Intervention Centre (BIC), which provides short and long term counseling and teaching services to disruptive elementary and junior high school students and their parents. Discusses psychological assessment, family counseling, and school reintegration strategies contributing to BIC's 81 percent success rate. (SV)

A review of the literature and descriptive examples of peers implementing the "high probability request" (HPR) strategy for changing behavior in young children with behavior disorders are presented. HPR intervention involves delivering three to five high probability requests with positive reinforcement in rapid succession, followed by a…