The current study describes the assessment and treatment of the problem behavior of 3 individuals with autism for whom initial functional analysis results were inconclusive. Subsequent analyses revealed that the interruption of free-operant behavior using "do" requests (Study 1) as well as "do" and "don't" requests (Study 2) occasioned problem…

Behavioral skills training was used to teach 3 parents to implement discrete-trial teaching with their children with developmental disabilities. Parents learned to implement discrete-trial training, their skills generalized to novel programs, and the children's correct responding increased, suggesting that behavioral skills training is an…

Background: The EarlyBird program is a psycho-educational early intervention program for parents of children with autistic spectrum disorder (ASD). It aims to provide parents with skills to increase their child's communication and manage challenging behaviour using behavioural techniques. Method: Two interlinked studies examined access to the…

The effects of a 3-day training course in the management of aggressive behavior in services for people with autism spectrum disorders were investigated using a quasi-experimental design. An experimental group received training over a 10-month period and a contrast group, which had received training before this study, did not. Staff training…

Social story interventions are commonly used to promote appropriate behavioral responses in children with autism spectrum disorder (ASD). This type of intervention is often used in general education contexts, but recently it has been used and examined in physical activity contexts. Physical educators can use this practical method to present--in a…

Positive behavior support (PBS) plans are required practice for students whose behaviors impede their learning or that of others. Educators of children and youth with autism and other developmental disorders represent a subgroup of special educators who are frequently involved in the development of PBS plans. The goal of this research was to…

A functional analysis for a boy with Down syndrome and autism suggested that vocal stereotypy was maintained by automatic reinforcement. The analysis also showed that instructions and noncontingent attention suppressed vocal stereotypy. A treatment package consisting of noncontingent attention, contingent demands, and response cost effectively…

Supporting children with autism spectrum disorders in the general education classroom presents a unique challenge to the teachers and schools that serve them. This article addresses the utility of self-management as a proactive strategy for increasing the task engagement and compliant behavior of high-functioning students with autism. The author…

We conducted a brief (8 days) functional analysis to identify sources of control over persistent saliva-play displayed by a 6-year old child with autism in a school setting. The functional analysis suggested that saliva-play was maintained by automatic reinforcement, leading to an intervention evaluation (3 days) that compared two methods of…

Intervening with children's problem behavior can be tricky business. Adding punishment procedures into a child's intervention plan can not only add to the trickiness but also switch the attention of on-line staff members away from what should be the goal of any intervention for misbehavior--preventing the misbehavior and teaching functionally…

Families of children with an Autism Spectrum Disorder (ASD) exhibit decreases in cohesion and adaptability, increased social isolation (Higgins et al., 2005), higher levels of marital dissatisfaction (Hastings et al., 2005), and overall disruption to daily life (Bristol et al., 1988). Research has provided evidence of higher levels of stress,…

Although the need for active parent involvement in Intensive Behavioral Intervention (IBI) has been emphasized by professionals in the field, little research has explored this involvement or what it entails. A parent self-report questionnaire and a similar therapist questionnaire were designed for this study, in which parent "Involvement" and five…

This is the first report from a large multiple baseline single-subject design study of children with Autism Spectrum Disorders (ASD). This brief report examines effectiveness of teaching a social cognitive (Social Thinking) approach to six males with Asperger syndrome (AS) or High Functioning Autism (HFA). Data included are restricted to pre-…

Obsessive Compulsive Disorder (OCD) involves exaggerated or excessive worry about threatening and non-threatening stimuli coupled with impairing rituals believed to reduce anxiety. Autism Spectrum Disorders (ASD) are characterized by impairment in social and communicative activities as well as restricted and repetitive behaviors. Approximately 2%…

We attempted to isolate the evocative effects of the establishing operation for positively reinforced problem behavior with 2 participants. The study consisted of three phases. First, a functional analysis identified tangible items (Participant 1) and attention (Participant 2) as maintaining problem behavior. Second, access to tangible items and…