A substantial body of research suggests that a combination of social, organizational, and inner factors impact how educators implement and make sense of new policies. The way educators understand policies can influence how they act on them. This study sought to expand this research body into how educators made sense and implemented Michigan's…

Workforce development programs and job satisfaction were topics that were well-studied in traditional groups of workers and it was known that these programs had a positive effect on the contributions and outcomes of today's organizations. The research problem addressed the lack of focus on non-traditional groups of workers and the associated lower…

In Spring of 2020, COVID-19 forced school buildings to close across the United States. As a result, many early learning programs and elementary schools serving children with challenging behaviors and their families moved online. Families with young children receiving complex educational and behavioral services in traditional brick-and-mortar…

The purpose of this qualitative study was to compare perceptions of preparedness to teach students with emotional disabilities (ED) between teachers with a mild intervention license and teachers with an ED license. The study examined the perceptions of five teachers with a mild intervention license and five teachers with an ED license as derived…

Objective: To better understand the effectiveness of a single-session positive cognitive intervention and uncover the possible mechanisms. Participants: Participants were 79 first-year students (aged 17-21) who volunteered for the intervention during the 2016 fall semester. Methods: Participants were randomly assigned into the intervention group…

Funding for early intensive behavioral intervention (EIBI) for children with autism spectrum disorder is rapidly expanding. Yet we know little about children's utilization, and research on inequities in utilization is lacking. We examined the relationship between utilization during the first year of EIBI and (a) child race-ethnicity and (b)…

A growing evidence base supports early intensive behavioral intervention (EIBI) for young children with autism spectrum disorder. We have found only one study exploring the outcome of EIBI for children with Rett syndrome, which reported little effect. It suggested that future studies should employ more fine-grained outcome measures. We provided…

Skinner (1957) differentiated the roles of the speaker and the listener in a verbal encounter. Although not extensively emphasized, Skinner suggested an individual often behaves verbally even when responding as a listener. Children diagnosed with autism spectrum disorders (ASD) often display the absence of important, and basic verbal repertoires…

Although common among children learning to walk, persistent toe walking can cause physical harm due to inefficient gate, and, in some cases, result in negative social interactions such as teasing and bullying. In addition, although toe walking is often associated with a variety of neurological and developmental conditions, toe walking also occurs…

Discrete trial teaching (DTT) is a commonly implemented and evaluated teaching procedure for individuals diagnosed with autism spectrum disorder (ASD). As such, DTT is often a procedure that behavior analytic practitioners are required to learn how to impliment. Additionally, parents are often encouraged to learn how to implement DTT to supplement…

This research aims to investigate the most frequent challenging behaviors faced by preschool teachers in their classrooms and the strategies and discipline approaches they adopt against these challenging behaviors. This research is conducted within case study design, which is a qualitative research method. The study group consists of 10 different…

A school-based behavioral therapy intervention at East High School in Rochester, New York, in partnership with a local university, builds resilience for middle-school students with high trauma.

The Good Behavior Game (GBG) is a classroom management intervention whereby students earn points toward a particular criterion to "win" the game. Typically, students know the criterion at the start of the game. However, this approach may cause behavior to deteriorate if, during the game, students believe that they have already won or…

Increasing numbers of children are entering our nation's schools with mental or behavioral health problems. Although many of these children are included in general education programs, teachers report feeling under- or unprepared to manage problematic behaviors. This is not surprising given that reviews of teacher training programs have evidenced…

Members (behaviors) of a response class are equivalent in that they produce the same functional reinforcer. Oftentimes, some members of a response class occur at higher rates than others. This can be problematic when the members that occur at high rates are socially inappropriate (e.g., self-injury, aggression, or disruption). The participant in…