Jessel et al. ("Behavior Analysis & Practice," 13(1), 205-216, 2020a) conducted a review of the functional analysis literature between the years 1965 and 2016. The authors found an increasing trend in analyses replicating the components of Iwata et al. ("Journal of Applied Behavior Analysis," 27, 197-209, 1982/1994a) and…

Students who require intensive individualized intervention often demonstrate needs in both academic and behavioral domains. However, practices around assessment and development of interventions are often siloed and separate, which can be a barrier to implementing intensive individualized support in an integrated manner to maximize efficiency. In…

Measurement-based care, an evidence-based practice endorsed by the American Psychological Association, is underpinned by routine assessment supporting a data-driven approach to clinical decision making. Nonetheless, there is a need for brief, nonproprietary measures assessing non-symptom-based outcomes. The present study examined the psychometric…

The Good Behavior Game (GBG) is an interdependent group-oriented contingency management system successfully used in school settings to promote positive student behaviors. As a classroom management intervention, there is a large body of evidence for it increasing desirable classroom behaviors and decreasing problem behaviors across a range of…

Direct observation of classroom behavior in young children enriches our understanding of their behavior in its natural context, informing both assessment and intervention strategies to foster supportive learning environments. However, a notable gap in the literature concerning effective direct observation tools specifically designed for this…

Telehealth may increase the reach of applied behavior analytic services to underserved populations living in remote areas. An important applied behavior analytic service is performing a functional analysis, which aids in determining the variables that evoke and maintain dangerous behavior. To be proficient in any applied behavior analytic…

The current study outlines the successful behavioral assessment and treatment of compulsive behaviors in a high-functioning adolescent with autism. After a functional assessment suggested that compulsive behavior was maintained by both social--negative and social--positive reinforcement, we demonstrated effects of functional communication…

There are several considerations to address when conducting functional communication training for challenging behavior in a school setting, such as the need for schedule thinning and maintenance across staff and the need to establish a variety of appropriate classroom skills. There are several strategies for conducting schedule thinning following…

A functional behavior assessment is an evidence-based process that identifies the function of challenging behaviors in order for educators to develop behavior intervention plans for students with disabilities. All behaviors are under stimulus control and research indicates that behaviors typically serve four functions: tangible, escape, attention,…

Behavioral assessment allows a clinician to identify environmental events that are contributing to challenging behavior to inform effective treatment. Recent developments in behavioral assessment and treatment have been devoted to creating practical procedures that can be conducted by clinicians in socially relevant settings. However, the extent…

A goal of some functional analysis (FA) variations is to reduce assessment time while still maintaining efficacy. This may be especially important when conducting FAs in early intervention programs, where time is a crucial commodity. To that end, we evaluated a model for using the results of the no-interaction condition as a screening for…

When problem behavior is controlled by a synthesized reinforcement contingency, a simple omnibus mand that yields access to all reinforcers simultaneously has been shown to effectively replace problem behavior. The question arises as to whether teaching an omnibus mand will preclude the acquisition of specifying mands for each of the combined…

Functional assessments, while considered the "gold standard" for behavioral assessments, are not often implemented in school settings due the extensive amount of time, resources, and expertise required. The interview-informed synthesized contingency analysis (IISCA), is a timely, comprehensive, and accurate method for conducting such…

Background: Understanding the operant function of self-injurious behavior in autistic individuals is imperative to understanding its etiology and designing effective prevention strategies. Methods: We conducted a postal survey of residential care facilities including two functional assessment tools: QABF and IfES. Questionnaires for N = 178…

Behavioral skills training (BST) is a well-established procedure used to train individuals how to perform a variety of complex skills. Previous research has used BST to train parents, teachers, and clinicians how to conduct a variety of clinical procedures, including functional analysis of problem behavior. Although this procedure has been…