Over the last 20 years, the clinical teams at The ChildTrauma Academy have been adapting their clinical practice to be better informed by the core principles of neurodevelopment and neuroscience. The hope is that by better understanding how the brain changes they will better understand the effects of maltreatment on the child and, thereby,…

We taught two sets of parents to conduct a functional analysis (FA) under simulated conditions in their homes. Relative to a baseline (pre-training) phase, the accuracy of FA implementation by parents improved when they were given verbal, written, and video performance feedback. When training concluded, parents were able to implement FA accurately…

The analysis of the early development of self-injurious behavior (SIB) has, to date, reflected the wider distinction between nature and nurture. Despite the status of genetic factors as risk markers for the later development of SIB, a model that accounts for their influence on early behavior-environment relations is lacking. In the current paper…

This article discusses College Summit, a nonprofit effort centered around the premise that there is a sizable number of students who are more capable of college academics than their test scores and grade point averages suggest. Its four-day summer sessions are focused not on ramping up students' academic performance but in mining students'…

Severe behavior disorders are among the most perplexing conditions encountered by clinicians, and as a front page article in the past Christmas Day's "New York Times" illustrates ("Parents defend school's use of shock therapy"), treatment options remain a topic of contentious debate. Not all that long ago physical restraint was the only option,…

The purpose of this study was to determine whether students with identified behavioral needs were provided a different level of behavioral intervention based on their special education disability category verification. A second purpose of this study was to determine what caused potential differences as interpreted by individuals working in the…

Schoolwide positive behavioral interventions and supports (SWPBIS) are becoming increasingly popular with schools across the country to help create safer learning environments for students. An important aspect of SWPBIS is the ongoing monitoring and evaluation of implementation fidelity. Although a few measures have been created to assess the…

Using the five intervention elements described by Dunlap et al. (2006) as a guide, the authors of this article reviewed the functional behavioral assessment (FBA) and function-based intervention research of the past 17 years (1990-2007), focusing on a component analysis of FBA and function-based intervention procedures. Thirty-five studies were…

This study examined the association between organizational climate and changes in internalizing and externalizing behavior for youth in residential treatment centers (RTCs). The sample included 407 youth and 349 front-line residential treatment staff from 17 RTCs in Illinois. Youth behavior was measured using the Child Functional Assessment Rating…

Improving student discipline is a constant challenge in the field of P-12 education. The challenge is especially great for district-level administrators who must address the educational and social needs of all students. As a district-level administrator, the author participates in a study of a midwestern district of elementary (preschool-8)…

We examined whether clinical progress ratings on the Monthly Treatment and Progress Summary form (MTPS), an idiographic treatment progress measure, were meaningfully related to changes measured by two separate standardized instruments; the Child and Adolescent Functional Assessment Scale (CAFAS) and the Child and Adolescent Level of Care…

Recent years have seen a steady increase in empirical studies of the application of functional behavioral assessment procedures with students with EBD. However, many questions remain concerning efficacy and validity with this population. The present study involves the application of several indirect and direct functional behavioral assessment…

In the 1970s, the Education for the Handicapped Act (EAHCA) gave rights to parents to receive training and mandated that schools provide it. The 1997, Individuals with Disabilities Act (IDEA 1997) mandated the use of PBS for children with problem behaviors. IDEA 1997 required that schools create behavior plans with positive behavioral strategies…

This study examined the effects yielded from the implementation of assessment-based behavior support plans on the engagement and problem behavior of three young children with behavioral challenges in a community early childhood program. A concurrent multiple-baseline design across children with generalization probes was used with data collected…

Although there is a substantial empirical foundation for the basic intervention components of behavior analysis and positive behavior support (PBS), the field still lacks a standardized program model of individualized PBS suitable for widespread application by school personnel. This article provides a description of a standardized PBS model that…