A functional behavioral assessment for a 10-year-old boy with autism found both teacher attention and escape from task demands maintained his problem behavior. A choice-making intervention involving either completing work alone followed by a break with teacher attention versus working with teacher assistance was found to decrease problem behavior…

When used within a comprehensive positive behavioral support program, the CPI Postvention model can serve as a facilitation tool, guiding staff through functional behavioral assessment for individuals with Autism Spectrum Disorder. Challenging behavior is defined as behavior of such intensity, frequency, or duration that the physical safety of the…

A concurrent-operants design was used to analyze the repetitive behavior of observing reflective surfaces while simultaneously engaging in erratic gross-motor body movements (EBMs) exhibited by a young boy diagnosed with autism. The assessment involved an evaluation of preference for controlled (i. e., the participant controlled the visual…

Differences in subscale scores on the questions about behavioral function (QABF) were assessed for participants identified with pica, rumination, food stealing, food refusal, and mealtime behavior problems (e.g., aggression, self-injurious behavior). The QABF was administered to informants for 125 individuals identified with problematic feeding…

We describe the historic and current use of brief experimental analysis procedures in outpatient clinic and home settings. We discuss some applications of the designs and suggest design modifications for improving internal validity. We describe our application of the designs to longitudinal, in-home programs for children with severe behavior…

Since the reauthorization of IDEA (1997), the use of functional assessments to examine factors that are related to students' challenging behaviors has gained increasing attention in the literature. Over the past five years, several groups of investigators have conducted systematic analyses of the current status of the use of functional assessment…

Schools across the nation have been charged with the task of conducting functional behavioral assessments (FBAs) to aid in the development of behavior intervention plans (BIPs) to address the challenging behavior of students with special education needs. In response, schools have initiated efforts to provide the various members of their student…

Background: Despite research that has investigated whether the financial benefits of open employment exceed the costs, there has been scant research as to the effect sheltered and open employment have upon the quality of life of participants. The importance of this research is threefold: it investigates outcomes explicitly in terms of quality of…

Sleep problems such as bedtime difficulties, frequent night waking and excessive daytime sleepiness are prevalent in children with epilepsy. In the present study, functional assessment of sleep onset problems in two young children with epilepsy was performed. Effects of bedtime fading and antipsychotic medication (pipamperon) in a 6-year-old boy,…

Functional analyses were conducted during a double-blind, placebo-controlled study of the atypical antipsychotic medication risperidone with 13 individuals. Risperidone was effective in reducing destructive behavior (compared to placebo) for 10 participants. For 7 of these responders, an undifferentiated pattern of responding occurred across their…

This study examines the effectiveness of a single-session group motivational enhancement intervention with college students adjudicated for violation of alcohol policy. The intervention consisted of a timeline Followback assessment of drinking, social norms re-education, decisional balance for behavior change, relapse prevention, expectancy…

This study examined certain psychometric properties of the questions about behavioral function (QABF) scale. The QABF was completed on 118 problem behaviours presented by 40 young people with severe intellectual disabilities, and measures of inter-rater reliability, internal consistency, and construct validity were calculated overall and for…

This paper discusses the behavioral and psychological assessment of Child Sexual Abuse (CSA) in clinical practice. Following a brief introduction regarding definition and etiology of CSA and discussion on issues of behavioral/psychological consequences of CSA, the paper reviews the various approaches towards behavioral/psychological assessment in…

This study examined the effects of a function-based intervention implemented with a student, Shawn, who had attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder, internalizing behavioral problems, and a speech and language impairment. Shawn attended a fourth-grade classroom in a self-contained school that served students with emotional and behavioral…

While a majority of cognitive behavioural researchers and clinicians adhere to the classification system provided in the "Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders (DSM-IV)," strong objections have been voiced among behaviourists who find the dichotomous allocation of patients into psychiatric diagnoses incompatible with the philosophy…