Biomedical subjects

D P Wacker

Publications and source records attributed to D P Wacker.

At least 37 records · Page 2Linked to original sources

PubMed1996

Choice-making treatment of young children's severe behavior problems.

The choice-making behavior of 5 young children with developmental disabilities who engaged in aberrant behavior was studied within a concurrent operants framework. Experimental analyses were conducted to identify reinforcers that maintained aberrant behavior, and functional communication training packages were implemented to teach the participants to gain reinforcement using mands. Next, a choice-making analysis, in which the participants chose one of two responses (either a mand or an alternative neutral response) to obtain different durations and qualities of reinforcement, was conducted. Finally, treatment packages involving choice making via manding were implemented to decrease inappropriate behavior and to increase mands. The results extended previous applications of choice making to severe behavior disorders and across behaviors maintained by positive and negative reinforcement.

Behavior Therapy↗

PubMed1996

Brief experimental analysis of stimulus prompts for accurate responding on academic tasks in an outpatient clinic.

Brief multielement designs were used to examine the effects of specific instructional strategies on accuracy of academic performance during outpatient evaluations of 4 children with learning disorders. Instructional strategies that improved accuracy on academic tasks were identified for all participants. These results suggest that the application of experimental analysis methodologies to instructional variables may facilitate the identification of stimulus prompts that are associated with enhanced academic performance.

Ambulatory Care Facilities↗

PubMed1996

The effects of meal schedule and quantity on problematic behavior.

We present 2 case examples that illustrate the effects of meal schedule and quantity on displays of problematic behavior. In the first example, self-injury displayed by a toddler with severe developmental delays was maintained by parent attention, but only when he was satiated for food. When he was food deprived, self-injury decreased but did not appear to be differentiated across low or high social conditions. In the second example, crying and self-injury displayed by an elementary-aged girl with severe disabilities were correlated: Both behaviors were associated with food quantity, and neither behavior was responsive to social stimuli. These results replicate and extend previous findings demonstrating that meal schedule or food quantity can affect problematic behavior. In the present studies, brief functional analyses of aberrant behavior provided useful information for interpreting distinct patterns of behavior displayed by each child. We discuss these results in terms of the concept of establishing operations.

Behavior Therapy↗

PubMed1995

A demonstration of generalization of performance across settings, materials, and motor responses for students with profound mental retardation.

A treatment package, consisting of multiple exemplar training and community-based instruction, was evaluated for its effectiveness in teaching four students with profound mental retardation and multiple disabilities to participate in two sets of community-living tasks. All training took place in community settings, and each student demonstrated improved performance on at least one task set. In addition, all students demonstrated improved performance on a series of tasks selected to assess generalization of performance across settings, materials, and/or motoric responses required to complete the target task. Maintenance of performance over a 4- to 5-month period was assessed and achieved for two of the students. The results of this investigation are discussed in terms of the implications for programming for students with profound mental retardation.

Activities of Daily Living↗

PubMed1995

Use of component analyses to identify active variables in treatment packages for children with feeding disorders.

We evaluated the separate components in treatment packages for food refusal of 4 young children. First, treatment packages were implemented until food acceptance improved. Next, a component analysis was conducted within a multielement or reversal design to identify the active components that facilitated food acceptance. The results indicated that escape extinction was always identified as an active variable when assessed; however, other variables, including positive reinforcement and noncontingent play, were also identified as active variables for 2 of the children. The results suggest that the component analysis was useful for identifying variables that affected food acceptance.

Child, Preschool↗

PubMed1995

Two measures of preference during forced-choice assessments.

A forced-choice preference assessment was conducted in which two dependent measures were used to select preferred stimuli: (a) approach responding and (b) latency to the first aberrant response. Stimuli identified as preferred based on both dependent measures were then evaluated during treatment. The results suggested that latency may be a useful measure in the selection of preferred stimuli during forced-choice assessments.

Child↗

PubMed1995

Improving the peer interactions of students with emotional and behavioral disorders through self-evaluation procedures: a component analysis and group application.

We conducted two experiments examining the effects of a self-evaluation package on the peer interactions of students described as emotionally or behaviorally disordered. Experiment 1 assessed the additive effects of various components of a self-evaluation package on the frequency of inappropriate and appropriate peer interactions. The components assessed were rewards alone, rewards plus discussion, and self-evaluation plus rewards. Results showed limited effectiveness when rewards alone and rewards plus discussion were implemented. However, substantial improvements in peer interactions were observed when the self-evaluation component was added. Experiment 2 examined the efficacy and feasibility of the procedures when implemented in a group setting. Students in three classrooms served as participants. Direct observation data collected for 8 of the participants showed the procedures to be effective in improving peer interactions when implemented in a group context.

Affective Symptoms↗

PubMed1994

Functional analysis of separate topographies of aberrant behavior.

We conducted a functional analysis of distinct topographies of aberrant behavior displayed by 4 clients. We first analyzed the behaviors in an aggregate fashion and then separated the behaviors to formulate hypotheses about the maintaining variables for each behavior. The procedures were used in a two-phase experiment. During Phase 1, two extended functional analyses were completed, one in an inpatient unit and one in a special education classroom. During Phase 2, two brief functional analyses were completed in an outpatient clinic. Results indicated that hypotheses of separate functions for distinct behaviors can be generated using both extended and brief functional analyses when the results are graphed in the aggregate and are separated by response topography. The results also suggest that these methods can improve the accuracy of data interpretation and treatment selection.

Adult↗

PubMed1994

Brief hierarchical assessment of potential treatment components with children in an outpatient clinic.

Seven patients conducted assessments in an outpatient clinic using a prescribed hierarchy of antecedent and consequence treatment components for their children's problem behavior. Brief assessment of potential treatment components was conducted to identify variables that controlled the children's appropriate behavior. Experimental control via a brief reversal was achieved for 6 of the 7 children, (1 child continued to behave appropriately following initial improvement in behavior). For these 6 children, improved behavior occurred with changes in treatment components. Our results extend previous studies of direct assessment procedures conducted in outpatient clinic settings.

Ambulatory Care↗

PubMed1994

The treatment of severe behavior problems in school settings using a technical assistance model.

We evaluated the feasibility of local school personnel conducting functional analysis and reinforcement-based treatment procedures within actual classroom settings. Following an initial in-service workshop on functional assessment and differential reinforcement procedures, on-site technical assistance was provided two to four times per month to local school personnel working in transdisciplinary teams. Overall results suggest that local school personnel were able to implement all procedures adequately with periodic technical assistance. In addition, functional analysis was effective in identifying individual maintaining contingencies, the derived treatments were effective, and the results were maintained throughout the approximate 18 months of this investigation.

Aggression↗

PubMed1994

The impact of functional analysis methodology on outpatient clinic services.

The impact of the article by Iwata, Dorsey, Slifer, Bauman, and Richman (1982) on research in severe behavior disorders has been impressive. Equally impressive, however, but not as fully recognized, has been the impact of this methodology on the routine professional activities of those who employ functional analysis methods in their daily work. As one example of this impact, we describe the evolution of assessment procedures based on "brief functional analysis" methodology in our outpatient clinics. Less apparent have been the collateral effects that occur from using these procedures. Interactions with clients and colleagues have changed in ways that result in increased positive reinforcement. In this article, we briefly discuss the positive impact functional analysis has had on one specific work behavior--outpatient clinic assessment--and describe some of the generalized effects we have experienced in related aspects of our daily professional activities.

Ambulatory Care Facilities↗

PubMed1993

A brief component analysis of potential treatment packages in an outpatient clinic setting with young children.

The purpose of this study was to develop outpatient clinic assessments that allowed us to assess multiple treatment variables, produce relatively quick effects, and isolate active treatment components. Assessment began by evaluating a treatment package consisting of antecedent and consequence variables followed by a component analysis to determine the separate effects of the treatment variables. Three examples of the findings are presented.

Ambulatory Care↗

PubMed1992

Brief functional assessment techniques to evaluate aberrant behavior in an outpatient setting: a summary of 79 cases.

Previous investigators have analyzed the maintaining conditions for aberrant behaviors using brief functional assessment procedures. These assessment procedures have been used in one of our outpatient clinics, the Self-Injurious and Aggressive Behavior Service. This study presents a descriptive summary of the results from 79 cases during a 3-year period. The outcomes of the brief assessment were evaluated across three variables: (a) referring topography, (b) control over behavior as evaluated through brief multielement designs, and (c) the identified maintaining conditions for aberrant behavior. The limitations and future utility of brief functional assessments for identifying distinct maintaining contingencies are discussed.

Adolescent↗

PubMed1992

Analysis of the effects of task preferences, task demands, and adult attention on child behavior in outpatient and classroom settings.

Two studies were conducted with children who displayed behavior problems to evaluate the effects of task preference, task demands, and adult attention on child behavior. In Study 1, we conducted brief functional analyses in an outpatient clinic to identify variables that facilitated appropriate behavior. For 8 of 10 children, distinct patterns of performance occurred; 3 children displayed improved behavior with changes in task demands, 1 child displayed improved behavior with a preferred task, and 4 children displayed improved behavior with changes in adult attention. In most cases, the children's parents carried out the assessments with adequate procedural integrity. In Study 2, we applied similar assessment methods to a classroom setting over an extended period of time. We identified independent variables controlling appropriate, on-task, and academic behavior for 2 children on two tasks, with slightly different treatment procedures across tasks for both children. In addition, the results of brief functional analyses for both children corresponded to the extended classroom assessments.

Adjustment Disorders↗

PubMed1990

Using parents as therapists to evaluate appropriate behavior of their children: application to a tertiary diagnostic clinic.

We conducted a preliminary analysis of maintaining variables for children with conduct disorders in an outpatient clinic. Eight children of normal intelligence between the ages of 4 and 9 years were evaluated during 90-min sessions. The children's parents conducted the assessments by varying task demands (easy and difficult) and parental attention (attention and no attention) within a multielement design. The assessment focused on appropriate child behavior and was conducted to formulate hypotheses regarding maintaining contingencies. Results demonstrated that the children's appropriate behavior varied across assessment conditions and, for 7 of the 8 children, occurred at a higher rate during one condition than during other conditions. In addition, treatment integrity data demonstrated that parents were able to implement the procedures as intended. The recommended treatments were rated as being both effective and acceptable to parents for up to 6 months following the evaluation. Our results extend previous studies of functional analytic procedures conducted by trained experimenters with severely handicapped children in more controlled settings.

Attention↗

PubMed1990

A component analysis of functional communication training across three topographies of severe behavior problems.

We evaluated the separate treatment components of a functional communication training program for 3 severely handicapped persons who each displayed different topographies of aberrant behavior. Following a functional analysis of maintaining conditions for inappropriate behavior (self-injury, stereotypy, aggression), each participant was trained to emit a communicative response that functioned to solicit reinforcement. For 2 participants, consequences (time-out or graduated guidance) for inappropriate behavior were also included. Treatment continued until the participants emitted the communicative response independently and no occurrences of inappropriate behavior were observed for at least two sessions. Following treatment, the separate contributions of the treatment components for communicative responding and for inappropriate behavior were evaluated with a reversal design. The results indicated that both sets of treatment components were necessary for maximal control over aberrant behavior. These results are discussed in relation to the efficiency, history, and control over reinforcement of both appropriate and inappropriate responses.

Behavior Therapy↗

PubMed1990

Use of negative reinforcement in the treatment of self-injurious behavior.

Behavioral assessment procedures were used to determine the maintaining conditions of self-injury exhibited by 2 children with severe multiple handicaps. For both children, negative reinforcement (escape from grooming activities) was determined to be the maintaining reinforcer for self-injury (hand/arm biting) within an alternating treatments design. The treatment packages involved the use of negative reinforcement (brief escape from grooming activities) contingent upon a behavior that was incompatible with self-injury (reaching and pressing a microswitch that activated a pre-recorded message of "stop"). Treatment was evaluated with a reversal design for 1 child and with a multiple baseline across grooming activities for the 2nd child. The treatment led to a marked decrease in self-injury for both children. At follow-up, high rates of self-injury were reported for the 1st child, but low rates of self-injury and an increase in task-related appropriate behavior were observed for the 2nd child.

Behavior Therapy↗

PubMed1989

The use of behavioral assessment to prescribe and evaluate treatments for severely handicapped children.

Behavioral assessment procedures were used to prescribe and evaluate treatments of maladaptive behavior for 2 children with severe multiple handicaps. In Experiment 1, the results of an assessment of reinforcer preference were used in conjunction with a functional analysis of the conditions maintaining self-injurious behavior to prescribe a treatment for a child with severe disabilities. The treatment procedure involved the use of a pressure-sensitive microswitch to activate reinforcing stimuli during two solitary conditions, during which self-injurious behavior had occurred at high rates. The results were evaluated with a multiple baseline across settings design and indicated that self-injury decreased with concomitant increases in microswitch activation. Results were maintained at 6 weeks, 8 weeks, and 6 months. In Experiment 2, the results of behavioral assessments of reinforcer preference and self-injurious behavior were combined to develop a treatment for a second severely handicapped child, who exhibited high rates of self-injury in demand situations. This treatment was evaluated with a multiple baseline across tasks design and resulted in the elimination of self-injury for up to 15 months.

Behavior Therapy↗