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Biomedical subjects

V M Durand

Publications and source records attributed to V M Durand.

8 recordsLinked to original sources
PubMed1992

An analysis of maintenance following functional communication training.

The multiple and long-term effects of functional communication training relative to a common reductive procedure (time-out from positive reinforcement) were evaluated. Twelve children participated in a functional analysis of their challenging behaviors (Study 1), which implicated adult attention as a maintaining variable. The children were then matched for chronological age, mental age, and language age and assigned to two groups. One group received functional communication training as an intervention for their challenging behavior, and the second group received time-out as a contrast. Both interventions were initially successful (Study 2), but durable results were achieved only with the group that received functional communication training across different stimulus conditions (Study 3). Students whose challenging behaviors were previously reduced with time-out resumed these behaviors in the presence of naive teachers unaware of the children's intervention history. The value of teaching communicative responses to promote maintenance is discussed as it relates to the concept of functional equivalence.

Aggression↗
PubMed1991

Functional communication training to reduce challenging behavior: maintenance and application in new settings.

We evaluated the initial effectiveness, maintenance, and transferability of the results of functional communication training as an intervention for the challenging behaviors exhibited by 3 students. Assessment indicated that escape from academic demands was involved in the maintenance of the challenging behaviors. Social attention was also implicated as controlling the behavior of 1 student. The intervention involved teaching alternative assistance-seeking and attention-getting phrases to the students in an effort to replace challenging behavior with these verbal equivalents. Multiple baseline data collected across the 3 students indicated that not only did the intervention substantially reduce challenging behavior but also that these results transferred across new tasks, environments, and teachers, and were generally maintained from 18 to 24 months following the introduction of functional communication training. These results are discussed in light of recent efforts to develop effective interventions for severe challenging behavior and to understand the processes underlying transfer and maintenance of intervention effects.

Autistic Disorder↗
PubMed1990

Behavioral treatment of multiple childhood sleep disorders. Effects on child and family.

Sleep disorders are highly prevalent among otherwise healthy young children and can be extremely disruptive to family life. Treatment was initiated in a multiple baseline fashion for the chronic night waking and nighttime disturbance exhibited by a 14-month-old girl. We found that "graduated extinction" (gradually increasing the time before attending to the child's crying) resulted in rapid reductions in these sleep disorders. Additionally, data on parental depression and marital satisfaction showed general improvement as a function of improved child sleep patterns. These results are discussed as they relate to the treatment of common childhood behavior disorders and their role in family satisfaction.

Behavior Therapy↗
PubMed1988

Identifying the variables maintaining self-injurious behavior.

Reliability and validity data are reported for an instrument designed to identify variables maintaining self-injurious behavior. The Motivation Assessment Scale (MAS) is a 16-item questionnaire that addresses the situational determinants of self-injurious behavior in persons with autism and other developmental disorders. The reliability study indicated that teachers of 50 developmentally disabled persons could agree on the variables presumably maintaining their student's self-injury (interrater reliability), and that they would be in agreement again 30 days later (test-retest reliability). The validity study indicated that teacher's ratings on the MAS of 8 subjects' self-injury predicted how their students would behave in analogue situations. Specifically, the MAS predicted the subjects' self-injurious behavior in situations with decreased adult attention, with increased academic demands, with restricted access to tangibles, and in unstructured settings. The MAS is presented as an alternative or adjunct to more formal functional analyses in efforts to identify the variables controlling self-injurious behavior.

Adolescent↗
PubMed1987

Assessment and treatment of psychotic speech in an autistic child.

The psychotic speech of autistic and other developmentally disabled children can be defined as words or phrases that are intelligible, but appear out of context. In the present investigation we conducted an analysis of the psychotic speech of a 9-year-old autistic boy. Three experiments were constructed to determine the functional significance of this child's psychotic speech and a method of intervention. The first study involved an analysis of the role of adult attention and task demands in the maintenance of psychotic speech. When task demands were increased, the frequency of psychotic speech increased. Varying adult attention had no effect on psychotic speech. We then performed a second analysis in which the consequence for psychotic speech was a 10-second time-out. Psychotic speech increased, suggesting that it may have been maintained through escape from task demands. Finally, the third experiment involved teaching an appropriate escape response ("Help me"). Psychotic speech was greatly reduced by this intervention. Thus, teaching an appropriate equivalent phrase proved to be a viable alternative to interventions using aversive consequences. The present study represents the first observation that psychotic speech may serve to remove children from unpleasant situations and also introduces a nonaversive intervention for this behavior.

Autistic Disorder↗
PubMed1987

Social influences on "self-stimulatory" behavior: analysis and treatment application.

We tested the hypothesis that the "self-stimulatory" behaviors exhibited by some individuals may be socially mediated. Four developmentally disabled children who exhibited hand flapping and body rocking participated in a series of three experiments conducted to assess the influence of social variables on stereotyped behavior and to develop a treatment based on the assessment. Experiment 1 used an assessment procedure to determine the relative influences of social attention and task demands on stereotyped behavior. For all four children, hand flapping and body rocking increased when difficult academic tasks were introduced. Experiment 2 involved the use of a procedural time-out and demonstrated that removing task demands contingent on stereotyped behavior resulted in increased rates of hand flapping and body rocking. In Experiment 3, these results were used to develop a communication treatment that consisted of teaching the children to request assistance on the difficult tasks. This treatment resulted in significant reductions in self-stimulatory behavior. These results are consistent with the hypothesis that some forms of repetitive stereotyped behavior may come to serve social functions (e.g., escape from aversive situations). Teaching a functionally equivalent communicative alternative to escape-motivated stereotyped behavior can be an effective form of intervention for this problem.

Autistic Disorder↗
PubMed1985

Reducing behavior problems through functional communication training.

It is generally agreed that serious misbehavior in children should be replaced with socially appropriate behaviors, but few guidelines exist with respect to choosing replacement behaviors. We address this issue in two experiments. In Experiment 1, we developed an assessment method for identifying situations in which behavior problems, including aggression, tantrums, and self-injury, were most likely to occur. Results demonstrated that both low level of adult attention and high level of task difficulty were discriminative for misbehavior. In Experiment 2, the assessment data were used to select replacements for misbehavior. Specifically, children were taught to solicit attention or assistance or both verbally from adults. This treatment, which involved the differential reinforcement of functional communication, produced replicable suppression of behavior problems across four developmentally disabled children. The results were consistent with an hypothesis stating that some child behavior problems may be viewed as a nonverbal means of communication. According to this hypothesis, behavior problems and verbal communicative acts, though differing in form, may be equivalent in function. Therefore, strengthening the latter should weaken the former.

Adolescent↗