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| Implementation of Behavioral Skills Training in Community Settings |
| Monday, May 31, 2010 |
| 9:30 AM–10:50 AM |
| Seguin (Grand Hyatt) |
| Area: CSE/EDC; Domain: Applied Behavior Analysis |
| Chair: Mark T. Harvey (Florida Institute of Technology) |
| Discussant: W. Joseph Wyatt (Marshall University) |
| CE Instructor: Jason Bourret, Ph.D. |
| Abstract: Behavioral Skills Training (BST) is an active learning approach during which instruction, modeling, participant rehearsal, feedback and in situ assessment are conducted to develop skill mastery. The utility and generality of BST is well documented as an efficient way to teach safety skills and address low probability high intensity problem behavior. This symposium will include three data-based studies that demonstrated the use of BST to diminish aberrant behavioral patterns and concurrently increased appropriate behavior for children and adults in community settings. In the first study, BST was used to teach children adaptive responses when they encountered matches or lighters. The second study included BST procedures to teach a child with Hemophilia A the skills necessary to report medical crises and treat wounds effectively. The third study reports on the use of BST training techniques to teach parenting skills to foster parents. Discussion will focus on the utility, adaptability, and generality of BST training procedures when applied to issues of social significance. |
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| Putting Out the Fire: Behavioral Skills Training and Teaching Fire Safety Skills |
| ANDREW J. HOUVOURAS (Brevard County Public Schools), Patricia Rich (Brevard County Public Schools), Alana Bellizzi (Florida Institute of Technology), Mark T. Harvey (Florida Institute of Technology) |
| Abstract: Fires set by adolescents are responsible for millions of dollars of property damage, thousands of injuries and hundreds of deaths in the United States every year. Most fires set by children are set by lighters and matches. To date, most fire safety programs largely center on increasing knowledge bases and vocal reports. Behavioral skills training (BST), the sequence of instructing, modeling, rehearsing, providing feedback and conducting in situ assessments, has been shown to be highly effective in teaching safety skills. Evaluating these skills by applying BST to fire safety, three elementary school boys, two with prior histories of fire setting, showed an increase in their skill sets. Follow-up data for two of the three subjects showed maintenance of the skills one month after training was completed. We discuss the need for evaluating skill sets empirically and how behavioral skills training offers professionals an efficacious method to address low probability, covert behavior such as fire setting. |
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| Blood Runs Red: Using Behavioral Skills Training to Teach a Child With Hemophilia to Care for Bleeds |
| RAYNA M. HOUVOURAS (Applying Behaivor Concepts), Andrew J. Houvouras (Applying Behavior Concepts) |
| Abstract: Hemophilia A is an x-linked genetic bleeding disorder often resulting in spontaneous bleeding episodes. A rare and incurable chronic medical condition, hemophilia A (as most other bleeding disorders) is most often studied by social workers and psychologists. To date, extensions of applied behavior analysis to individuals with hemophilia have rarely been undertaken. In the present study, behavioral skills training (BST), an adaptive learning procedure, was used to teach a 3 year old child to vocally report and demonstrate self care for two types of bleeds: epistaxis (nosebleeds) and minor cuts. The child successfully acquired four-step vocal reports and self care skills and exhibited them to criterion during follow-up probes. Discussion will focus on the use of artificial agents when using BST, current concerns of bleeding disorder treatment (latency from the onset of bleeds to the seeking of treatment) and advancements in behavioral science that may be applicable to the bleeding disorders community. |
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| Teaching Parenting Tools Using Behavioral Skills Training |
| STACIE NEFF (Private Practice), Bryon R. Neff (Florida Institute of Technology) |
| Abstract: From 2001-2008, the State of Florida’s Department of Children and Families funded and offered behavior analytic services to children in foster care and their caretakers. The Behavior Analysis Services Program (BASP) utilized BST to teach caregiving skills to adults responsible for the well being of children who suffered from abuse and neglect. This presentation will describe how BST was implemented in this statewide program that trained thousands of caseworkers and foster, adoptive and biological parents. Data examples will include pre/post test scores for in-class role-plays as well as in-situ (in-home) performance. Other interesting outcomes related to the BST, such as improving staff interactions in group home settings and reducing restrictive procedures in a locked residential facility, will also be discussed. |
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