Association for Behavior Analysis International

Effective instructional programs are critical for children with intellectual and developmental disabilities; however, many factors are involved in developing effective instructional programs. This this symposium, we present research regarding recent advancements in instructional programs. The first presentation will address considerations of mand topographies on functional communication training (FCT). Results indicate that mand proficiency should be considered when selecting mand topographies during FCT addressing problem behaviors that serve multiple functions. The second presentation will discuss the effectiveness of a discrimination training procedure to teach participants when newly-aqauired mands would be honored. Results suggest mands acquired during FCT can be successfully placed under stimulus control while maintaining low levels of challenging behavior. The third presentation will address the effects of preferences incorporated into non-preferred tasks on task engagement and indices of happiness. Results indicate incorporating preferences into tasks will increase behavioral indicators of happiness. The final presentation will discuss the effectiveness of two error correction procedures within a discrete-trial instructional program. Results suggest that error correction with and without vocal feedback produce similar rates of skill acquisition and problem behavior. The final discussion will summarize these studies, highlight the applied value of the results, and discuss future research.

Although functional communication training (FCT) has been demonstrated in myriad studies to be an effective treatment of problem behavior, less is known about the possible influence of specific mand topographies on treatment outcomes. One exception, Ringdahl et al. (2009, found that high-proficiency mand topographies were more effective when targeted during FCT relative to low-proficiency mand topographies. Whereas Ringdahl et al. targeted single functions, no studies have evaluated the influence of proficiency across multiple functions of problem behavior. We conducted mand proficiency assessments with children who engaged in multiply maintained problem behavior. The results suggested that proficiency varied with mand topographies within and across functions of problem behavior. Next, we conducted FCT using high and low-proficiency mands across all demonstrated functions of problem behavior. Results varied within and across functions of problem behavior in terms of the effects of high and low-proficiency mand topographies. Implications regarding the selection and targeting of mand topographies during FCT when multiple functions of problem behaviors are indicated will be discussed.

Functional communication training (FCT) is an evidenced--based treatment of challenging behaviors in which an individual learns to appropriately request reinforcers as an alternative to engaging in challenging behaviors. However, there are situations in which the mand simply cannot be honored because the reinforcer is unavailable, resulting in the reemergence of challenging behavior. Few studies have empirically demonstrated methods to deal with these applied situations. In the current clinical investigation, stimulus control of the mand was established for 2 children with autism spectrum disorder to decrease challenging behavior. First, reinforcers for challenging behaviors were identified for each child and the children learned appropriate mands to functionally replace the challenging behavior. Next, the children entered into discrimination training in which colored cards indicated when appropriate mands would be honored (i.e., green card) and put on extinction (i.e., red card). Challenging behavior and appropriate mands were measured and an AB with multielement single--case design was utilized to evaluate discrimination training. Results showed that both children learned to mand when the green card was present but not when the red card was present. In addition, challenging behaviors remained low in both conditions.