Reviewing manuscripts for behavior-analytic journals: A primer.

The peer-review component of the editorial process is designed to facilitate quality control, legitimize scientific research, and self-regulate scientific communities. Even though serving as a reviewer undoubtedly has direct and indirect benefits, the peer-review system and the methods of teaching scholars to conduct reviews are nascent and relatively underdeveloped. This article describes the peer-review process and provides recommendations for writing reviews for scientific journals.

Editors' perspectives on the selection of reviewers and the quality of reviews.

This article describes the outcomes of a survey of 93 editors in chief and associate editors of behavior-analytic journals. We sought information about variables that influence their judgment of the selection of reviewers, selection of review panels, and quality of reviews. When selecting reviewers, participants rated highly expertise on the topic, history of conducting good reviews, and history of writing constructive and respectful reviews.

The Women in Behavior Analysis Hall of Fame: Description and 2021 Inductees.

The inaugural Women in Behavior Analysis Conference (WIBA) was hosted in 2017 to highlight the accomplishments of women in the field of behavior analysis, provide opportunities for early career behavior analysts to obtain mentorship, and encourage meaningful discourse about gender issues in the field. In 2021, WIBA created the Hall of Fame to identify and honor outstanding women who have contributed to the field. Four stellar and important women were inducted into the inaugural class: Eve Segal, Bea Barrett, Martha Bernal, and Judith Favell.

Establishing and Leveraging the Expertise of Advisory Boards.

The advisory board's makeup tends to consist of professionals with domains of expertise relevant to the organization they serve. Organizations invite advisory board members to guide the organization's efforts over an extended period. Still, they do not have fiduciary, operational, or decision-making responsibilities for the organization in the way that a board of directors does.

The effects of transition to technician-delivered telehealth ABA treatment during the COVID-19 crisis: A preliminary analysis.

Telehealth delivery of applied behavior analysis treatment has focused on supervision or staff and parent training, rather than the direct delivery of treatment to clients. The novel coronavirus (COVID-19) crisis had the potential to significantly disrupt access to direct treatment for individuals with autism. We report a sample of 17 cases that transitioned from in-person to telehealth delivery of treatment when shelter-in-place orders were issued.

Promoting Ethical Discussions and Decision Making in a Human Service Agency.

This article describes the development of a system, the Ethics Network, designed to promote discussion of ethical issues in a human services organization. The system includes several core components, including people (e.g.

The Role of Compassion and Ethics in Decision Making Regarding Access to Applied Behavior Analysis Services During the COVID-19 Crisis: A Response to Cox, Plavnick, and Brodhead.

Cox, Plavnick, and Brodhead (2020, "A Proposed Process for Risk Mitigation During the COVID-19 Pandemic") published a position statement in the emergency section of in response to the COVID-19 crisis. They argued against a blanket interpretation that in-person applied behavior analysis services for all patients should continue during the pandemic. They strongly argued that the risks of continued services are almost always prohibitive and that only in rare cases would the continuation of in-person services be warranted.

Behavior analytic contributions to public health and telehealth.

The Journal of Applied Behavior Analysis is launching a special series on the topics of public health and telehealth. The special series begins with the articles in this issue and will continue for the next 2 to 3 issues with an open submission window until September 1, 2020. Behavior analysis has much to offer with respect to public health and much to gain from continued and expanded use of telehealth.

Procedures and Accuracy of Discontinuous Measurement of Problem Behavior in Common Practice of Applied Behavior Analysis.

Discontinuous measurement involves dividing an observation into intervals and recording whether a behavior occurred during some or all of each interval (i.e., interval recording) or at the exact time of observation (i.

Planning and Leading Effective Meetings.

Behavior analysts spend a great deal of time in meetings regardless of their specific professional role (e.g., academic, practice, administration), so effective meeting skills are important.

Evaluating the Effects of Similar and Distinct Discriminative Stimuli During Auditory Conditional Discrimination Training With Children With Autism.

Children with autism are often taught auditory conditional discriminations in the form of personal information questions that might prove useful in conversation (e.g., "What is your favorite food?" "Pizza" and "What is your favorite color?" "Purple").

Teaching children with autism spectrum disorder to tact auditory stimuli.

Studies on teaching tacts to individuals with autism spectrum disorder (ASD) have primarily focused on visual stimuli, despite published clinical recommendations to teach tacts of stimuli in other sensory domains as well. In the current study, two children with ASD were taught to tact auditory stimuli under two stimulus-presentation arrangements: isolated (auditory stimuli presented without visual cues) and compound (auditory stimuli presented with visual cues). Results indicate that compound stimulus presentation was a more effective teaching procedure, but that it interfered with prior object-name tacts.

The Training Experiences of Behavior Analysts: Compassionate Care and Therapeutic Relationships with Caregivers.

Successfully working with families of children with autism requires technical behavior-analytic skills and critical interpersonal relationship-building skills. Taylor, LeBlanc, and Nosik (2018) suggested that many Board Certified Behavior Analysts might have been trained in graduate programs that focus primarily on conceptual and technical skills with little coverage of skills related to building therapeutic relationships. The current paper provides the results of an online survey of the precredential and postcredential training experiences of behavior analysts.

Using a Prerequisite Skills Assessment to Identify Optimal Modalities for Mand Training.

This study examined the utility of a brief prerequisite assessment in predicting the subsequent effectiveness and rate of acquisition of mand training in each of three response modalities (sign, picture exchange, and vocalizations). Overall, the picture exchange was the most effective and efficient modality for acquiring the targeted mand. The vocal modality was the least effective except when the prerequisite assessment indicated that two-syllable vocal imitation was intact.

The Effects of Standard and Enhanced Data Sheets and Brief Video Training on Implementation of Conditional Discrimination Training.

Grow and LeBlanc (2013) described practice recommendations for conducting conditional discrimination training with children with autism. One recommendation involved using a specially designed datasheet to provide the preset target stimulus for each trial along with counterbalancing the location of stimuli if a three-item array of comparison stimuli. This study evaluated whether the recommended data sheet would lead to higher procedural integrity of counterbalancing trials compared to a standard data sheet (i.

Establishing Consumer Protections for Research in Human Service Agencies.

Conducting research in practice settings is the primary mechanism for establishing a strong foundation of evidence for clinical decision making. In behavior analysis, this type of research frequently originates from university-based systems that have established institutional review boards. Independent human service agencies that want to contribute applied research to the literature base that is clinically meaningful and conducted in an ethical fashion must establish a research review committee (RRC).

Compassionate Care in Behavior Analytic Treatment: Can Outcomes be Enhanced by Attending to Relationships with Caregivers?

The practice of behavior analysis has become a booming industry with growth to over 30,000 Board Certified Behavior Analysts (BCBAs) who primarily work with children with autism and their families. Most of these BCBAs are relatively novice and have likely been trained in graduate programs that focus primarily on conceptual and technical skills. Successfully working with families of children with autism, however, requires critical interpersonal skills, as well as technical skills.

Evaluating Behavioral Skills Training to Teach Basic Computer Skills to a Young Adult with Autism.

The current study evaluated the effects of behavioral skills training (BST) on acquisition of basic computer skills using Microsoft Word®, Microsoft Excel®, and Microsoft PowerPoint® by a 15-year-old male diagnosed with autism. A concurrent multiple-baseline design across computer programs (i.e.

Live training versus e-learning to teach implementation of listener response programs.

Discrete-trial teaching is an effective teaching procedure that must be implemented with high integrity to produce optimal learning. Behavioral Skills Training (BST) has proven effective for staff training; however, BST is time and labor intensive. Computer-based instruction (CBI) programs may provide a more efficient and cost-effective alternative to live training if the CBI program is as effective as BST in producing accurate implementation.

Evaluation of stimulus intensity fading on reduction of rapid eating in a child with autism.

This study assessed the effects of a vibrating pager on reduction of rapid eating. The study also evaluated two strategies for fading the pager, by intensity and by frequency. The pager was successful in decreasing the pace of eating to an appropriate level and the pager prompt was successfully faded.

Treating Food Approval-Seeking Behavior: One Bite at a Time.

The prevalence of feeding problems in children with autism is high. The current investigation was a treatment of a unique presentation of food-related prompt dependence with a 6-year-old boy with autism who was reliant upon approval from adults for consumption of every bite of food. Instructions were used to establish independent eating, in which the number of bites specified in the instruction was systematically increased.

The Benefits of Group Supervision and a Recommended Structure for Implementation.

Effective supervision practices can facilitate the professional development of the supervisee, the continued growth of the supervisor, and the overall development of our field and its practice. In addition to individual supervision, many aspiring certificants also participate in group supervision experiences either as part of their academic practicum or as part of a supervised independent fieldwork experience. Group supervision can provide unique opportunities to establish critical professional repertoires such as peer feedback skills and public speaking skills.

Recommendations for Detecting and Addressing Barriers to Successful Supervision.

Behavior analysts who supervise staff are responsible for establishing a healthy supervisory relationship and for teaching basic behavior analytic skills (e.g., verbal repertoires, technical repertoires, clinical decision-making).

Recommended Practices for Individual Supervision of Aspiring Behavior Analysts.

Practicing behavior analysts and behavior analysts in academic settings often provide supervision for young professionals who are pursuing certification as a behavior analyst. Effective supervision is critical to the quality of ongoing behavioral services, the professional development of the supervisee, the continued growth of the supervisor, and the overall development of our field and its practice. The Behavior Analyst Certification Board recently instituted several new requirements including training in supervisory practices prior to supervising those who are accruing hours toward the experience requirement for certification.