Snack Talk: Effects of a Naturalistic Visual Communication Support on Increasing Conversation Engagement for Adults with Disabilities.

Adults with intellectual and developmental disabilities frequently experience poor life outcomes, with individuals reporting lower levels of social support, relationships, gainful employment, and satisfaction in their quality of life. To ameliorate these outcomes, social skills and social communication interventions aligned with the needs of adults are warranted. This study examined the efficacy of Snack Talk, a supplemental naturalistic visual communication support, with five adults with intellectual and developmental disabilities.

Revisiting Topography-Based and Selection-Based Verbal Behavior.

In topography-based verbal behavior, different antecedent stimuli control different topographies of responding, whereas in selection-based verbal behavior, different antecedent stimuli control the selection of visually distinct stimuli from an array of options. In this article, we point out three variable characteristics of selection-based behavior, highlighted by recent technological developments, that affect its similarity to topography-based behavior: The extent to which stimuli can be constructed from minimal units, the size and composition of the selection array, and the similarity of response-produced stimuli to verbal stimuli that are prevalent in the speaker's verbal community. Although a distinction between topography-based and selection-based behavior has merit, particular characteristics of a selection-based verbal behavior modality may often be more relevant for researchers and clinicians to consider than its status as selection-based.

Distance-Based Collaborations for Assessing and Treating Challenging Behavior.

An interview-informed synthesized contingency analysis (IISCA; Hanley et al. in J Appl Behav Anal 47:16-36, 2014) and related skill-based treatment process can result in socially valid outcomes for clients exhibiting severe challenging behavior when implemented by professionals and then transferred to parents (e.g.

Using an App-Based Token Economy to Increase Engagement in Daily Living and Vocational Tasks with Adults with Developmental Disabilities.

The token economy is an evidence-based practice that improves outcomes across populations, settings, and behaviors. Nonetheless, their complex nature frequently leads to ineffective implementation. In addition, little is known about the extent to which token economies are effective for increasing engagement in adults with disabilities.

Bridging the gap between laboratory and applied research on response-independent schedules.

In 1948, Skinner described the behavior of pigeons under response-independent schedules as "superstitious," and proposed that the responses were reinforced by contiguous, adventitious food deliveries. Subsequently, response-independent schedules have been of interest to both basic and applied researchers, first to understand the mechanisms involved, and later, as "noncontingent reinforcement" (NCR) to reduce undesirable behavior. However, the potential superstitious effects produced by these schedules have been challenged, with some researchers arguing that antecedent variables play a significant role.

Evaluating Professional Behavior Analysts' Literature Searches.

The first section of the new Behavior Analyst Certification Board's Ethics Code for Behavior Analysts (BACB, 2020) includes the expectation that behavior analysts will maintain competence by reading relevant literature. The purpose of the current study was to evaluate to what extent professional behavior analysts search for and access the behavior analytic literature. A survey invitation was sent through the Behavior Analyst Certification Board and social media outlets at the end of 2020; 180 professionals responded.

Teaching children with autism spectrum disorder to ask "where" questions using a speech-generating device.

Children with autism spectrum disorder (ASD) who have limited speech are often taught to communicate using a speech-generating device (SGD). We evaluated procedures for teaching a mand for information (i.e.

Life skills instruction for children with developmental disabilities.

The Preschool Life Skills program is an intervention package designed to teach functional skills to prevent problem behavior in typically developing children. The purpose of the current study was to evaluate the effects of the instructional package (renamed "Life Skills") with children with developmental disabilities. The program involved teaching 12 life skills to nine participants across four instructional units.

Speak Up: Increasing Conversational Volume in a Child with Autism Spectrum Disorder.

Deficits in social interactions are a hallmark of autism spectrum disorder. This study examined one relatively uncommon aspect of social interactions that has not received much attention from the literature: appropriate conversational volume. Conversational speech volume was measured using a commercially available application, and a package intervention was developed that consisted of feedback from the voice measuring application, signaling from a wrist bracelet, and differential reinforcement.

Guidelines for Developing Telehealth Services and Troubleshooting Problems with Telehealth Technology When Coaching Parents to Conduct Functional Analyses and Functional Communication Training in Their Homes.

The researchers in the project used telehealth to conduct functional analyses and functional communication training in homes of children diagnosed with autism who displayed problem behavior. Parents conducted all assessment and treatment procedures within their homes while receiving coaching from applied behavior analysts located approximately 200 miles away from them. In this article, the researchers summarize the technical systems they used to develop a telehealth service and the concerns and problems they have encountered using telehealth and provide some guidelines for how to troubleshoot those problems.