Meta-Analysis of Mindfulness-Based Program Soles of the Feet for Disruptive Behaviors.

Mindfulness-based programs are a promising intervention modality for reducing disruptive behavior, and Soles of the Feet (SOF) is one program that teaches internal awareness of personal events (e.g., unpleasant emotions) and a self-regulation strategy to decrease disruptive behaviors. This study conducted a meta-analysis of single-case research design (SCRD) studies that implemented SOF to decrease disruptive behaviors. Existing SOF studies were evaluated using high-quality SCRD standards, resulting in 15 studies included in the analysis (49 participants; mean age 23.12 years (SD = 15.87); highly heterogeneous backgrounds). Studies were analyzed to calculate effect sizes using Tau-U, an innovative non-parametric statistical approach for estimating effect sizes in SCRD studies. The aggregated weighted Tau-U effect size of SOF across all studies was -0.87. Moderator analyses indicated SOF's effectiveness was robust across participant characteristics and delivery formats. This meta-analysis suggests that SOF is a moderately effective evidence-based practice for reducing disruptive behavior.

Pediatric Prevention: Academic Behavior.

Many children in the United States are performing below basic standards in reading, mathematics, and writing. Children at risk for academic problems often have comorbid classroom behavior problems and/or are diagnosed with high-incidence disabilities. Early intervention to prevent academic problems is a key goal of school-wide response-to-intervention models. The goal of school-based instructional intervention is to increase children's strength of responding so basic academic skills can be combined to solve more complex tasks. Parents and caregivers can support intervention efforts at school by engaging in frequent communication with student assistance teams and helping children with academic work completion at home.

Agreement Between Structured Descriptive Assessments and Functional Analyses Conducted Over a Telehealth System.

This study examined whether experimental functional analyses (FAs) conducted by parents at home with coaching via telehealth would produce differentiated results, and compared these results to the functions identified from structured descriptive assessments (SDAs) also conducted by parents at home via telehealth. Four boys between the ages of 4- and 8-years old with intellectual and developmental disabilities and their parents participated. All assessments were conducted in the children's homes with their parents serving as intervention agents and with coaching from remote behavior therapists using videoconferencing technology. Parent-implemented FAs produced differentiated results for all 4 children in the study. Overall, analyzing antecedent-behavior (A-B) and behavior-consequence (B-C) relations from the SDA videos identified only half of the functions identified by the FAs. For children whose SDA results were differentiated, analyzing A-B relations correctly identified 4 of 5 functions. Analyzing B-C relations correctly identified 5 of 6 functions identified by the experimental FA, but overidentified attention for all children. Implications for conducting functional analyses and interpreting structured descriptive assessment via telehealth are discussed.

Effects of word overlap on generalized gains from a repeated readings intervention.

We compared children's gains in oral reading fluency after applying a standard fluency-building intervention to three training passages that differed in word overlap (high, low, and multiple exemplar) with an untrained generalization passage. Participants were 132 White and Hispanic third-grade children from two schools in the northeast and mountain west. Children were randomly assigned within classrooms to the three word overlap conditions, pre-tested on their assigned training and a common generalization passage, received a fluency-building intervention on their assigned training passage, and then post-tested on the same two passages. Regression analyses were conducted to examine the effects of word overlap condition on the children's fluency gains after controlling for pre-test fluency and classroom. Results revealed significantly larger priming and generalization effects for the multiple exemplar versus both the low- and high-word overlap conditions. Survival curves showed that a significantly larger proportion of children in the multiple exemplar condition survived as generalized responders at all generalization levels relative to the other two conditions. Implications for assessing and promoting generalized oral reading fluency in response-to-intervention models and directions for future research are discussed.

Sensitivity and bias under conditions of equal and unequal academic task difficulty.

We conducted an experimental analysis of children's relative problem-completion rates across two workstations under conditions of equal (Experiment 1) and unequal (Experiment 2) problem difficulty. Results were described using the generalized matching equation and were evaluated for degree of schedule versus stimulus control. Experiment 1 involved a symmetrical choice arrangement in which the children could earn points exchangeable for rewards contingent on correct math problem completion. Points were delivered according to signaled variable-interval schedules at each workstation. For 2 children, relative rates of problem completion appeared to have been controlled by the schedule requirements in effect and matched relative rates of reinforcement, with sensitivity values near 1 and bias values near 0. Experiment 2 involved increasing the difficulty of math problems at one of the workstations. Sensitivity values for all 3 participants were near 1, but a substantial increase in bias toward the easier math problems was observed. This bias was possibly associated with responding at the more difficult workstation coming under stimulus control rather than schedule control.

Contingency space analysis: an alternative method for identifying contingent relations from observational data.

Descriptive assessment methods have been used in applied settings to identify consequences for problem behavior, thereby aiding in the design of effective treatment programs. Consensus has not been reached, however, regarding the types of data or analytic strategies that are most useful for describing behavior-consequence relations. One promising approach involves the analysis of conditional probabilities from sequential recordings of behavior and events that follow its occurrence. In this paper we review several strategies for identifying contingent relations from conditional probabilities, and propose an alternative strategy known as a contingency space analysis (CSA). Step-by-step procedures for conducting and interpreting a CSA using sample data are presented, followed by discussion of the potential use of a CSA for conducting descriptive assessments, informing intervention design, and evaluating changes in reinforcement contingencies following treatment.

The Student Should Help the Teacher: a View From 30 Years as an ABA Trainer.

I characterize my efforts to train graduate students in applied behavior analysis as a shaping process that involves closely monitoring their performance, providing numerous opportunities to respond in a variety of contexts, gradually shifting the reinforcement criterion, differentially reinforcing improvement, and providing instruction and error correction when necessary. In line with the old adage that "the student should help the teacher", I also discuss how students are responsible in part for their own learning. To illustrate the importance of the student helping the teacher, I present a simple mathematical model that shows how two equally talented students can master skills at dramatically different rates by how frequently they respond to learning opportunities and apply what they learn.

A comparison of performance feedback procedures on teachers' treatment implementation integrity and students' inappropriate behavior in special education classrooms.

This study examined the extent to which treatment integrity of 4 special education teachers was affected by goal setting, performance feedback regarding student or teacher performance, and a meeting cancellation contingency. Teachers were trained to implement function-based treatment packages to address student problem behavior. In one condition, teachers set a goal for student behavior and received daily written feedback about student performance. In a second condition, teachers received daily written feedback about student performance as well as their own accuracy in implementing the intervention and would be able to avoid meeting with a consultant to practice missed steps by implementing the intervention with 100% integrity. This latter package increased treatment integrity the most above baseline levels. Higher levels of treatment integrity were significantly correlated with lower levels of student problem behavior for 3 of the 4 teacher-student dyads. Three of the 4 teachers also rated both feedback procedures as highly acceptable. Implications for increasing and maintaining treatment integrity by teachers via a consultation model are discussed.

Children's preference for mixed- versus fixed-ratio schedules of reinforcement: A translational study of risky choice.

Laboratory research has shown that when subjects are given a choice between fixed-ratio and bi-valued mixed-ratio schedules of reinforcement, preference typically emerges for the mixed-ratio schedule even with a larger ratio requirement. The current study sought to replicate and extend these findings to children's math problem completion. Using an ABCBC reversal design, four fourth-grade students were given the choice of completing addition problems reinforced on either a fixed-ratio 5 schedule or one of three mixed-ratio schedules; an equivalent mixed-ratio (1, 9) schedule, a mixed-ratio (1, 11) schedule with a 20% larger ratio requirement, and an equally lean mixed-ratio (5, 7) schedule without the small fixed-ratio 1 component. This was followed by a reversal back to the preceding phase in which preference for the mixed-ratio schedule had been observed, and a final reversal back to the mixed-ratio (5, 7) phase. Findings were consistent with previous research in that all children preferred the mixed-ratio (1, 9) schedule over the equivalent fixed-ratio 5 schedule. Preference persisted for the leaner mixed-ratio (1, 11) schedule for three of the four children. Indifference or preference for the fixed-ratio 5 alternative was observed in phases containing the mixed-ratio (5, 7) schedule. These results extend previous research on risky choice to children's math problem completion and highlight the importance of a small ratio component in the emergence of preference for bi-valued mixed-ratio schedules. Implications of these results for arranging reinforcement to increase children's academic responding are discussed.

The generalized matching law in elite sport competition: football play calling as operant choice.

A mathematical model of operant choice, the generalized matching law was used to analyze play-calling data from the 2004 National Football League season. In all analyses, the relative ratio of passing to rushing plays was examined as a function of the relative ratio of reinforcement, defined as yards gained, from passing versus rushing. Different analyses focused on season-aggregate data for the league as a whole, game-by-game data for the league as a whole, and game-by-game data for individual teams. In all analyses except those for a few individual teams, the generalized matching law accounted for a majority of variance in play calling. The typical play-calling pattern reflected undermatching (suggesting imperfect sensitivity of play calling to yardage-gained reinforcers) and a bias for calling rushing plays. Bias was found to be a function of both the relative risk of turnovers and the relative variability in yards gained associated with passing versus rushing plays. The external validity of the matching analyses was supported by significant correlations between parameters of the generalized matching law and team success on offense and season winning percentage. These results illustrate the broad applicability of the generalized matching law to problems outside of the laboratory.

Choice in transition: Replication and extension to preschool children in a naturalistic setting.

This study replicated previous basic research into the dynamics of choice and extended this analysis to children's behavior in a naturalistic setting. Two preschoolers with disabilities were observed interacting with their teachers at baseline and during an experimental analysis involving four pairs of concurrent variable-interval schedules of adult attention implemented by an experimenter. Each child was exposed to four experimental phases in which the relative reinforcer rates for on- and off-task behavior were 10:1, 1:1, 1:10, and reversed back to 10:1. The 10:1 phase was designed to mimic the same schedules and types of adult attention observed at baseline. We used the generalized matching equation to model steady-state behavior at the end of the transition phases and to evaluate changes in sensitivity at various points throughout the phases. Choice in transition was evaluated by plotting log behavior ratios by session, cumulated time on- and off-task and cumulated attention for on- and off-task behavior by session, and interreinforcer behavior ratios following different sequences of the first four reinforcer deliveries. The generalized matching equation accounted for a large proportion of variance in steady-state responding, sensitivity values increased steadily throughout the phases, patterns of choice in transition were similar to those reported in basic research, and interreinforcer preference generally shifted toward the just-reinforced alternative. These findings are consistent with previous basic research and support the generality of the dynamics of choice to children's on- and off-task behavior reinforced by adult attention.

Carryover effects of free reinforcement on children's work completion.

Patterns of behavior that persist during transition to a new set of contingencies are referred to as reinforcement history or carryover effects. The authors examined the carryover effects of a fixed-time (FT) schedule of free reinforcement on children's work completion and accuracy. Two female students with learning disabilities participated. During an initial concurrent-choice condition, both children completed more difficult problems reinforced on a richer schedule than easy problems reinforced on a leaner schedule. Exposure to an FT schedule was alternated with subsequent choice conditions in an ABABA design to examine potential carryover effects. During FT conditions, the children completed both types of problems with more errors. During subsequent choice conditions, errors were high initially but decreased, and both children completed easy problems for the first few sessions despite their leaner reinforcement schedule. The potential for detrimental effects of free reinforcement on children's work completion is discussed.

Effects of task difficulty and type of contingency on students' allocation of responding to math worksheets.

This study investigated students' allocation of responding as a function of task difficulty and type of reinforcement contingency (i.e., accuracy based or time based). Four regular education fourth-grade students were presented with two identical stacks of easy and then difficult math worksheets using a reversal design. Regardless of condition, completing problems from each stack of worksheets was reinforced according to a different contingency; one required correct completion of math problems (accuracy based) and one required on-task behavior (time based). Results suggested that 3 of the 4 students preferred the accuracy-based contingency when given easy material and the time-based contingency when given difficult material. One student allocated more responding to the accuracy-based contingency when given easy problems but did not show a clear preference for either contingency with difficult problems. The implications of these findings for designing reinforcement-based programs for tasks of varying difficulty are discussed.

An experimental analysis of reading interventions: generalization across instructional strategies, time, and passages.

This study examined the generalized effects of three treatment conditions (performance based, skill based, and a combination of the two) on oral reading fluency by an elementary school student. Results indicated equal effectiveness of all treatments, maintenance, and possible evidence of generalization across passages.

Improving oral reading fluency: a brief experimental analysis of combining an antecedent intervention with consequences.

A brief experimental analysis was used to evaluate the relative effectiveness of combining two consequences (contingent reinforcement or performance feedback) with an antecedent intervention (listening passage preview and repeated readings) on the oral reading fluency of 6 elementary students. The antecedent intervention increased the number of correctly read words per minute for all 6 students. For 4 of the students, pairing the antecedent intervention with either of the consequences resulted in higher reading rates over the antecedent intervention alone. Undifferentiated results were obtained for the remaining 2 participants. These results suggest that combining an antecedent intervention with consequences may enhance the oral reading fluency of students with reading problems. However, individual responsiveness to the different intervention components indicates that brief experimental analyses are warranted to identify the most effective intervention.

Sensitivity of children's behavior to probabilistic reward: effects of a decreasing-ratio lottery system on math performance.

Probabilistic reward has been shown to affect children's choice behavior in game-like activities. We examined the effects of a lottery system containing progressively lower exchange ratios on children's completion of math problems. Two of the 3 children completed problems above baseline levels until the chance of exchange dropped to 25%. This study describes a potentially useful method for examining reinforcement schedules in applied settings and extends previous research on probabilities of reinforcement.

Temporal discounting predicts student responsiveness to exchange delays in a classroom token system.

Typical assessments of temporal discounting involve presenting choices between hypothetical monetary outcomes. Participants choose between smaller immediate rewards and larger delayed rewards to determine how the passage of time affects the subjective value of reinforcement. Few studies, however, have compared such discounting to actual manipulations of reward delay. The present study examined the predictive validity of a temporal discounting procedure developed for use with children. Forty-six sixth-grade students completed a brief discounting assessment and were then exposed to a classwide intervention that involved both immediate and delayed reinforcement in a multiple baseline design across classrooms. The parameters derived from two hyperbolic models of discounting correlated significantly with actual on-task behavior under conditions of immediate and delayed exchange. Implications of temporal discounting assessments for behavioral assessment and treatment are discussed.