Assessment of the convergent validity of the Questions About Behavioral Function scale with analogue functional analysis and the Motivation Assessment Scale.

The present study examined the convergent validity of the Questions About Behavioral Function (QABF) scale, a behavioural checklist for assessing variables maintaining aberrant behaviour, with analogue functional analyses and the Motivation Assessment Scale (MAS). The two checklists were more highly correlated with each other than either checklist with results from the analogue sessions, and the QABF was more highly correlated with analogue sessions than the MAS. Using analogue sessions, the experimenters failed to ascertain behavioural function for a number of subjects because the behaviour problems in question were low frequency/high intensity and failed to appear during the course of the analysis, pointing out a limitation of this technology. These findings, taken together with recent research outlining the psychometric properties of the QABF, seem to support the use of the QABF in a hierarchical model of functional analysis. The implications of the findings are discussed.

Evaluating the predictive validity of a single stimulus engagement preference assessment.

Most preference assessments require individuals to choose among two or more stimuli. More recently, the duration of engagement with items has been used as an index of preference. In the current study, the predictive validity of a single stimulus engagement (SSE) preference assessment was evaluated with 4 individuals. Stimuli were presented singly for a brief period while engagement with that stimulus was recorded. Although SSE preference rankings closely matched paired stimulus preference assessment rankings for only 2 of the 4 participants, relative preference rankings based on duration of engagement predicted relative reinforcer effectiveness for all participants in a subsequent concurrent-schedule reinforcer assessment. The SSE procedure took less time to administer than the paired stimulus procedure but produced less stable preference rankings across administrations. The SSE procedure may be appropriate for individuals who have difficulty selecting one stimulus from among two or more stimuli, and it may be well suited for evaluating activities that are difficult to present in a paired stimulus format.

Questions about behavioral function (QABF): a behavioral checklist for functional assessment of aberrant behavior.

Functional assessment is a method to identify the relationships between a behavior of interest and an individual's environment. Traditional methods for functional assessment have relied on experimental techniques in which analog sessions are designed to replicate conditions in the individual's environment. However, these techniques can be time-consuming, require advanced training, and rely on the availability of extensive resources in the individual's setting. Development of a brief functional assessment checklist would circumvent these difficulties and meet clinical needs for efficient assessment methods. The current study provides psychometric data for the Questions About Behavioral Function. These data include test-retest, inter-rater, and internal consistency.

Factor structure of the Matson Evaluation of Social Skills for Individuals with Severe Retardation (MESSIER).

OBJECTIVE: A factor analysis of the Matson Evaluation of Social Skills for Individuals with Severe Retardation (MESSIER) was conducted to determine if there was an underlying factor structure which supported a distinction between positive and negative social skills. DESIGN: Principal Axis Factoring with oblimin rotation was used to determine if a two-factor solution was valid. This method was selected to account for shared variance between the items and for correlation between the factors. METHOD: The MESSIER was administered by trained staff to 805 individuals with severe and profound intellectual disability residing in a state residential facility. RESULTS: Results of the factor analysis yielded two categories (positive and negative behaviours) that corresponded to the general division of the clinically derived subscales. CONCLUSIONS: The psychometric research on the MESSIER was extended with an examination of the factor structure. The results of the factor analysis, corresponding with the general division of the clinically derived subscales, are promising. Future research should be conducted to determine if factor scores can be used to determine norms.

Characteristics of depression as assessed by the Diagnostic Assessment for the Severely Handicapped-II (DASH-II).

Fifty-seven individuals with severe and profound mental retardation (18 with a DSM-IV diagnosis of depression, 19 with a Diagnostic Statistical Manual, 4th edition diagnosis of autism, and 20 who meet no criteria for an emotional disorder) were studied. The validity of the Diagnostic Assessment for the Severely Handicapped II depression subscale was evaluated to determine its value in categorizing individuals in these two groups. Suggestions were made for diagnosing depression in persons with severe and profound mental retardation. In a second study the above individuals were compared on symptomology to assess comorbidity with related symptoms. These "core," peripheral, or associated features of depression were identified. Implications of the findings for describing and defining depression in these persons are discussed.