Lived experience narratives in health professional education: educators' perspectives of a co-designed, online mental health education resource.

INTRODUCTION: Meaningful involvement of people with lived experience is an invaluable approach to education that facilitates the development of knowledge, skills and attitudes for collaborative, compassionate and person-centred healthcare practice. The purpose of this evaluation was to gain health professional educators' perspectives of an online learning resource that presents the lived experiences of people who have been consumers of the Australian mental health system. METHODS: A cross sectional study design was used to survey educators who had registered to use the online education resource. Data were collected using an online survey and follow-up interviews. Two lived experience researchers were involved in the research. Quantitative survey data were analysed descriptively, and qualitative data were analysed thematically. FINDINGS: The Listening to Voices online education resource is being used in a range of settings. Educators perceived the content facilitated achievement of learning outcomes related to understanding the experiences of people with mental health issues. The free, online, and flexible design of the resource promoted access and helped overcome barriers to including lived experience experts in education. The powerful impact of the resource and importance of creating safe learning environments when using the resource were highlighted. Suggestions for future developments were provided. CONCLUSION: Involving people with lived experience in education of healthcare students and professionals can assist in developing skills for collaborative, compassionate, and person-centred care. Implementation of co-design principles and the use of creative pedagogical approaches can contribute to the development of impactful educational resources that foreground lived experience. Making these resources flexible and freely available online improves their utility.

Replication of a skills assessment for auditory-visual conditional discrimination training.

Auditory-visual conditional discrimination training (e.g., receptive identification training, listener responses; AVCD) is ubiquitous in early intervention and special education programs. Nevertheless, some learners with Autism Spectrum Disorder (ASD) do not appear to benefit from this training despite use of empirically validated treatments. To prevent exposure to extended training that does not lead to learning, a skills assessment that measures skills related to AVCD training will be useful for educators and practitioners. The current study replicated the skills assessment developed and evaluated by Kodak et al. (2015) with 8 participants with ASD who received behavior analytic intervention that included at least 1 goal related to AVCD training. Two of the 8 participants mastered all skills included in the assessment except scanning. In addition, 5 participants' responding failed to reach mastery during subsequent exposure to AVCD training, which further demonstrated the predictive utility of the skills assessment.

An analysis of the value of token reinforcement using a multiple-schedule assessment.

Token systems are widely used in clinical settings, necessitating the development of methods to evaluate the reinforcing value of these systems. In the current paper, we replicated the use of a multiple-schedule reinforcer assessment (MSA; Smaby, MacDonald, Ahearn, & Dube, 2007) to evaluate the components of a token economy system for 4 learners with autism. Token systems had reinforcing value similar to primary reinforcers for 2 of the 4 learners, but resulted in lower rates of responding than primary reinforcers for the other 2 learners. Differentiated responding across learners may warrant variation in clinical recommendations on the use of tokens. The results of this study support formal assessment of token system effectiveness, and the MSA procedure provides an efficient method by which to conduct such assessments.

Assessing the value of token reinforcement for individuals with autism.

The use of token systems has been supported across a variety of populations, but little research has evaluated the reinforcing value of token systems for individuals with autism. We used progressive-ratio schedules to compare the reinforcing value of an established token system, primary reinforcement, and tokens unpaired with reinforcement. Token systems were variably reinforcing for 2 students with autism and more so than primary reinforcement for 1 student. Results support formal assessment of the effectiveness of token systems.

Use of discontinuous methods of data collection in behavioral intervention: guidelines for practitioners.

Over the past three decades, researchers have examined the sensitivity and accuracy of discontinuous data-collection methods. Momentary-time sampling (MTS) and partial-interval recording (PIR) have received particular attention in regards to their ability to estimate the occurrence of behavior and their sensitivity to behavior change compared to continuous data collection. In this article, we summarize these findings and provide recommendations for designing a discontinuous measurement system with consideration of the dimensions of behavior to be measured and the expected direction of behavior change.

Treatment integrity of school-based behavior analytic interventions: a review of the research.

A growing body of evidence suggests that treatment integrity of school-based behavior analytic interventions is related to intervention outcomes. These findings are of importance to behavior analysts, educators, and other practitioners working in school settings, and indicate that these professionals should be knowledgeable in the assessment of treatment integrity. In this article, we describe the methods used to measure treatment integrity in research and summarize the findings on consultation characteristics that affect treatment integrity. Based on the reviewed research, recommendations are offered to behavior analysts and school professionals to aid in the measurement and maintenance of treatment integrity in school settings.

Adult recollections of earliest childhood dreams: a cross-cultural study.

In two studies, Caucasian and Asian college students recalled their earliest memory of a dream, and they provided information about behaviours and beliefs associated with dreaming. Consistent with previous research on childhood amnesia, participants rarely recounted dreams that occurred before age 3. In Study 1, the mean age of the earliest dream memory was 14 months earlier for Caucasians than for Asians. In Study 2, more Asians than Caucasians were unable to remember a childhood dream. Dream-related behaviours and beliefs also differed markedly across cultures. Compared to Asians, Caucasians reported talking more frequently with parents about their dreams in childhood, receiving stronger parental encouragement to share dreams, and feeling more comfortable doing so. Caucasians also reported sharing their dreams with others more frequently in adulthood and they assigned greater value to their dreams. Most Caucasians but few Asians consented to the researchers' request to send parents a questionnaire concerning the participant's childhood dreams. The results support the social interaction explanation for autobiographical memory development, in which parent-child conversations about the personal past contribute to memory accessibility.