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Evaluation of resurgence following differential reinforcement of alternative behavior with and without extinction in a human operant model
Ano: 2024
Abstract One of the most common treatments for severe challenging behavior involves placing the challenging behavior on extinction and differentially reinforcing an alternative response (DRA). However, extinction is not always feasible and may be unsafe or impractical to implement in some circumstances. Thus, implementing a DRA without extinction intervention may be necessary for some cases. Currently, the extent to which DRA without extinction produces durable treatment outcomes, particularly as it relates to the resurgence of challenging behavior, is unclear. The present study investigated resurgence following DRA with and without extinction using a three‐phase resurgence evaluation in a translational human operant model with college students as participants. All participants demonstrated resurgence across both experimental groups. Although there were no statistically significant differences in the prevalence, magnitude, or persistence of resurgence between groups, levels of resurgence magnitude were relatively higher in the DRA‐without‐extinction group than in the DRA‐with‐extinction group. Clinical implications of these findings and directions for future human operant investigations of resurgence are discussed.
Evaluation of two physical guidance procedures in the treatment of pediatric feeding disorder
Ano: 2024
Abstract Children with pediatric feeding disorder may refuse to consume an adequate variety and/or volume of food to maintain expected growth. They can consume food but may actively or passively refuse, resulting in escape or avoidance of eating. Behavioral interventions like positive reinforcement with escape extinction can increase consumption. However, sometimes these interventions are insufficient, especially in treating passive refusal. In these cases, physical guidance may be used to prompt an open mouth to deposit food. Research indicates open‐mouth prompts are effective and rated as acceptable. This study replicated an existing physical guidance procedure, the finger prompt, and compared its efficacy and acceptability with that of a spoon prompt. This study extended research by defining and measuring passive refusal as a dependent variable and assessing social validity among different stakeholders and times. Both prompts were effective in treating food refusal, and caregivers rated the finger prompt as more preferred.
Evidence of precurrent responses expanding equivalence classes in a delayed matching‐to‐sample task
Ano: 2024
Abstract Delayed matching to sample (DMTS) increases the probability of equivalence class formation. Precurrent responses can mediate the retention interval in DMTS trials and control the selection of comparisons. In human participants, precurrent responses usually consist of naming the experimental stimuli based on their similarities to meaningful stimuli with preexperimental history. We tested whether precurrents expand classes by serving as nodes between experimental and meaningful stimuli. A DMTS (2 s) was used throughout the entire experiment. Eleven undergraduates learned A1B1 and A2B2 relations and then were submitted to ArC trials that required them to answer math problems presented during the DMTS interval: when the sample was A1, the problems resulted in 12 and C1 was correct; when the sample was A2, they resulted in 9 and C2 was correct. Response‐as‐node tests assessed whether participants would relate B1 and C1 to the printed number 12 and B2 and C2 to the printed number 9. Ten participants responded accordingly to this pattern, showing that the responses to the problems expanded the classes. Parity tests using the words “even” and “odd” further confirmed this hypothesis. These results contribute to understanding why DMTS enhances equivalence performances. Implications of using this procedure in stimulus‐equivalence studies are discussed.
Examination of clinical variables affecting resurgence: A reanalysis of 46 applications
Ano: 2024
Abstract Despite the efficacy of behavioral interventions, resurgence of challenging behavior (e.g., aggression, self‐injury) following successful treatment can still occur. Applied work has focused on identifying treatment‐related variables thought to affect the occurrence and magnitude of resurgence. The current study describes the relation between several variables (i.e., phase duration, response rates in baseline and treatment, obtained rates of reinforcement, downshift in reinforcement step size) and resurgence in a retrospective consecutive controlled case series of 46 treatment applications for challenging behavior conducted in an inpatient setting. Only the downshift in reinforcement (e.g., schedule‐thinning) step size was correlated with the magnitude of resurgence. These results are consistent with recent findings suggesting that treatment duration and other factors have inconsistent effects on resurgence of challenging behavior.
Examining patterns suggestive of acquisition during functional analyses: A consecutive controlled series of 116 cases
Ano: 2024
Abstract The functional analysis approach described by Iwata et al. (1982/1994) has been used widely to determine the variables evoking and maintaining challenging behavior. However, one potential concern with conducting functional analyses is that repeated exposure to contingencies may induce a novel functional relation. To examine the likelihood of these potential iatrogenic effects, we evaluated social test conditions of the functional analysis for 116 participants and searched for patterns of responding indicative of acquisition. Patterns suggestive of acquisition occurred in 13.70% of tangible reinforcement conditions; however, the prevalence was only slightly lower in the attention condition (8.75%). Much lower prevalence was observed for the escape condition (2.13%). When grouped by quotient score, a pattern of acquisition was just as likely to be observed in the attention condition as in the tangible condition. Additionally, patterns indicative of acquisition were no more likely to be observed with participants who emitted automatically reinforced challenging behavior.
Expanding on cross‐price elasticity: Understanding tobacco product demand and substitution from the cross‐price purchase task
Ano: 2024
Abstract We examine whether cigarettes serve as substitutes for electronic nicotine delivery systems (ENDS) among ENDS users and demonstrate methodological extensions of data from a cross‐price purchase task to inform policies and interventions. During a clinical laboratory study, n = 19 exclusive ENDS users and n = 17 dual cigarette/ENDS users completed a cross‐price purchase task with cigarettes available at a fixed price while prices of own‐brand ENDS increased. We estimated cross‐price elasticity using linear models to examine substitutability. We defined five additional outcomes: nonzero cross‐price intensity (purchasing cigarettes if ENDS were free), constant null demand (not purchasing cigarettes at any ENDS price), cross‐product crossover point (first price where participants purchased more cigarettes than ENDS), dual‐demand score (percentage of prices where both products were purchased), and dual‐use break point (minimum relative price to force complete substitution). The cross‐price elasticity results indicated that cigarettes could serve as substitutes for ENDS among ENDS users on average, but this average effect masked substantial heterogeneity in profiles of demand (here, a measure of the drug's reinforcement potential). Policies and regulations that increase ENDS prices appear unlikely to steer most exclusive ENDS users toward cigarette use, as most would not purchase cigarettes at any ENDS price, but they could prompt some dual users to substitute cigarettes completely while others remain dual users. This heterogeneity in consumer responses suggests additional indices of cross‐product demand are useful to characterize the anticipated and unanticipated effects of tobacco price policies more fully.
Experience with reduced‐nicotine cigarettes and whether this decreases smoking and substitution for full‐nicotine cigarettes
Ano: 2024
Abstract Studies suggest that reduced‐nicotine cigarettes decrease nicotine intake and dependence. However, questions remain about reduced‐nicotine cigarette abuse liability, whether reduced‐nicotine cigarette exposure lowers reduced‐ and full‐nicotine cigarette use, and whether reduced‐nicotine cigarettes substitute for full‐nicotine cigarettes. This randomized, double‐blind laboratory study used operant behavioral economics to examine abuse liability of cigarettes with varying nicotine content. Non‐treatment‐seeking smokers ( N = 43) self‐administered reduced‐ (5.2, 2.4, or 1.3 mg/g) and full‐nicotine (15.8 mg/g) cigarettes before and after 3 weeks of at‐home exposure. Participants were randomized to full‐nicotine or one of the reduced‐nicotine cigarettes to determine the effect of exposure on abuse liability and substitutability. Abuse liability was assessed in single‐commodity sessions, and substitutability was measured in concurrent‐commodity sessions. In the self‐administration sessions, concurrently available reduced‐nicotine cigarettes attenuated full‐nicotine cigarette demand and rendered reduced‐nicotine cigarettes partial substitutes for full‐nicotine cigarettes. Exposure to study cigarettes for 3 weeks marginally reduced demand for reduced‐ and full‐nicotine cigarettes irrespective of nicotine content. Results suggest a limited influence of nicotine content on smoking behavior in established smokers and highlight the role of nonpharmacological factors (e.g., taste/smell) on the maintenance of smoking. These results should be considered in determining whether a nicotine‐reduction standard is a feasible path for reducing cigarette demand.
Exploring factors that influence the efficacy of functional communication training
Ano: 2024
Abstract Understanding factors that influence the efficacy of functional communication training has both practical and conceptual benefits. The current study extended research in this area by exploring data from 95 consecutive applications of functional communication training with extinction across two independent clinics. We selected candidate predictor variables based on conceptual analysis, conducted preliminary exploratory analyses, and then selectively applied quantitative methods that are used in precision medicine to examine their accuracy and predictive utility. Treatment outcomes were better when challenging behavior was maintained by a single function than they were when it was maintained by multiple functions; however, these differences were most apparent among cases with an escape function. We also analyzed within‐session responding to explore the potential influence of unprogrammed establishing operations on decrements in treatment efficacy. Our within‐session measure only distinguished responders from nonresponders when escape was one of the multiple functions. Additional research is needed to validate these findings with an independent sample and to address a number of clinical conceptual issues.
Extensions of open science for applied behavior analysis: Preregistration for single‐case experimental designs
Ano: 2024
Abstract Open science practices are designed to enhance the utility, integrity, and credibility of scientific research. This article highlights how preregistration in open science practice can be leveraged to enhance the rigor and transparency of single‐case experimental designs within an applied behavior analysis framework. We provide an overview of the benefits of preregistration including increased transparency, reduced risk of researcher bias, and improved replicability, and we review the specific contexts under which these practices most benefit the proposed framework. We discuss potential concerns with and unique considerations for preregistering experiments that use single‐case designs, with practical guidance for researchers who are seeking to preregister their studies. We present a checklist as a tool for researchers in applied behavior analysis to use for preregistration and provide recommendations for our field to strengthen the contingencies for open science practices that include preregistration.
Facilitating the emergence of intraverbal tacts by autistic children via joint control
Ano: 2024
Abstract Rodriguez et al. (2022) discovered that teaching four component skills was sufficient to facilitate the emergence of intraverbal tacts across four applications with three participants. Our study replicated and evaluated an extension of this procedure that was directed at facilitating intraverbal tacts when a child learns the component skills but continues to fail to produce intraverbal tacts. The extension consisted of procedures to enhance the divergent control exerted by the auditory stimulus (i.e., the question) and the discriminability of joint control. Intraverbal tacts emerged for all three participants after undergoing the extension procedures. These results are discussed in the context of a conceptual analysis of intraverbal tacts and the potential role of joint control.