The functional analysis of problematic verbal behavior

Resolving Barriers to Continence for Children with Disabilities: Steps Toward Evidence-Based Practice

Behavior-analytic toilet training (BATT) methods to support urine continence have been reviewed and replicated in numerous studies. Despite empirical validations of BATT, children with disabilities may not experience successful toilet training nor access the associated health and social benefits of urinary continence. It is possible these outcomes are partially due to practical barriers that arise throughout urine training. In practice, barriers may interfere with toilet training to the extent that training is postponed or discontinued, resulting in long-term incontinence and other related problems. Examples of barriers include problem behavior, excessive urine retention, recurrent accidents, and excessive or insufficient independent self-initiations to toilet. Researchers have sometimes described strategies to address these types of barriers. However, practitioners may not be aware of these strategies because they are secondary to the purpose of an investigation and may only apply to a subset of participants. The purpose of this review article is to synthesize the collection of barrier solutions described in published research on urine training for children with developmental disabilities. Results may assist practitioners in modifying BATT according to an evidence-based practice framework until their clients overcome barriers to achieve urine continence.

Functional Analysis in Public School Settings: A Systematic Review of the Literature

Previous studies have shown that variations of experimental functional analysis (FA) can be used effectively as part of the functional behavioral assessment process in educational settings. The purpose of the current study was to review the literature pertaining to FA of problem behavior in schools focusing on method, topographies, and results. Results of this review showed that analog functional analysis (AFA) are conducted most often in school settings; but recent trends show that use of adapted formats (e.g., trial-based FA and brief FA) are increasing. Analysis of FA results identified most frequent topographies and maintaining variables of problem behavior in the reviewed studies. Trends in teacher-implemented FA are discussed, as well as discrepancies surrounding the terminology of FA in the literature base. Implications for further research, such as social validity of FA in public schools and use of multiple targeted topographies within school-based FA are presented.

Extended Analysis of Empirical Citations with Skinner's Verbal Behavior: 1984-2004

The present paper comments on and extends the citation analysis of verbal operant publications based on Skinner's Verbal Behavior (1957) by Dymond, O'Hora, Whelan, and O'Donovan (2006). Variations in population parameters were evaluated for only those studies that Dymond et al. categorized as empirical. Preliminary results indicate that the majority of empirical research in the area of verbal behavior has been conducted with the younger developmentally disabled population and has focused on verbal operants from the introductory chapters of Skinner's book. It is clear that Verbal Behavior has influenced empirical research over the past 50 years. We believe, however, that there are many underdeveloped research areas originating from Verbal Behavior that have not yet been addressed. Suggestions for extended areas of research are provided.

Effect of training different classes of verbal behavior to decrease aberrant verbal behavior

Inappropriate verbal behavior that is labeled "psychotic" is often described as insensitive to environmental contingencies. The purpose of the current study was to establish different classes of rational or appropriate verbal behavior in a woman with developmental disabilities and evaluate the effects on her psychotic or aberrant vocal verbal behavior. Similar to a previous study (Arntzen, Ro Tonnessen, & Brouwer, 2006), the results of the current study suggested that the procedure helped to establish a repertoire of appropriate functional vocal verbal behavior in the participant. Overall, the results suggested the effectiveness of an intervention based on training various classes of verbal behavior in decreasing aberrant verbal behavior.

The reinforcing effect of contingent attention on verbal perseverations of two children with severe visual impairment

The frequency of verbal perseverations of two children with severe visual impairment was reduced using differential reinforcement of appropriate speech coupled with extinction of perseverative utterances. A reversal design in which baseline and intervention were alternated in an A-B-A-B sequence was employed to show the functional relationship between the target behaviors and the treatment procedure. There was a marked increase in appropriate utterances and a correlated decrease in perseverative ones. These findings suggest that this singular feature of the language of certain children with visual impairment is, under natural conditions, probably maintained by the attention provided by their caregivers.

Empirical Applications of Skinner's Analysis of Verbal Behavior with Humans

In Verbal Behavior,Skinner (1957) provided a conceptual framework and taxonomy for the controlling variables of language that defined independent verbal operants by their functional relations to antecedents and consequences (rather than by topography or meaning). Although professional interest in this area has recently increased within the behavior analytic community, Skinner's conceptual framework may not yet have fully impacted the experimental literature. This quantitative review of the literature examined the studies on verbal behavior that were empirical in nature, concerned with human verbal behavior, and addressed at least one verbal operant (e.g., mand, tact, echoic, autoclitic, and/or intraverbal behavior) within the experiment. The results of this review suggest that a growing body of research exists to support many of the tenets of Skinner's conceptualization and taxonomy but many areas of verbal behavior research have yet to be addressed. Continued research in this area is crucial for the development and implementation of effective verbal behavior interventions for people with disabilities.

Citation Analysis of Skinner's Verbal Behavior: 1984-2004

The present study undertook an updated citation analysis of Skinner's (1957)Verbal Behavior. All articles that cited Verbal Behavior between 1984 and 2004 were recorded and content analyzed into one of five categories; four empirical and one nonempirical. Of the empirical categories, studies that employed a verbal operant from Skinner's analysis were assigned to either basic, applied, or observational categories. Empirical studies that did not employ a verbal operant were categorized as other-empirical. The total number of citations remained stable across the review period and averaged just over 52 per year. Of these, 80% were from nonempirical articles, 13.7% were from other-empirical articles, 4% were from applied articles, 1.4% were from basic articles, and 0.9% were from observational articles. An "obliteration" analysis was also conducted to identify articles that employed Skinner's verbal operant terms but did not cite Verbal Behavior. This analysis identified 44 additional articles, suggesting that a degree of obliteration had occurred in the half century since the publication of Verbal Behavior. In particular, the analysis suggests that the verbal operant of manding has sufficient presence in the applied empirical literature to render citation of Verbal Behavior redundant. Overall, Verbal Behavior continues to make an important contribution to the psychological literature.