Assessment and treatment of problem behavior occasioned by interruption of free-operant behavior

The current study describes the assessment and treatment of the problem behavior of 3 individuals with autism for whom initial functional analysis results were inconclusive. Subsequent analyses revealed that the interruption of free-operant behavior using "do" requests (Study 1) as well as "do" and "don't" requests (Study 2) occasioned problem behavior. Initially, treatment involved differential and noncontingent reinforcement without interruption. To make the intervention more sustainable in the natural environment (where interruptions are unavoidable), a two-component multiple-schedule arrangement was used to progressively increase the period of time in which ongoing activities would be interrupted. During generalization sessions, the intervention was applied across a variety of contexts and therapists.     

Exploring the reinforcement of compliance with "do" and "don't" requests and the side effects: a partial replication and extension

The side effects of reinforcing compliance to "do" and "don't" requests were examined in this study. The study was designed to do two things: (1) further establish that "do" and "don't" requests are functionally distinct and (2) determine which "don't" requests will show the same ability as "do" requests in effecting a change in topographically different inappropriate behaviors. Three children (2 boys and 1 girl), ages 5 yr. 2 mo. to 6 yr. 7 mo., participated. The design of the study was ABAC counterbalanced across subjects. With all three children reinforcement of "do" requests led to increased compliance with "do" requests without concurrent increase in compliance to "don't" requests. Also, reinforcing compliance to "don't" requests resulted in increased compliance to "don't" requests without concurrent increase in compliance to "do" requests. An undesirable side effect to the treatment was also noted. Two children showed a tendency to increase their rates of inappropriate behavior concurrent with increases in compliance to "don't" requests. Probable causes for this effect and concerns about the reinforcement of "don't" requests were discussed.     

An evaluation of three methods of saying "no" to avoid an escalating response class hierarchy

We evaluated the effects of three different methods of denying access to requested high-preference activities on escalating problem behavior. Functional analysis and response class hierarchy (RCH) assessment results indicated that 4 topographies of problem behaviors displayed by a 13-year-old boy with high-functioning autism constituted an RCH maintained by positive (tangible) reinforcement. Identification of the RCH comprised the baseline phase, during which computer access was denied by saying "no" and providing an explanation for the restriction. Two alternative methods of saying "no" were then evaluated. These methods included (a) denying computer access while providing an opportunity to engage in an alternative preferred activity and (b) denying immediate computer access by arranging a contingency between completion of a low-preference task and subsequent computer access. Results indicated that a hierarchy of problem behavior may be identified in the context of denying access to a preferred activity and that it may be possible to prevent occurrences of escalating problem behavior by either presenting alternative options or arranging contingencies when saying "no" to a child's requests.     

Behavioral momentum and stimulus fading in the acquisition and maintenance of child compliance in the home

The provision of a series of requests to which compliance is highly likely (high-probability requests) immediately antecedent to low-probability requests has been used to establish behavioral momentum of compliance. We evaluated a fading procedure for maintaining high levels of compliance obtained with high-probability requests. Fading involved a systematic reduction in the number of high-probability requests and an increase in the latency between the high- and low-probability requests. High levels of compliance for both "do" and "don't" requests were maintained for 16 weeks in a 5-year-old boy with developmental disabilities after the high-probability request sequence was faded. Similar maintenance was obtained for "do" requests in a 15-year-old girl with developmental disabilities. For this subject, however, the high-probability request sequence was ineffective with "don't" requests. When "don't" requests were phrased as "do" requests, the high-probability request sequence produced high levels of compliance to the low-probability request. High levels of compliance to these "do" requests were maintained for 16 weeks after the high-probability request sequence was faded.     

An intervention study of the effects of the coping strategy of "finding positive meaning" on positive affect and health

Previous research has shown that positive affect (PA) is associated with the coping strategies of "searching for and finding positive meaning." The purpose of this study was to investigate the relationship between the coping strategy of "finding positive meaning" and PA using an intervention method. Additionally, inasmuch as previous research has revealed that PA is associated with physical and mental health status, the current study measured health status in order to carry out a preliminary test as to whether PA increased by the intervention can also improve health. Participants in the intervention group (Japanese graduate students; 13 men and 16 women) reported the most stressful event during the past 3 days and its positive meaning, while those in the control group (13 men and 15 women) reported the most stressful event alone. Both groups reported twice a week for 5 successive weeks using e-mails. Three questionnaires, the Japanese version of the Positive and Negative Affect Schedule scales for measuring positive and negative affects (NA), the situational version of the General Coping Questionnaire for coping strategies, and the Japanese version of the General Health Questionnaire for health status, were administered to all participants just before the start of the intervention, after the conclusion of the intervention, and at the 5-week follow-up session. Results revealed that the "finding positive meaning" coping strategy and PA were enhanced by the intervention in the follow-up for men and women with no changes in NA. For the health scales of the General Health Questionnaire, no significant group-related effects were observed. Thus, the intervention had no significant influence on NA or health status. Implications of these findings for future research are discussed along with a few limitations in this study.     

Personality Traits and Political Participation: Evidence from South Korea

Using a nationally representative survey fielded in 2009, we analyze the relationships between personality traits and various modes of political participation in South Korea. We find statistically significant relationships between personality (measured by the Five‐Factor Model) and several nonelectoral modes of participation. Openness correlates positively with protest participation, rally attendance, financial contributions to political causes, news media contacts, and political activities via the Internet. Agreeableness correlates negatively with these five participation modes as well as petition signing. Conscientiousness is positively associated with individual political acts (e.g., contacting news media and elected officials and donation), while it is negatively associated with collective actions such as participation in rally. However, we do not find any significant relationship between personality and voter turnout. Reflecting an unusually conflictual political climate of South Korea in 2008, we discuss these findings' implications focusing on the personality‐situation interactions.     

The ecological validity of the “who said what?” technique: An examination of the role of self‐involvement,cognitive interference and acquaintanceship

Questions are raised about the possible ecological invalidity of the traditional “who said what?” (WSW) procedure. Three studies are reported which use a modified, quasi‐naturalistic version of the WSW technique, in which rather than being passive recipients of presented information, participants instead play an active role in the production of such information in an interactive context. Data are presented that demonstrate that the social categorization effect typically obtained through the traditional WSW procedure generalizes beyond the circumstances in which it was initially demonstrated. Thus, in Study 1 it was established that social categories (gender, in this case) are cognitively used in real interactions between participants in order to organize information. Moreover, Study 2 demonstrated that the use of categories is accentuated when, as is typical in real world situations, recollections are not made immediately after the perception of the relevant stimuli but following a period of intervening cognitive activity. The findings of Study 3, however, suggest that the WSW technique may not inevitably lead to social categorization effects: typical effects did not appear when participants knew each other well, and therefore saw one another as unique, idiosyncratic individuals, rather than as category members.     

Genetic analysis of “Spontaneous” intermale aggression in mice

“Spontaneous” intermale aggression was investigated in seven inbred strains of mice. A positive interstrain correlation and cross-correlation was found for two indices of fighting intensity, ie, accumulated attacking time and number of attacks. The strain aggressiveness level (percent of mice fighting in each strain) does not correlate with the intensity of aggressive behavior. It has been shown by using a genetical analysis performed on C57BL/6 and BALB/c strains, their reciprocal F₁ hybrids, and back-crosses that these indices of intermale aggression are under different genetic control. Aggressive behavior intensity depends on the additive effects of genes. The control of strain aggressiveness level revealed that a high level of aggressiveness was dominant. No reciprocal effects were found. The level of aggressiveness and the intensity of fighting seem to represent different aspects of aggression and may be controlled by different genetic mechanisms.     

“Lying” in the pigeon

Two pigeons were taught to use symbols to communicate information about hidden colors to each other. When reporting red was more generously reinforced than reporting yellow or green, both birds passed through a period in which they “lied” by reporting another color as red.     

Helping children correctly say "I don't know" to unanswerable questions

Adults ask children questions in a variety of contexts, for example, in the classroom, in the forensic context, or in experimental research. In such situations children will inevitably be asked some questions to which they do not know the answer, because they do not have the required information ("unanswerable" questions). When asked unanswerable questions, it is important that children indicate that they do not have the required information to provide an answer. These 2 studies investigated whether preinterview instructions (Experiment 1) or establishing a memory narrative (Experiment 2) helped children correctly indicate a lack of knowledge to unanswerable questions. In both studies, 6- and 8-year-olds participated in a classroom-based event about which they were subsequently interviewed. Some of the questions were answerable, and some were unanswerable. Results showed that preinterview instructions increased the number of younger children's appropriate "don't know" responses to unanswerable questions, without decreasing correct responses to answerable questions. This suggests that demand characteristics affect children's tendency correctly to say "I don't know." The opportunity to provide a narrative account increased children's appropriate "don't know" responses to unanswerable yes/no questions, and increased the number of younger children's correct responses to answerable questions. This suggests that cognitive factors also contribute to children's tendency correctly to say "I don't know." These results have implications for any context where adults need to obtain information from children through questioning, for example, a health practitioner asking about a medical condition, in classroom discourse, in the investigative interview, and in developmental psychology research.     

TARGETING SOCIAL SKILLS DEFICITS IN AN ADOLESCENT WITH PERVASIVE DEVELOPMENTAL DISORDER

Social skills deficits are a defining feature of individuals diagnosed with autism and other pervasive developmental disorders (PDD), which can impair functioning and put the individual at higher risk for developing problem behavior (e.g., self‐injury, aggression). In the current study, an adolescent with PDD displayed inappropriate social behavior (inappropriate comments, social withdrawal, and touching others without their permission) during social interactions. An intervention using instructions, differential reinforcement, and corrective feedback successfully reduced inappropriate social behaviors.     

Theorema: Towards computer-aided mathematical theory exploration

Theorema is a project that aims at supporting the entire process of mathematical theory exploration within one coherent logic and software system. This survey paper illustrates the style of Theorema-supported mathematical theory exploration by a case study (the automated synthesis of an algorithm for the construction of Gröbner Bases) and gives an overview on some reasoners and organizational tools for theory exploration developed in the Theorema project.     

Alcohol and aggression: a test of the attention-allocation model

This article presents the first systematic test of the attention-allocation model for alcohol-related aggression. According to this model, alcohol has a "myopic" effect on attentional capacity that presumably facilitates aggression by focusing attention on more salient provocative, rather than less salient inhibitory, cues in hostile situations. Aggression was assessed using a laboratory task in which mild electric shocks were received from, and administered to, a fictitious opponent. Study 1 demonstrated that a moderate-load cognitive distractor suppressed aggression in intoxicated subjects (to levels even lower than those exhibited by a placebo control group). Study 2 assessed how varying the magnitude of a distracting cognitive load affected aggression in the alcohol and placebo conditions. Results indicated that the moderate-load distraction used in Study 1 (i.e., holding four elements in sequential order in working memory) suppressed aggression best. Cognitive loads of larger and smaller magnitudes were not successful in attenuating aggression.     

Peer Victimization during Middle Childhood as a Marker of Attenuated Risk for Adult Arrest

This longitudinal investigation examined interactions between aggression and peer victimization during middle childhood in the prediction of arrest through the adult years for 388 (198 boys, 190 girls) study participants. As part of an ongoing multisite study (i.e., Child Development Project), peer victimization and aggression were assessed via a peer nomination inventory in middle childhood, and juvenile and adult arrest histories were assessed via a self-report questionnaire as well as review of court records. Early aggression was linked to later arrest but only for those youths who were rarely victimized by peers. Although past investigators have viewed youths who are both aggressive and victimized as a high-risk subgroup, our findings suggest that the psychological and behavioral attributes of these children may mitigate trajectories toward antisocial problems.     

Dysregulated Rhythms and the “Grip” of the Context: A Discussion of the Paper “Poison Cookies” by Katherine Oram

Two moments from the clinical narrative under discussion are used to highlight the critical impact of attention to timing not in terms of when and what to say, but rather as a an ongoing source of emotional meaning emerging on implicit dimensions of rhythm and affective tone occurring in the clinical interaction. Meanings having to do with different forms of power including fear of psychic annihilation, agency, and aggression expressed within sado-masochistic dynamics are demonstrated to be scaffolded and coming into formation on these implicit levels. Alternatively, Merleu-Ponty's concept of Urdoxa as a grip on context is introduced to highlight how the analyst's use of timing to violate an expectation for nonresponsiveness or impingement creates an experience of distance between enactment and reflection, allowing space for re-membering as a form of representation. Here the creation of space through timing serves not just a representational function, but also a way for affective self and interactive regulation to emerge in an interaction as scaffolding for experiences of predictability (i.e., continuity and coherence) and vitality in self and other.     

Do emotional stimuli interfere with response inhibition? Evidence from the stop signal paradigm

Participants performed a stop signal task in which an emotional picture preceded a neutral stimulus. They were asked to respond on the basis of the identity of the neutral stimulus unless an auditory tone was presented, in which case participants should try to withhold their response. In Experiment 1, we used positive, neutral and negative pictures. Results demonstrated that the presentation of an emotional stimulus prolonged both response and stopping latencies regardless of the valence of the emotional stimulus. This suggested that the degree of arousal could modulate the interference effect. In Experiment 2, high- and low-arousing pictures with a positive or negative valence were used. In line with the arousal hypothesis, high-arousal pictures interfered more with responding and stopping than low-arousing pictures whereas the valence of the pictures had little or no effect. These findings support the hypothesis that emotional stimuli interrupt ongoing cognitively controlled activities because they attract attention away from these ongoing activities.     

Affect and the computer game player: the effect of gender, personality, and game reinforcement structure on affective responses to computer game-play.

Previous research on computer games has tended to concentrate on their more negative effects (e.g., addiction, increased aggression). This study departs from the traditional clinical and social learning explanations for these behavioral phenomena and examines the effect of personality, in-game reinforcement characteristics, gender, and skill on the emotional state of the game-player. Results demonstrated that in-game reinforcement characteristics and skill significantly effect a number of affective measures (most notably excitement and frustration). The implications of the impact of game-play on affect are discussed with reference to the concepts of "addiction" and "aggression."     

Oculomotor consequences of abrupt object onsets and offsets: onsets dominate oculomotor capture

Previous research has shown that the appearance of an object (onset) and the disappearance of an object (offset) have the ability to influence the allocation of covert attention. To determine whether both onsets and offsets have the ability to influence eye movements, a series of experiments was conducted in which participants had to make goal-directed eye movements to a color singleton target in the presence of an irrelevant onset/offset. In accord with previous research, onsets had the ability to capture the eyes. The offset of an object demonstrated little or no ability to interrupt goal-directed eye movements to the target. Two experiments in which the effects of onsets and offsets on covert attention were examined suggest that offsets do not capture the eyes, because they have a lesser ability to capture covert attention than do onsets. A number of other studies that have shown strong effects of offsets on attention have used offsets that were uncorrelated with target position (i.e., nonpredictive), whereas we used onsets and offsets that never served as targets (i.e., antipredictive). The present results are consistent with a new-object theory of attentional capture in which onsets receive attentional priority over other types of changes in the visual environment.