TRAINING MENTALLY RETARDED ADOLESCENTS TO BRUSH THEIR TEETH1

The need for self-care by retarded individuals in behaviors such as brushing teeth led to the development and evaluation of a comprehensive toothbrushing program that included a task analysis and training procedure specific to each component of the task analysis. Eight mentally retarded adolescents, in two groups, individually received acquisition training that included scheduled opportunities for independent performances, verbal instruction, modelling, demonstration, and physical assistance. The first group of four subjects received token plus social reinforcement; the second received only social reinforcement. All eight subjects showed improved toothbrushing behaviors when compared to baseline. Six of the eight subjects correctly performed all toothbrushing steps in two of three consecutive sessions. The study emphasizes the need for systematic program development and evaluation.     

Explicit and Implicit Persuasive Communications over Time To Initiate and Maintain Behavior Change: New Perspective Utilizing a Real-life Dental Hygiene Situation1,2

Reacting to the failure of most persuasive communications to maintain behavior changes once they are established, in the context of junior high school dental hygiene programs, the present investigation explores the effects of behavioral measurement itself (as an unplanned treatment effect) in maintaining a specific behavior once it is established. Using a modified time-series extension of a basic pretest-treatment-posttest design with a variety of treatment conditions and a novel behavior measure as the dependent variable, it was established that the process of measuring behavior itself was possibly as effective as treatment conditions. All conditions effected behavior changes and maintained them for a 10-week period.     

Behavioral variability as a function of noncontingent adult attention,peer availability,and situational demands in three hyperactive boys

Recommendations about placements for children in need of special education are routinely made and carried out without empirical validation for the efficacy of particular approaches nor the appropriateness of an approach for a particular child. A study was designed to examine a methodological model which focuses on empirically deriving recommendations for the most appropriate teaching situation for any given child requiring special education. Prosocial, problem, and task-related behaviors in three hyperactive boys were assessed in eight prearranged situations: (1) group play with one adult supervising; (2) group play with three adults; (3) group teaching with one adult; (4) group teaching with three adults; (5) individual play with low density noncontingent adult attention; (6) individual play with high density noncontingent adult attention; (7) individual teaching with low density noncontingent adult attention; and (8) individual teaching with high density noncontingent adult attention. Behaviors assessed included adult, peer, and target child attention given and received; compliance; aggression; disruption; task involvement; and percent tasks correctly completed of tasks attempted. Data revealed that the most disruptions and least efficient task performance occurred in the group teaching situation with one adult. The most efficient task performance and fewest disruptions in a teaching situation occurred in the individual teaching setting with high density noncontingent adult attention. In addition. overall mean rates of disruptive behavior were higher in group situations than in individual situations. The data strongly validate the need for carefully selecting educational environments for problem children, and that the behavior of such children is, at least, partially influenced by environmental factors.     

Representation of inflected signs from American Sign Language in short-term memory

In order to help illuminate general ways in which language users process inflected items, two groups of native signers of American Sign Language (ASL) were asked to recall lists of inflected and uninflected signs. Despite the simultaneous production of base and inflection in ASL, subjects transposed inflections across base forms, recalling the base forms in the correct serial positions, or transposed base forms, recalling the inflections in the correct serial positions. These rearrangements of morphological components within lists occurred significantly more often than did rearrangements of whole forms (base plus inflection). These and other patterns of errors converged to suggest that ASL signers remembered inflected signs componentially in terms of a base and an inflection, much as the available evidence suggests is true for users of spoken language. Componential processing of regularly inflected forms would thus seem to be independent of particular transmission systems and of particular mechanisms for combining lexical and inflectional material.     

Apparatus for bisensory presentation of coded signals

Apparatus capable of transmitting signals to either a vibrator or to a light, or to both vibrator and light simultaneously, is described. The basis for encoding vibrotactile and visual stimuli is varying intensities and durations of signal.     

A programmable proximity-contact sensor to detect location or locomotion of animals

A simple electronic device to detect location or to track locomotion of small animals is described. The device is based on anantenna effect—it responds to a change in capacitance as the body of the animal passes between an antenna and one of a series of contact plates. A digital address system is incorporated that is capable of electronically polling the contact plates according to instructions from a data-acquisition system (DAS). Any DAS capable of generating an address of two bits or more and of reading a one-bit data line may be employed. The device is ideal for mazes or other apparatus in which the exclusion of stereotypical behaviors is desired.     

A theory of catharsis

This paper first discusses the history of the idea of catharsis, suggesting that the differences between the advocates of catharsis and its critics may be reconcilable. A definition of emotion is proposed which involves interactions between biological, psychological, and social systems. This definition gives rise to a theory of catharsis which seems to reconcile the claims of the advocates of catharsis with the criticisms that have been made of their claims. The discussion of the theory also suggests methods of testing it. As a preliminary example of one such test, the results of a pilot study of the effects of laughter on tension levels are presented.