Marriage in transition: Implications for social policy

The current marriage crisis in our culture is the result of a major transition from the institutional to the companionship marriage. Our failure to support and guide this transition by providing couples with training in interpersonal competence is due to our total lack of a formulated social policy concerning marriage. New understanding of the situation, together with new approaches and new resources, may now enable us to provide more effective services and to develop an appropriate policy.In addition, he has recently joined the staff of the Department of Pastoral Care, Baptist Hospital, Winston-Salem, as Director of Marriage Enrichment Training in the Division of Human Enrichment and Development.     

Education and preparation for marriage: New approaches

The crisis in marriage suggests a need to move from a remedial to a preventive approach in dealing with marital failure. The profound change marriage is undergoing indicates a transition from a hierarchical, institutional form to the companionship form described by Burgess thirty years ago. The new style is difficult and requires special preparation. A shift from the knowledge-oriented approaches to marriage preparation characteristic of previous efforts is desirable. Primary attention should be given to personal and interpersonal dynamics and the facilitation of behavior change. Five procedures are described to facilitate the realization of this goal.     

Language characteristics of mexican-american children: Implications for assessment

We have described the language features that characterize the speech of the Mexican-American child and have examined them with respect to their deviations from acceptable standards in both Spanish and English—acceptability in terms of how well he functions in each of the two language settings in which he lives. We have pointed out the magnitude of the most critical of his problems, the loss of lexical and grammatical signals through underdeveloped perception of English phonology and have demonstrated how this faulty perception vitally affects, not only his lexical and grammatical failings, but also his ability to learn as fast or as efficiently as the monolingual English-speaking child in every area of learning. We have then suggested assessment considerations which might more accurately evaluate his actual language abilities and which might provide more specific bases for planning improved educational programs for these children. We recognize, at the same time, the existence of additional considerations, such as socioeconomic environment, educational level of the parents, child rearing practices, test-orientedness, etc., which may also influence the scores they receive, and that these factors should also be considered in interpreting test statistics and in planning and designing school programs.     

IMPULSIVITY IN STUDENTS WITH SERIOUS EMOTIONAL DISTURBANCE: THE INTERACTIVE EFFECTS OF REINFORCER RATE,DELAY, AND QUALITY

We conducted two studies extending basic matching research on self-control and impulsivity to the investigation of choices of students diagnosed as seriously emotionally disturbed. In Study 1 we examined the interaction between unequal rates of reinforcement and equal versus unequal delays to reinforcer access on performance of concurrently available sets of math problems. The results of a reversal design showed that when delays to reinforcer access were the same for both response alternatives, the time allocated to each was approximately proportional to obtained reinforcement. When the delays to reinforcer access differed between the response alternatives, there was a bias toward the response alternative and schedule with the lower delays, suggesting impulsivity (i.e., immediate reinforcer access overrode the effects of rate of reinforcement). In Study 2 we examined the interactive effects of reinforcer rate, quality, and delay. Conditions involving delayed access to the high-quality reinforcers on the rich schedule (with immediate access to low-quality reinforcers earned on the lean schedule) were alternated with immediate access to low-quality reinforcers on the rich schedule (with delayed access to high-quality reinforcers on the lean schedule) using a reversal design. With 1 student, reinforcer quality overrode the effects of both reinforcer rate and delay to reinforcer access. The other student tended to respond exclusively to the alternative associated with immediate access to reinforcers. The studies demonstrate a methodology based on matching theory for determining influential dimensions of reinforcers governing individuals' choices.     

FUNCTIONAL ANALYSIS AND INTERVENTION FOR BREATH HOLDING

We conducted a functional analysis of breath-holding episodes in a 7-year-old girl with severe mental retardation and Cornelia-de-Lange syndrome. The results showed that breath holding served an operant function, primarily to gain access to attention. The intervention, consisting of extinction, scheduled attention, and use of a picture card communication system, resulted in decreased breath holding.     

IMPROVING THE PEER INTERACTIONS OF STUDENTS WITH EMOTIONAL AND BEHAVIORAL DISORDERS THROUGH SELF-EVALUATION PROCEDURES: A COMPONENT ANALYSIS AND GROUP APPLICATION

We conducted two experiments examining the effects of a self-evaluation package on the peer interactions of students described as emotionally or behaviorally disordered. Experiment 1 assessed the additive effects of various components of a self-evaluation package on the frequency of inappropriate and appropriate peer interactions. The components assessed were rewards alone, rewards plus discussion, and self-evaluation plus rewards. Results showed limited effectiveness when rewards alone and rewards plus discussion were implemented. However, substantial improvements in peer interactions were observed when the self-evaluation component was added. Experiment 2 examined the efficacy and feasibility of the procedures when implemented in a group setting. Students in three classrooms served as participants. Direct observation data collected for 8 of the participants showed the procedures to be effective in improving peer interactions when implemented in a group context.     

Limited matching on concurrent-schedule reinforcement of academic behavior

Three adolescent students with special educational needs were given a choice between completing one of two available sets of math problems. Reinforcers (nickels) across these alternatives were arranged systematically in separate experimental phases according to three different concurrent variable-interval schedules (reinforcement ratios of 2:1, 6:1, and 12:1). Time allocated to the two stacks of math problems stood in linear relationship to the reinforcement rate obtained from each stack, although substantial undermatching and bias were observed for all subjects. However, changes in the schedules were not followed by changes in allocation patterns until adjunct procedures (e.g., changeover delays, limited holds, timers, and demonstrations) were introduced. The necessity of adjunct procedures in establishing matching in applied situations is discussed as a limitation to quantitative applications of the matching law in applied behavior analysis.     

The significance and future of functional analysis methodologies

Iwata, Dorsey, Slifer, Bauman, and Richman (1982) presented the first comprehensive and standardized methodology for identifying operant functions of aberrant behavior. This essay discusses the significance functional analysis has had for applied behavior analysis. The methodology has lessened the field's reliance on default technologies and promoted analysis of environment-behavior interactions maintaining target responses as the basis for selecting treatments. It has also contributed to the integration of basic and applied research. Future directions for this research are suggested.     

A method to establish stimulus control and compliance with instructions

We evaluated a unique procedure to establish compliance with instructions in four young children diagnosed with autism spectrum disorder (ASD) who had low levels of compliance. Our procedure included methods to establish a novel therapist as a source of positive reinforcement, reliably evoke orienting responses to the therapist, increase the number of exposures to instruction–compliance–reinforcer contingencies, and minimize the number of exposures to instruction–noncompliance–no reinforcer contingencies. We further alternated between instructions with a high probability of compliance (high‐p instructions) with instructions that had a prior low probability of compliance (low‐p instructions) as soon as low‐p instructions lost stimulus control. The intervention is discussed in relation to the conditions necessary for the development of stimulus control and as an example of a variation of translational research.