Between-measure consistency in social-skills assessment

The purpose of the present study was to assess the between-measure consistency of general and specific social-skills assessment strategies. Nineteen mentally retarded adults were assessed using both common and newly devised measures of social skills: (1) specific (molecular) behavior ratings from role-play assessments, (2) general (molar) ratings based on the role plays, staff (3) molar and (4) molecular predictions of client social skills use in the described role-play situations, (5) peer sociometric ratings, and molecular in vivoobservations conducted in (6) cafeteria and (7) party settings. For all molecular measures, the subjects were assessed on eye contact, response relevance, response latency, voice volume, and appropriate affect, which allowed for direct comparisons to be made between each of these assessment modalities. In addition, the role-play assessment was conducted under two distinct conditions to determine whether role-play performance varied between standard and reinforced administrations; however, multivariate analyses (MANOVA) revealed no differences between the two assessments. Correlations between the molar and the molecular measures suggested a substantial overlap between the measures, with staff ratings having the highest consistency with the other measures. Furthermore, MANOVAs calculated between role-play ratings and those of staff revealed little difference between the two. The limitations on and practical significance of these findings are discussed.     

An empirical investigation of the specificity and sensitivity of the automatic thoughts questionnaire and dysfunctional attitudes scale

Cognitive assessment of depression is not well advanced and the evidence for the validity and reliability of measures is incomplete. This study examined two cognitive assessments of depression-the Automatic Thoughts Questionnaire (ATQ) and the Dysfunctional Attitudes Scale (DAS). There were two major objectives of this study. The first objective was to examine the ability of these two measures of cognitions to discriminate depressive symptomatology within a variety of sample populations-university undergraduate students, medical and psychiatric outpatients, and acute psychiatric inpatients. The second objective was to examine the ability of the ATQ and DAS succesfully to classify depressed and nondepressed patients. The results of this study suggest that the ATQ is a sensitive and specific measure of depression. Nonspecificity to the ATQ, however, was demonstrated in the substance abuse disorder group and the personality disorder group. In contrast, the DAS, although correlated with depressive symptomatology, was not found to be specific to depression.Part of this project is supported by a Special Project Grant from the University of Queensland to Dr. Oei.     

NONCONTINGENT PRESENTATION OF ATTENTION AND ALTERNATIVE STIMULI IN THE TREATMENT OF ATTENTION-MAINTAINED DESTRUCTIVE BEHAVIOR

Previous research has demonstrated that destructive behavior may be reduced through noncontingent presentation of attention when attention is identified as the stimulus responsible for behavioral maintenance. Because it may not always be possible to deliver attention in all situations, we examined the extent to which alternative stimuli that have been identified through a choice assessment would substitute for attention (the functional analysis—based reinforcer) in a noncontingent reinforcement procedure. Prior to treatment, functional analyses demonstrated that the destructive behavior of 2 clients with mental retardation was maintained by adult attention. Next, a stimulus choice assessment identified highly preferred tangible items for the 2 clients. Finally, we compared the effectiveness of two noncontingent reinforcement procedures: continuous noncontingent access to attention and continuous noncontingent access to the tangible item identified in the choice assessment. For both clients, these noncontingent reinforcement procedures reduced destructive behavior. The results are discussed in terms of the clinical implications for the treatment of destructive behavior using functional and alternative stimuli.     

Effect of conducting behavioral observations and ratings on staff implementation of a paired-stimulus preference assessment

We assessed the effects of trainees observing and rating the accuracy of others implementing a paired-stimulus preference assessment from video on the trainees' subsequent implementation accuracy. These observational experiences increased implementation accuracy with both a confederate and an actual consumer. These results suggest conducting observations and accuracy ratings may prepare staff to implement behavioral procedures without need of a dedicated trainer.     

The accuracy of lay integrity assessments in simulated employment interviews

Two studies were conducted to determine if lay judges could accurately assess another individual’s integrity level when using overt and covert integrity inventories. In Study 1, participants took part in simulated employment interviews and then both the participants and lay interviewers completed an overt integrity test comparable to the Reid Report integrity survey [Reid London House. (2004). Abbreviated Reid Report. Minneapolis, MN: NCS Pearson]. Self-lay judge agreement and peer-lay judge agreement were used as the criteria for accuracy. In Study 2, participants took part in either a simulated structured, unstructured or informal employment interview format and completed both overt and covert integrity inventories. The results suggest that lay judges (as well as acquaintances) are fairly accurate in assessing others’ integrity levels based upon a very brief 10-min interaction with an individual, when using either an overt or covert integrity inventory. The findings also suggest that the informal interview format can significantly enhance the accuracy of a lay-judge’s assessment of the participant’s integrity level when a covert measure of integrity is used.     

Aggression and school social dynamics: The good, the bad, and the ordinary

A social dynamics perspective of aggression in school is presented. This framework focuses on the role of natural social processes in the establishment and maintenance of aggressive behavior in the school context. The five articles in this special issue are briefly reviewed and a synthesis of their contributions for understanding the social dynamics of aggression in school is underscored. Future research and intervention implications are also discussed. The need for examining the role of school social dynamics in conducting social skills interventions, functional behavioral assessments, and the development of positive behavioral support plans is emphasized.     

Toward Increasing Fairness in Score Scale Calibrations Employed in International Large-Scale Assessments

In this article, we investigate the creation of comparable score scales across countries in international assessments. We examine potential improvements to current score scale calibration procedures used in international large-scale assessments. Our approach seeks to improve fairness in scoring international large-scale assessments, which often ignore item misfit in score scale calibrations. We also seek to obtain improved model-data fit estimates when calibrating international score scales. To this end, we examine the use of two alternative score scale calibration procedures: (a) a language-based score scale and (b) a more parsimonious international scale wherein a large proportion of international parameters are used with a subset of country-based parameters for items that misfit in the international scale. In our analyses, we used data from all 40 countries participating in the Progress in International Reading Literacy Study. Our findings revealed that current score scale calibration procedures yield large numbers of misfitting items (higher than 25% for some countries). Our proposed approach diminished the effects of proportion of item misfit on score scale calibrations and also yielded enhanced model-data fit estimates. These results lead to enhancing confidence in measurements obtained from international large-scale assessments.     

Evaluation of a self-instruction package for conducting stimulus preference assessments

Research suggests that inexperienced individuals cannot accurately implement stimulus preference assessments given written instructions alone. Training that includes written instructions supplemented with feedback from a professional with expertise in conducting preference assessments has proven effective; unfortunately, expert-facilitated direct training may not be widely available. In the current study, we used multiple baseline designs to evaluate the efficacy of an antecedent-only self-instructional package to train staff members to implement two methods of stimulus preference assessments. Accuracy was low when participants had access to written instructions alone. When access to enhanced written instructions was provided (i.e., technical jargon was minimized; instructions included pictures, diagrams, and step-by-step examples), inexperienced staff accurately implemented the assessments. Results are discussed in terms of opportunities to disseminate behavior-analytic technologies through self-instruction and print resources.     

Investigation of the process underpinning vowel‐size correspondence

Vowel‐size correspondence is frequently reported in the literature: Namely, the vowels a and i tend to elicit bigger and smaller images, respectively. Previous studies have speculated that two factors may contribute to this vowel‐size correspondence: the acoustical features of vowels and the speaker's kinesthetic experience of producing them. However, these two factors have been investigated without being considered separately in previous research. In this study, we investigated the process underpinning vowel‐size correspondence by using speeded classification tasks and manipulating the two factors mentioned above separately in two experiments. The results of Experiment 1 indicate that a and i elicited bigger and smaller images even in the absence of kinesthetic experience. The results of Experiment 2 indicate that the proprioception of the size of the oral cavity on its own may not contribute to vowel‐size correspondence. Thus, the acoustic features of vowels mainly contribute to vowel‐size correspondence, although other possibilities are also discussed.