Solar subsystems and components were identified and conceptual structure was developed for architectural solar energy heating and cooling systems. Recent literature related to solar energy systems was reviewed and analyzed. Solar heating and cooling system, subsystem, and component data were compared for agreement and completeness. Significant…

The efficacy of teaching higher level cognitive skills to the trainable mentally retarded is questioned as research has yet to show that the skills learned can be generalized by this population to the classroom or other settings. (Author/PHR)

This review analyzes the origin and maintenance of self-injurious behavior, focusing on the areas of operant contingencies, sensory contingencies, and/or biological variables. It discusses definitions, prevalence, and etiology. A hypothesis is forwarded which includes components from both the operant and biological domains to explain the origin of…

Experimental studies are reviewed in which stuttering and speech disfluency were subjected to response contingent stimuli (RCS). Research issues are discussed, including response-stimulus contiguity, subject awareness, behavior definitions, stimulus control of responses, subject variability, effects of RCS on nonstuttered speech parameters,…

Cultural deprivation has been found to affect the acquisition, development, and utilization of language for the child. The influences of environmental variables on language patterns are discussed as a series of conditioned responses reinforced in the developmental process. (Author)

Staddon and Motheral derived a mathematical model of responding in concurrent variable-interval--variable-interval schedules. Their derivation ignores a fundamental aspect of the concurrent schedule contingency. A reinforcer can occur following two consecutive responses on the same schedule or following a switch between the two schedules.…

Heyman's major criticism (TM 504 810) of Staddon and Motheral's reinforcement maximization model is that it does not consider "local" and "interchangeover" interresponse times separately. We show that this separation may not be necessary. Heyman's apparent gain in comprehensiveness may not be worth the added complexity.…

This article reviews the theoretical and research literature on vision stimulation and vision training of children with severe irreversible visual impairments. It recommends early stimulation to prevent visual deprivation, use of operant conditioning, and the presentation of highly contrasting stimuli to stimulate visual awareness in children with…

In Skinner's analysis of verbal behavior, three categories of environmental control over instances of verbal behavior appear to be relevant to the study of infant vocal development: the mand, the tact, and the echoic categories. Procedures used in the remediation of language deficiencies and procedures found in work in the area of language…

The article reviews the recent literature dealing with teaching autistic children acceptable behaviors using behavior modification techniques. (DLS)

A review of 42 controlled treatment studies suggests that several intervention strategies have produced positive effects. These strategies include operant procedures, structuring of activity and play material, symbolic modeling, coaching, and peer socialization. However, studies have generally failed to determine the durability of treatment…

The literature review classifies reported sources of negative attitudes toward the disabled into 13 psychodynamic and sociological categories and stresses the difficulty of quickly changing such negative attitudes. (MC)

Technology has been used to measure visual acuity with the severely or profoundly mentally retarded child. The following categories of technology have been used for assessment: the recording of visual fixation within the habituation paradigm; equipment to measure eye movements and pursuits; operant techniques; and electrodiagnostic techniques…

Horizontal vs vertical associative memory is defined. Vertical associative memory involves chunking--specifying new nodes representing combinations of old nodes. Chunking is the basis of semantic memory and cognitive learning. The hippocampal (limbic) arousal system is critical to the chunking process; its disruption produces the amnesic syndrome.…

Reviews the literature on the relation between early memory development and corresponding changes in brain development of infants. Finds that an adult-like form of explicit memory emerges between 8 and 12 months of age, drawing heavily on limbic and cortical structures. Offers theoretical perspectives for studying the ontogeny of memory. (JW)