The purpose of this study was to critically review the empirical evidence surrounding three assertions presented by FlagHouse concerning Snoezelen[R] environments in day school public education settings. Given the absence of empirical literature examining the use of Snoezelen[R] in day school settings, the authors analyzed five studies that were…

The use of gaze shifts as social cues has various evolutionary advantages. To investigate the developmental processes of this ability, we conducted an object-choice task by using longitudinal methods with infant chimpanzees tested from 8 months old until 3 years old. The experimenter used one of six gestures towards a cup concealing food; tapping,…

Dynamic factor models have been used to analyze continuous time series behavioral data. We extend 2 main dynamic factor model variations--the direct autoregressive factor score (DAFS) model and the white noise factor score (WNFS) model--to categorical DAFS and WNFS models in the framework of the underlying variable method and illustrate them with…

Resistance to change is often studied by measuring response rate in various components of a multiple schedule. Response rate in each component is normalized (that is, divided by its baseline level) and then log-transformed. Differential resistance to change is demonstrated if the normalized, log-transformed response rate in one component decreases…

An international movement has focused on identifying evidence-based interventions that were developed to change psychological constructs and that are supported by controlled studies. However, inconsistent findings within individual intervention studies and among multiple studies raise critical problems in interpreting the evidence, and deciding…

Two studies were done in which the subjects applied punishment contingencies to themselves for smoking cigarettes. After Baseline in Experiment I, the subject set a limit of 15 cigarettes for himself. If he exceeded the level, he was to tear a dollar bill into pieces for every additional cigarette he smoked. Every five days the criterion was…

It is customary in behavior analysis to distinguish between positive and negative reinforcement in terms of whether the reinforcing event involves onset or offset of a stimulus. In a previous article (Baron & Galizio, 2005), we concluded that a distinction of these terms is not only ambiguous but has little if any functional significance. Here, we…

Academic psychology and education are too much theoretically and methodologically committed; they need "field commitment"--an orientation which allows the people who are working with problem children or adults to use any technique, any tools at their disposal that will enable them to perform most proficiently in a given situation. Until people…

Although there is a large and growing literature on tailored print health behavior change interventions, it is currently not known if or to what extent tailoring works. The current study provides a meta-analytic review of this literature, with a primary focus on the effects of tailoring. A comprehensive search strategy yielded 57 studies that met…

Self-recording of behavior in behavior modification appears to be reactive, with the phenomenon having two components: actual changes in behavior as a function of self-recording and possible unreliability of self-observers. The present study was undertaken to differentially examine the reactivity and reliability of self-observations. (Author)

Emerging approaches for dealing with inappropriate behaviors of the disabled involve conducting a functional or structural behavior analysis to isolate the factors responsible for the aberrant behavior and implementing corrective procedures (often alternatives to punishment) relevant to the function of the inappropriate behavior. (Author/DB)

Research supported in part by the National Institute of Mental Health. Reprints from Kenneth Heller, Dept. of Psychology, Indiana University, Bloomington, Ind.

This paper considers five empirical and theoretical issues which have arisen from a comparison of behavioral analyses in controlled laboratory settings and similar analyses in naturalistic human environments. (Editor)