After a review of the literature on Pivotal Response Treatment (PRT) in young children with developmental delays, less was known on its effects on challenging behavior and functional communication in preschool age children receiving services in a traditional public school. A multiple baseline design across three participants was used to evaluate the effects of PRT on the functional communication of three preschool students with developmental delays. Based on a functional analysis, we also observed the effects of PRT on challenging behavior. A visual analysis of the data revealed a functional relation between PRT and functional communication and provided promising evidence regarding the effectiveness of function aligned mands in reducing problem behavior. Brief surveys and interviews revealed that the intervention was feasible and effective based on staff and family reports. This research study adds to the evidence supporting the use of the intervention and expands on the knowledge base surrounding function aligned communication. Implications for research and practice are discussed.

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The aim of this study is to explore and analyze the employee's experiences of using low arousal approach as a method in residential care homes. It is also done to better understand the employee's experiences, challenges and successes by using low arousal approach as a method with young people who show challenging behavior due to situations that makes them lose control over their behavior. The method used to answer the chosen questions is a qualitative method in the form of semi-structured interviews. This specific method was chosen because it allows for an in-depth exploration of our chosen topic. To answer the chosen questions, we have interviewed 6 employee's from one residential care home. These interviews provided a deeper understanding of their experiences with using the method and the advantages and disadvantages of applying it as a behavior management method. Their experiences with the method indicate that it is helpful when a child or young person with behavioral problems exhibits challenging behavior, as it helps to prevent the situation from escalating. Based on the interviews, we were able to conclude that there are more advantages than disadvantages. The method leads to strong relationships, greater understanding and positive behavioral change. The disadvantages include that over time, employee's may forget how to act in problem creating situations. The focus over time may shift more towards creating a calm working environment rather than helping the children or young people with behavioral problems who need assistance. In conclusion, with the help of the 6 semi structured interviews, the study was able to gain deeper insight into the employee's experiences, situations and the advantages and disadvantages of using the method while working with behavioral problems in residential care homes for children and young people.

The purpose of the study was to compare traditional functional analysis procedures (isolated contingencies) to functional analysis procedures which are modified to include nuanced environmental variables (synthesized contingencies) for children in an outpatient setting in order to determine sensitivity to the isolated or synthesized contingencies. A multi-element design embedded into a multi-treatment design was used to evaluate differentiated rates of challenging behavior across the two analyses for three children exhibiting challenging behaviors. The results supported the utility of the traditional functional analysis (FA) procedures when compared to that of the interview informed synthesized contingency analysis (IISCA) for one of three participants.

Children diagnosed with autism spectrum disorder (ASD) experience difficulties with social communication and restrictive, repetitive, and stereotyped behavior patterns that place them at an increased risk for developing challenging behaviors that warrant early intervention (American Psychiatric Association, 2013). These problems are unlikely to decrease without intervention. Research indicates that parents’ involvement in behaviorally based interventions improves the functioning of children with ASD (Horner, Carr, Strain, Todd, & Reid, 2002). . Parent-Child Interaction Therapy (Eyberg & Funderburk, 2011) is an empirically supported intervention for young children with disruptive behaviors. PCIT shares similarities with numerous proven ASD treatments including caregiver involvement, structure and predictable schedule, and the use of behavioral strategies (e.g., positive reinforcement, differential attention). As such, children with ASD are increasingly referred to PCIT. Researchers and clinicians have started to address the use of PCIT for targeting child compliance and social responsiveness in children with ASD. However, there is a need for research on the feasibility of PCIT for children with ASD and barriers to treatment participation for these families. The present study utilized a non-concurrent multiple baseline design with three parent-child dyads enrolled in PCIT to examine the degree of stability and immediacy of effect in caregivers parenting skill use and in patterns of challenging behaviors, ASD symptoms, and expressive communication exhibited by young children with ASD. Due to a significant attrition rate in the study, barriers to treatment participation were also examined. Findings suggested that PCIT improved children’s challenging behaviors and parent’s use of labeled praises.

This scientific essay starts in a story where you get to follow me in my work by three situations with creative problem behavior at the special school where I work. The story culminates in a dilemma where I ask myself questions about how I look at my actions and my thoughts about the student. I break down and put these thoughts into three questions: What is my student's perspective and how will it affect my actions? How can I explain my actions and attitude of the student from ethical perspective? How do my practical knowledge look like in the narrative situations and why do I act like I do? My approach is to get answers to the questions by the reflection of the text itself, the reflection group and supervisors, as well as through literature that I find relevant to the issues. The process is like a pendulum motion between text, reflection and new understanding. I look at my situations based on psychological theories about the treatment of persons within the autism spectrum of problems creative behavior. My ethical issues, I see from the theoretical perspective which includes Aristotle, Levinas and Kant. I find that the answer to my questions can be paired with my practical actions. I notice that by putting words to them I get a new understanding of my actions. I see that most of the acts I do is based on the knowledge of my student's perspective and I find similarities to my situations and my acts to the literature. I approach it as my works practical wisdom.

ABSTRACT EFFECT OF RESPONSE CARDS ON ACADEMIC OUTCOMES FOR HIGH SCHOOL STUDENTS WITHOUT DISABILITIES AND HIGH SCHOOL STUDENTS WITH DISABILITIES WHO EXHIBIT CHALLENGING BEHAVIORS by Ellen L. Duchaine Response cards (RC) support effective teaching strategies such as maintaining a brisk pace of instruction, increased opportunities to respond, immediate and frequent corrective feedback, and high rates of behavior specific praise statements; all of which have been effective in increasing student engagement for students with and without emotional and behavioral disorders (E/BD) (Emmer & Stough, 2001; Simonsen et al., 2008; Sutherland, Wehby, & Copeland, 2000). RC during academic instruction are successful in decreasing disruptive behavior, increasing student participation, and increasing academic achievement from the elementary school level to the university level. This study examined teacher implementation of RC at the high school level for students without disabilities and students with disabilities with a history of challenging behaviors (i.e., students with a disability and a behavior intervention plan) in general education classes required for high school graduation. The purpose of this study was to evaluate the effect of RC compared to hand raising (HR) in inclusive general education classrooms. An alternating treatment design was implemented to examine the potential functional relation between the use of RC, student engagement, and academic achievement. RC (i.e., 8” x 11” laminated write -on cards) were randomly alternated with the more traditional method of HR which allows one student to respond to each question asked by the teacher. Intervals of time on-task, attempted responses, next day quiz scores, and bi-weekly probe scores were measured and analyzed for target students without disabilities and target students with disabilities. In addition, individual scores of all students in the class were calculated to provide a class mean, allowing further analysis. All sessions were conducted by classroom teachers during daily reviews of academic content. The findings from this study support prior research indicating RC increases student engagement by increasing intervals of time on-task and attempted responses for the majority of students. In one class, three of four target students increased daily quiz scores by 10% or more using RC; and in the second class the mean for daily quiz scores was higher using RC. Although results on next-day quizzes were inconsistent, bi-weekly probes indicate RC increased retention of material learned over time.

Cette étude pilote est, à notre connaissance, le premier essai clinique qui vise à explorer les effets d’un programme d’accompagnement parental sur les CP chez les enfants de moins de 3 ans et à risque de TSA. Elle vise à évaluer les effets d'un essai contrôlé randomisé croisé portant sur un programme d’accompagnement parental de 12 semaines pour les enfants à risque de troubles du spectre autistique (ASD), sur leurs comportements problématiques (CP) et leurs comportements adaptatifs (CA). Les participants étaient 13 jeunes enfants (13 à 30 mois) et leurs parents. Ces dyades ont été assignées au hasard dans le “groupe d’intervention” (n = 8) ou dans le groupe “liste d’attente” (n = 5). L'intervention mise en place était basée sur le modèle du Early Start Denver for Parents (ESDM-P) et du Social Communication Emotional Regulation and Transactional Support (SCERTS). Les CP ont été évalués à l'aide de l’Évaluation Socioémotionelle des jeunes enfants (ESEJE) et les CA ont été évalués à l'aide du Système d’évaluation des comportements adaptatifs - 2ième édition (ABAS-II). Les analyses statistiques non paramétriques ne montrent aucun changement significatif au sein des groupes ou entre les groupes, pour les deux mesures. Même lorsque les participants, ayant tous reçu l’intervention, sont combinés en un seul échantillon (n =13), les résultats ne montrent aucune amélioration significative des CP et des CA. Les limites méthodologiques sont discutées. Plus d’études sont nécessaires afin d'évaluer les effets d’un programme d’accompagnement parental sur les comportements des enfants. / Abstract : Introduction: Autism spectrum disorder (ASD) is a neurodevelopmental disorder characterized by impairment in social interactions, social communication, and restricted or repetitive patterns of behaviors. Children with ASD exhibit more challenging behavior (CB) and less adaptive behavior (AB) than their peers without ASD. Having CP decrease exposition to positive social interactions, and decreases the opportunities for learning appropriate social behaviors. Parent-mediated intervention aims to provide parents with tools and strategies to promote social and communication skills in their child, and promotes AB. To our knowledge, no clinical randomized control trial documented the effect of a parent-mediated program on CB in children with ASD and aged less than three years old. Objective: Explore the effect of a 12 weeks parent-mediated program on CB and AB in children with ASD aged less than three years old. Method: This program includes strategies from the Early Start Denver Model (ESDM), and the Social Communication Emotional Regulation and Transactional Support (SCERTS). Participants were 13 families from Montreal and Eastern Township. The intervention groups (n = 8) received the intervention immediately, while the waiting list group (n = 5) waited an equivalent period of time before receiving the same intervention. CB were measured using the Infant-Toddler Social-Emotional Assessment (ITSEA), while AB were measured using the Adaptive Behavior Assessment System - Second Edition (ABAS-II). Results: When comparing the two groups, no differences were found for both outcome measures. Even when all participants were combined into one sample group, the intervention had no impact on the outcome measures. Conclusion: The intervention used in this study had no effect on CB and AB. Methodological limitations are discussed.

The present study examined the effectiveness of Parent-Child Interaction Therapy in improving the behavioral outcomes in young children with autism spectrum disorder. Using a non-concurrent multiple baseline design with four mother-child dyads, the study determined the impact of PCIT on the frequency and severity of young children’s challenging behaviors, mothers’ positive parenting practices, and mothers’ satisfaction with treatment. Outcome measures included the Eyberg Child Behavior Inventory, Child Behavior Checklist, Dyadic Parent-Child Interaction Coding System, and Therapy Attitude Inventory. Results from visual analysis and hierarchical linear modeling indicated a treatment effect for mothers’ use of labeled praises (b = 14.79, p = 0.01), reflections (b = 9.93, p < .0001), and behavior descriptions (b = 13.13, p = 0.01). Mothers conveyed high levels of satisfaction with PCIT and reported improvements in their relationship with their child, as well as in their child’s major behavior problems and compliance. Children’s challenging behaviors declined in frequency and severity; however, these decreases were not statistically significant. The findings of this study indicate that PCIT improves mothers’ parenting practices and is a highly satisfactory treatment for mothers of children with ASD. Future studies should incorporate measures specific to ASD symptoms and measures of challenging behaviors from multiple caregivers, such as teachers. Studies should also employ more rigorous statistical methods to determine the average length of treatment required to reduce challenging behaviors in children with ASD.

Behavior problems are quite common in preschool.  Without effective intervention, children with behavior problems are at risk for rejection by teachers, peers and academic failure. But many children in preschool are not diagnosed and are not getting the support they need. At the age of two, children can show both prosocial and aggressive behavior with peers. Researchers stress the importance of positive peer relationships in childhood, because early childhood is the time children learn how to interact with each other. Through peer interactions children develop social, cognitive and language skills. The aim of this systematic literature review is to identify, and critically analyze, special support in preschool which promote peer interaction of children with behavior problems (age of 2-5 years). Five studies, with different interventions have been found through the search procedure. The results show that all the implemented interventions had positive effect on peer interactions and did reduce behavior problems in the classrooms. The results show that the studies focused on different behavior problems, but aggression was found in all the articles.  The studies were focused on different participants in order to influence behavior problems and peer interactions. Four major groups of special support orientations were found: Teacher oriented support, Team-based oriented support, Peer oriented support and Support oriented toward target children. This review presents a good overview on available special support in preschool settings, however more research still needs to be done.