The purpose of this project is to present the design and guidelines for implementation of a theory based intercultural communication skills training program. An instructor manual was designed primarily for people in leadership positions in Catholic parish communities in the Diocese of San Bernardino, California, in order to help them to develop the necessary skills and abilities to become competent intercultural communicators.

Communication deficits are often evident in students with moderate-to-severe developmental disabilities. For these students, basic communication needs, like asking to use the restroom, requesting food or expressing discomfort are a challenge. Frustration caused by communication deficits can lead the student to express interfering behaviors, which may interrupt student learning. This paper identifies and describes evidence-based practices (EBPs) used to increase functional communication skills for students with moderate-to-severe developmental disabilities. This review focuses on functional communication training (FCT) and the picture exchange communication system (PECS) and their use to increase functional communication skills. The study also explains how to implement FCT and PECS and the results and challenges that may take place during the implementation process. This is an informative paper intended for special education teachers who work with students with moderate-to-severe disabilities.

The primary purpose of the current study was to determine which variables influence or change response allocation among mand topographies. The variables evaluated consisted of response effort, schedule of reinforcement (extinction), changes in concurrent schedules arrangements, and availability of visual stimuli (i.e., a communication card). The stability of responding was evaluated across more than one reinforcement context (escape, attention, and tangible) for each of the 2 participants. Finally, a concurrent schedules arrangement was used to evaluate response allocation among card touches, manual sign, microswitch touches, and vocalizations. Results of the evaluation suggested that response allocation varied across reinforcement contexts in baseline and when responding was challenged. However, variations in response allocation were not uniform across all challenges and reinforcement contexts. Problem behavior continued to be exhibited at low levels throughout the evaluation even when mild punishment procedures were implemented. These results are discussed in terms of changes in patterns of responding across reinforcement contexts, variability in response allocation among available response options, and persistence of responding when challenges are implemented.

Behavioral momentum theory provides a conceptual framework for the study of the recurrence of previously extinguished operant behavior. Commonly referred to as treatment relapse, this is the failure to maintain treatment gains (e.g., reductions in challenging behavior) when there is a change in conditions under which these gains were achieved. One treatment relapse paradigm previously examined in basic and applied research is reinstatement. Reinstatement of challenging behavior has been shown to occur when functional reinforcers are delivered on a fixed-time schedule following extinction of challenging behavior. Although examinations appropriate behavior have applied value, analyses of reinstatement have been conducted almost exclusively with challenging behavior. During the current study, a reinstatement methodology was applied to communicative responses with five children diagnosed with developmental disabilities who exhibited comorbid communication deficits, as well as challenging behavior maintained by positive reinforcement. In the first phase of the reinstatement evaluation, each child received functional communication training (FCT) within a positive reinforcement context within a two-component multiple schedule design with each schedule paired with a distinct communicative response. After achieving steady-state responding in the first phase, in which all participants were independently emitting both communicative responses, all appropriate communication was placed on extinction in the second phase. Extinction continued until rates of appropriate communication were at or near zero. In the third phase, positive reinforcement was delivered and the recurrence of appropriate communication was evaluated. For two of five participants, communicative responding recurred following the fixed-time delivery of the functional reinforcer, indicating a successful demonstration of reinstatement. For three of five participants, communicative responding recurred prior to the delivery of fixed-time reinforcement, indicating that an alternative recurrence phenomenon likely occurred. These results suggest that reinstatement methodologies can be applied to cases in which FCT treatment failures have occurred to efficiently restore clinical gains for some participants. Implications for clinical practice and future directions of this line of research are discussed.

The majority of behavioral analytic interventions reflect European-American values. One useful intervention is discriminated functional communication training (DFCT), which may be implemented to increase the generalizability of functional communication training (FCT). However, the discriminative stimuli used during DFCT may not adequately reflect what is commonly used in various cultures. Thus, the purpose of the current study was to evaluate the effectiveness, feasibility (in the form of training parents to implement), and treatment acceptability of a culturally adapted version of DFCT with Afro-Caribbean families. Three children with ASD along with their mothers participated in the study. Results showed that culturally adapting DFCT was as effective as the traditional procedure in obtaining discriminated manding for 2 of 3 participants. An alternate DFCT procedure used with the third participant was also effective. Also, it was feasible to train parents to implement the intervention. Social validity measures indicated the study incorporated cultural values, and beliefs, and produced favorable effects on replacing problem behavior with discriminated manding that was culturally relevant.

Invariant responding among individuals with autism spectrum disorder (ASD) is problematic and can be pervasive across all areas of development. Individuals with ASD demonstrate difficulty communicating wants and needs and often engage in challenging behavior in order to get needs met. Functional communication training (FCT) is one approach for mediating challenging behavior by teaching individuals a communicative response that is functionally equivalent to the demonstrated challenging behavior. However, individuals are often taught a single communicative response (e.g., vocal approximations) that may be unintelligible to the naïve listener and challenging behavior may resurge as a result of a communication breakdown. Recently, the evaluation of lag schedules of reinforcement has shown that it is possible to reinforce operant variability during instruction. Increasing communicative variability for individuals with ASD may decrease the likelihood of resurgence of challenging behavior by providing a broader repertoire of socially appropriate communicative responses that contacted reinforcement through the use of a lag schedule of reinforcement. The purpose of the present study was to evaluate the effect a lag schedule of reinforcement on communicative variability in three individuals with ASD. In this study, communication was reinforced on either a Lag 0 (or FR1 concurrent) schedule of reinforcement, or a Lag 1 (e.g., responses contacted reinforcement only if the response differed from the previous communicative response). Functional analyses were conducted for each participant to determine variables maintaining challenging behavior, all participants were given a mand topography assessment to evaluate mand topography proficiency, and a lag schedule evaluation was conducted. Results showed that increasing the lag schedule of reinforcement from Lag 0 to Lag 1 increased communicative mand topographies for all participants. Results further showed a significant reduction in challenging behavior as compared to baseline conditions contingent on implementation of the FCT package. / text

Problem behaviours occur in approximately 10 to 15% of individuals with intellectual disabilities and these behaviours most often include aggression and self-injury. Families who support young adults with multiple disabilities and problem behaviour at home often experience costs to their psychological, physical, financial and emotional wellbeing. Respite care evolved to allow families short breaks from care giving and to support families in looking after their family members at home. Furthermore, problem behaviour severely limits opportunities for individuals with multiple disabilities to interact adaptively with their environments and develop positive behaviour skills that increase the possibility of living independently in their adult years. The present study aimed first to demonstrate the utility of functional analysis of problem behaviour in respite care, and then, to reduce food stealing and pica exhibited by a young adult with multiple disabilities attending a respite care centre. Following a functional analysis that indicated food stealing and pica had the probable function of hunger reduction, two positive behaviour support plans were developed. These interventions, conducted at the respite centre three days a week by centre staff, involved strategies to teach the participant to sign “eat” in New Zealand Sign Language (NZSL) to gain access to food and increase accessibility of food in the environment to reduce pica. The results showed that introducing the NZSL sign reduced food stealing to near zero within three weeks and pica was eliminated following the combined approach of functional communication training and antecedent manipulation. Use of the communicative sign was maintained at follow-up and food stealing remained at near zero, while pica remained at zero one-month following the intervention.

abstract: The present study used a multiple baseline design across settings to examine the effects of using an iPad as an alternative reinforcer on self-injury and aggression when reinforcement for appropriate communication was denied following Functional Communication Training in an adolescent with Autism Spectrum Disorder (ASD), Intellectual Disability (ID), and severe aggression. The study also assessed collateral effects of the intervention on the use of self-management to control aggression. Data indicate the use of an iPad as an alternative reinforcer decreased the duration of self-injury and physical aggression in an adolescent in a big box store, grocery store, and classroom. Instances of self-injury and aggression remained low during maintenance sessions and a six month post-hoc analysis. Collateral gains in self-management were made during treatment and maintenance sessions. / Dissertation/Thesis / Doctoral Dissertation Special Education 2014

Functional communication training (FCT) is an effective procedure to teach a functional communication response (FCR) and decrease problem behavior. However, there are limitations to FCT. These limitations include excessive manding (e.g., requesting items at a high rate) and manding at inappropriate times (e.g., requesting attention when caregiver is driving). Multiple schedules using static signals (e.g., colored cards) have been used to decrease these limitations while maintaining appropriate levels of the FCRs and low levels of problem behavior. Moreover, dynamic signals have been used to maintain low levels of problem behavior and appropriate levels of alternative responses outside of a multiple schedule format. Presently, no research has examined the comparison of static and dynamic signals to address the limitations of FCT. Therefore, the purpose of the current study is to compare the effects of static and dynamic signals (i.e., Time Timer®) during multiple schedules consisting of reinforcement and extinction components following FCT. Key words: functional communication training, multiple schedules, static signals, Time Timers®

Domestic abuse is “the willful use of an intimidating action [physical assault, battery, sexual assault, and/or other abusive behavior as part of a systematic pattern] to exert power and control perpetrated by one intimate partner against another” (“What Is Domestic Violence?”, 2016). For African American women in the United States, “some studies have found that negative racial and sexist stereotypes portray African American women as aggressors rather than as victims due to their perceived rough, aggressive, and outspoken characteristics. Because of these persistent stereotypes of African American survivors, police can mistake the victim as the aggressor, thus reducing the amount of legal action taken to aid them. The past and present domestic violence responses have little positive economic or social effects on African American survivors. This thesis argues for educational changes to improve the legal response from law enforcement agencies for African American survivors of domestic violence. Realistic solutions such as, changing the stereotypical image of African American survivors, having law enforcement agencies enforce laws in domestic violence cases, and incorporating mandatory implicit bias and cross cultural communication trainings in a variety of educational areas can help resolve the low amount of law enforcement being used for African American domestic violence victims, unconscious racism in courtrooms, and ineffective mandatory arrest policies.