Due to changing age demographics in the United States, by 2050, an estimated 62.1 Americans will be over the age of 65 and the number of Americans with cognitive impairment, such as Alzheimer’s disease, will increase drastically as well (Alzheimer’s Association, 2014; Ortman, Velkoff, & Hogan, 2014). Once a diagnosis or behavioral indicators of cognitive impairment are present, it would be beneficial to apply a treatment package that promotes the maintenance or re-establishment of stimulus control in the environment. From a behavioral perspective, stimulus control aids in learning and memory through both respondent and operant conditioning. In the current study, stimulus equivalence training was completed and compared to cognitive and functional assessments scores with older adult participants with and without cognitive impairment as a systematic replication of Gallagher and Keenan (2009). Formation of equivalence relations after exposure to linear series (LS) training with 2 3-member stimulus classes across arbitrary, familiar, and stimuli from Gallagher and Keenan (2009) was compared via trials to criterion, accuracy per relation, and session length to scores on the Mini-Mental Status Exam (MMSE), Saint Louis University State Exam (SLUMS), and Barthel ADL Index. Several methodological changes were applied to a second study to examine the impact of increased programmed stimuli, training changes, and the use of one-to-many (OTM) and many-to-one (MTO) training structures with 3 3-member stimulus classes on equivalence formation. Composite performance scores were created for accuracy during LS, OTM, and MTO training. Non-parametric analyses were conducted between assessment and composite scores. The SLUMS and Barthel ADL Index were not correlated with any composite scores. However, MMSE scores and LS composite scores were correlated. The SLUMS was more sensitive to the detection of cognitive impairment as judged by classification and diagnoses. OTM and MTO composite scores also had a strong, positive correlation. Overall, more participants demonstrated higher levels of accurate responding during LS training than during OTM and MTO training. In contrast to previous research, only 25% of the sample demonstrated equivalence formation. Limitations and future research directions are discussed.

Functional analysis is considered best practice for behavior analysts who work with people who have intellectual and developmental disabilities and engage in problem behavior. Unfortunately, a majority of practitioners do not complete functional analyses. The purpose of the present study was to train 10 practitioners to implement a practical functional assessment (PFA) decision making model and to evaluate the ecological validity of the model. Pre- and Post-training overall test scores increased, on average, by 38.18%. Testing subsections increased by 60.0% for foundations and concepts, 5.0% for graphical interpretations, and 40.0% for decision making. A job needs survey showed the greatest gains in reports of antecedent environmental supports, behavior supports in the environment, and antecedents related to the behavior repertoire. A post-training survey indicated that 8 of 8 trainees would recommend the training to others. Finally, at the conclusion of follow-up progress data collection, 3 of the 5 locations were progressing through the PFA model in their regular job duties whereas the other 2 locations experienced professional staffing issues that interfered with their workloads. These results indicate that the training was effective at increasing testing responses related to foundations and concepts as well as decision making. Additionally, when professional staffing was stable, participants reported using the PFA model effectively, suggesting that the model had ecological fit under these conditions.

Research has shown that when individuals are in situations that do not occasion one form of motoric responding, they will engage in another so that the overall level of motoric responding is homeostatic. The purpose of this study was to test whether students would substitute task-related behaviors for stereotypic or other challenging behaviors when the opportunity for active responding did or did not match the level of motoric responding in a free-operant baseline. Four students with mental retardation participated. Results showed that they did substitute behaviors, with stereotypic and other challenging behaviors occurring 1.5-14 times as much in the Non-matched condition for the four students. Further analysis showed considerably more of these behaviors in passive than in active tasks (by a factor up to 21 times as much). Results were discussed in terms of homeostasis, functional assessment, and opportunities to improve educational behaviors.

Excessive video play has been well documented over the course of the last decade. So much so that newest version of the Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders (DSM-5; APA, 2013) has included excessive video gaming as disorder categorized as internet gaming disorder. To date, several researchers have designed assessments to evaluate excessive video game play based on the previous editions and current editions of the DSM. However, these assessments primarily measure the criterion established in these manuals, instead of measuring the maintaining function of the video game play. The field of applied behavior analysis has been utilizing functional assessments for the last 30 years and has showed evidence of effective results across different populations and environments. Therefore, the purpose of this proposed study is to validate an indirect functional assessment entitled the Video Game Functional Assessment-Revised (VGFA-R) by means of conducting content, construct and criterion related validity.

The primary purpose of this study was to measure geriatric patients’ levels of intellectual functioning in order to determine the reliability of several specific test instruments. From the battery of measurements used in the study, it was an additional objective to recommend which of these test instruments, or combination thereof, would be most applicable for geriatric patients, based on the empirical findings of this study. Level of intellectual functioning may certainly be influenced by many factors. Therefore, it was part of this study to measure and control for the effects of the following variable: sex, age, education, and medication.

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Methods for the determining the functional properties of problem behaviors are necessary for the design of successful treatments. Many of the currently utilized methodologies are chosen based on their speed, ease of application or for the perceived risk-reduction they afford. However, when thoroughly analyzed many of these methods fall short of their intended purpose. The current study attempted to assess dangerous problem behavior through a functional assessment of functionally related precursor behaviors during analog sessions. Results indicate that for three participants, placing the reinforcing contingencies on these related precursor behaviors produced differentiated outcomes during the assessment. These outcomes matched the outcomes of assessments of the more dangerous problem behaviors.

Rehabilitation and education are faced with the growing need for adequate and appropriate assessment tools for over 9,000 congenitally deaf-blind persons in this country. These tools are needed to help form the basis for evaluation of these clients/students so that programs appropriate to their specific needs can be determined. In the past, assessment of the functional development of this population has been based on tests standardized on populations of non-handicapped individuals. These measuring primarily language abilities, and experiential factors. Observational procedures can examine the spontaneous behavior of subjects over a long period of time. This is an alternative to standardized instruments. One of these in current use is the Basic Life Skills Screening Inventory. This instrument was developed in 1982 for the purpose of assisting educators and counselors in establishing the readiness of deaf-blind, developmentally disabled clients/students for vocational and life skills training. Though useful in its original form, this instrument has two major limitations. One is the fact that the rater is given only limited choices, resulting in a ceiling effect and a pronounced skew of many of its scales. Another limitation is its lengthy 283 item format, requiring too much administration time to be practical on a daily basis. The present study focused on making needed modifications in this instrument that would help alleviate these limitations, and continue to maintain high psychometric properties within the instrument. In doing this, rater choices were expanded from three (3) to five (5) column headings, and the instrument was reduced from 283 items to 145 items. This study was designed to answer the following questions: (1) Can the Basic Life Skills Screening Inventory be modified in such a way as to give the rater a greater response choice, thus allowing for a more refined assessment? (2) Can the 283 item, Basic Life Skills Screening Inventory be shortened by approximately 50%, to allow for an easier and more practical administration, and continue to maintain high psychometric properties? Results indicate that, despite the modifications, a very high overall consistency among the items was maintained with a total average alpha of 9935.5.

Many performance-based assessment tools are available to measure upper extremity function. Most define hand function by the time taken to complete a task. A new computer game-based hand-arm function evaluation (GHA) tool has been developed to quantify fine and gross object manipulations skills. Objective of this study was to evaluate the test-retest reliability and convergent validity of the GHA assessment tool. Thirty stroke clients with the mean age of 68.41 years were recruited. Test-retest reliability was assessed by Intraclass correlation coefficient (ICCs) and t-test. Convergent validity between GHA and the Wolf Motor Function Test (WMFT) was determined using the Pearson’s correlation coefficient. Most of the GHA outcome measures had moderate to high ICC (0.5-0.9). With scant exceptions, low correlations were observed between GHA measures and WMFT score. The ICC values reflected the complexity of the tasks, more complex task showed lower ICCs values. / October 2016