Behavioral Marital Therapy: An Evaluation of Treatment Effects Across High and Low Risk Settings

The present study examined the generalization of treatment effects of a cognitive- behavioral treatment program for marital distress. Following a baseline phase, each of four couples received two phases of marital therapy within a multiple baseline across subject design. The first phase of treatment was behavioral marital therapy (BMT) focusing on communication and problem solving skills. The second phase was cognitive- behavioral marital therapy (CBMT) which focused on conflict management skills in high risk interactive settings at home. Couples’ communication was assessed in a training setting in the clinic and each of two generalization probe settings at home (a low risk and a high risk) setting. The BMT phase produced a clear reduction in communication negativity in the training setting which generalized to both the low and the high risk setting. The CMBT phase produced little additional changes in communication, however, it was associated with changes on a measure of positive and negative partner- referent thoughts

Evidence-based Kernels: Fundamental Units of Behavioral Influence

This paper describes evidence-based kernels, fundamental units of behavioral influence that appear to underlie effective prevention and treatment for children, adults, and families. A kernel is a behavior–influence procedure shown through experimental analysis to affect a specific behavior and that is indivisible in the sense that removing any of its components would render it inert. Existing evidence shows that a variety of kernels can influence behavior in context, and some evidence suggests that frequent use or sufficient use of some kernels may produce longer lasting behavioral shifts. The analysis of kernels could contribute to an empirically based theory of behavioral influence, augment existing prevention or treatment efforts, facilitate the dissemination of effective prevention and treatment practices, clarify the active ingredients in existing interventions, and contribute to efficiently developing interventions that are more effective. Kernels involve one or more of the following mechanisms of behavior influence: reinforcement, altering antecedents, changing verbal relational responding, or changing physiological states directly. The paper describes 52 of these kernels, and details practical, theoretical, and research implications, including calling for a national database of kernels that influence human behavior

Feedback in classroom behavior modification: effects on the target and her classmates

A behavior modification program that employed feedback with no additional contingencies was initiated and withdrawn in an ABAB design on a target child within a classroom. The disruptive behavior of the target child as well as that of her peers was monitored. Additionally, the sociometric status of the target child was recorded. Finally, the positive and negative comments made to the target by her teacher and her peers were related to initiation and withdrawal of the feedback contingency. Results indicate that (1) feedback alone may be an effective behavior modification procedure, (2) the disruptive behavior of the target's classmates changed, even though they were not directly treated, (3) sociometric status of the target was altered by behavioral contingencies, (4) positive comments by classmates to the target increased, and (5) negative comments from the teacher to the target child decreased

Read My Fingertips: A Procedure for Enhancing the Effectiveness of Time-Out with Argumentative Children

Commonly occurring problems in implementing time-out are described together with a procedure for improving the effectiveness of time-out with verbally noncompliant children. The “Read My Fingertips” procedure is intended to reduce arguments and decrease aversive interactions between parents and their children during time-out. This procedure involves counting on one\u27s fingertips each time a word is spoken by the child and equating the number of fingers counted with additional minutes in time-out. It is hoped that this procedure will facilitate the use of time-out with verbally non-compliant children

The Value of Recognizing our Differences and Promoting Healthy Competition: The Cognitive Behavioral Debate.

Few issues within behavior therapy have aroused as much debate as the causal status of cognitions. We briefly trace the history of the debate, provide recent exemplars of misunderstanding, and seek to clarify important epistemological distinctions between radical and cognitive behaviorism. It is suggested that cognitive and radical behavioral therapists share a pragmatic interest in effecting and demonstrating behavior change, but differ significantly with respect to how change is explained. Less certain is the extent to which the practices of radical behavioral and cognitive therapists differ. It is concluded that radical (contextual) and cognitive (mechanistic) views, though distinct, are both scientifically respected approaches to studying human behavior with important roles to play in the future of behavior therapy. The multigenerational enterprise called behavior therapy stands to be enriched by promoting shared values, acceptance of our differences, and encouraging healthy competition

Multi-Faceted Uses of a Simple Time-Out Record in the Treatment of a Noncompliant 8-Year-Old Boy

The use of data to monitor the progress of therapy has been a hallmark of behavior analytic treatment research. However, the many benefits of using easily obtained data to guide behavior change efforts may still be underappreciated by practitioners. The present case illustrates how the ongoing data-based monitoring of timeout use by parents enhanced the treatment of an 8-year-old boy, referred because of noncompliance in the home. Timeout was selected as the primary behavior change strategy and parents were instructed in implementing and recording each instance of timeout on a simple data form. In therapy sessions these data were reviewed and used to direct the course of treatment. Some of the benefits of the timeout record included, enabling rapid refinements in the timeout procedure by providing a feedback mechanism to the therapist, illustrating the need for adjunctive treatments and revision of case formulation, and more generally, by serving as a means of documenting treatment efficacy.One of the most frequent complaints heard from the clinical research community is that practitioners in non-research settings do not conduct research or even systematically evaluate treatment (e.g., Barlow, 1981). Reasons given for the lack of research in practice settings have ranged from training deficits (e.g., poor knowledge of how to conduct research) to protocol difficulties (e.g., not enough time, too few clients to reach statistical significance)(Barlow, 1981). More recently, some authors have advocated a different approach to collecting data and conducting clinical research. The approach, alternately known as accountable service delivery or Level 1 research involves instructing the client in obtaining inexpensive data in a continuous fashion and using these data (usually in graphed form) to modify or alter treatment planning and intervention (Hawkins & Mathews, 1999). The benefits of this approach are to focus behavior change efforts, provide feedback on the efficacy of treatment, and to cue compliance with treatment recommendations (Hawkins et at, 1994). Most strikingly, Level 1 research removes many of the constraints which govern traditional research (e.g., controlling numerous confounding variables, maintaining a constant level of the independent variable, statistical sophistication) and thus may increase the likelihood that clinicians will use data to monitor treatment progress and inform clinical decision-making. The present case study will illustrate how Level 1 data derived from a simple timeout record was used in treatment planning, implementation, and evaluation at several steps during intervention

Self-control training in the classroom: a review and critique.

Self-control training in classroom settings is becoming widespread. Establishing effective self- rather than externally controlled behavior modification programs in schools would enable children to control their own academic and social behavior, while enabling teachers to devote more time to teaching. The following components of self-control are reviewed in the present article: self-recording, self-evaluation, self-determination of contingencies, and self-instruction. Self-control strategies designed for the maintenance of appropriate classroom behavior, and issues associated with self-control training, such as the reliability of self-observation, response maintenance, generalization, and the role of external control, are examined. Finally, suggestions for maximizing the potential effectiveness of self-control training in the classroom (e.g., teaching self-observational procedures, teaching students to provide themselves with instructions and praise), as well as future areas for experimental investigation (e.g., social changes that may be associated with self-control procedures), are presented

Sociometric and disruptive behavior as a function of four types of token reinforcement programs

Children in a first-grade classroom were divided into four groups. Baseline measures of disruptive classroom behavior were taken on a well-behaved and disruptive child in each group. Following baseline, four types of token economies were simultaneously introduced and rotated every 10 days within a Latin Square design. The token economies were: (1) individual reinforcement determined by individual performance; (2) group reinforcement determined by the behavior of the most disruptive child; (3) group reinforcement determined by the behavior of the least disruptive child; (4) group reinforcement determined by the behavior of a randomly chosen child. The token economies were compared on their effectiveness in changing target behavior, preference by the targets, ease of use, and cost. Additionally, sociometric responses were taken on questions of responsibility, friendship, and funniness. Results showed a significant decrease of inappropriate behavior for the disruptive children and no difference between the effectiveness of the four types of token economies in producing behavior change. However, there were other differences that indicated that the system in which group reinforcement was determined by a randomly selected child would be desirable for most teachers. Results also showed changes in the sociometric status of the disruptive children. As predicted, disruptive children were rated as more responsible when they were in the group reinforcement determined by the most disruptive child in the group token economy. Using behavior modification techniques indirectly to change sociometric status is suggested as offering a new potential technique for behavior change agents