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Abstract Our behavioral units include stimulus classes and response classes. Peter Urcuioli's differential‐outcomes research implies they should extend to the third term of the three‐term contingency. Classes of consequences come in several varieties (e.g., conditional reinforcers, tokens), but our vocabulary does not coherently organize them. They are differentiated not only by physical properties such as type, location, and duration but also by the schedule contingencies in which they participate. We consider units ranging from the physical and chemical sciences to those based on the particular history of life on earth. The latter include biology, sociology, linguistics, and our own behavior analysis. Scientific units are typically nested (e.g., atoms within molecules, cells within organs, organisms within species). Comparing our units with those from other taxonomies raises questions about their emergence and evolution and their shared properties across levels of nesting (e.g., species within genus, subclasses within higher order operants, phonemes within words). Emergence necessarily occurs when higher order units have functions that are not shared with their lower order constituents. These nested and multileveled behavior classes challenge single‐level views, such as metaphorical accounts of behavior as a totality contained within a pie, with slices corresponding to behavior classes matched to their outcomes.

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ABSTRACT Pairing, sometimes called rapport building, is a technique used to contribute to therapeutic relationships and help establish instructional control with clients. While these skills have been explicitly trained in previous studies, engaging in these skills in natural therapeutic settings could be difficult due to environmental stressors common to these environments. In this regard, acceptance and commitment training (ACT) can be a useful supplement to traditional performance management techniques (e.g., training, feedback). The present study examined three operationalized presession pairing skills with three Registered Behavior Technicians (RBTs). A concurrent multiple probe design across participants was used to evaluate the use of ACT training on these skills. Participants were first exposed to a brief ACT module. Following monitoring of performance, participants whose percentage of skills fell below inclusionary criteria were provided with supplemental behavioral skills training (BST). Results suggest that ACT alone may result in temporary performance increases, however, 2 of 3 participants required additional support with BST to reach acceptable levels. In short, ACT may be an effective methodology to improve employee performance, but it likely should be a complement to effective training and performance management processes.

ABSTRACT Immediate echolalia is a communication excess often associated with children with autism spectrum disorder (ASD). Most studies evaluating immediate echolalia have focused on antecedent manipulations to address deficits in stimulus control. However, most research on function‐based interventions for immediate echolalia has focused on antecedent analyses to hypothesize the potential maintaining variable, without including a functional analysis (FA) to formally evaluate the maintaining variable of immediate echolalia. The purpose of the current study was to extend the antecedent analyses that have been previously used to develop interventions for immediate echolalia and determine if a maintaining variable for immediate echolalia could be determined through a functional analysis. In the second phase of the study, an alternating treatments design was used to compare the effectiveness of a nonfunction based intervention to a function‐based intervention.

Abstract Educators serve an essential role when teaching skills to children with special needs, and effective training is crucial. Behavioral skills training (BST) is an empirically supported training approach that has been used to establish discrete trial teaching (DTT) skills in school staff. This study replicates previous research by assessing the effect of BST when teaching DTT skills and their extension across instructional programs and settings not associated with training. Results showed that BST resulted in the extension of DTT skills across instructional programs that were maintained three weeks after training was completed. BST was rated favorably in a social validity survey.

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Contingency mapping, a visual representation of the contingencies for engaging in desired and undesired behaviors, has been found to improve student behavior in the classroom setting. This study examined the use of the contingency mapping intervention for young children with autism spectrum disorder (ASD) who demonstrated difficulty engaging in classroom activities. Specifically, the study evaluated whether the contingency mapping intervention would increase on-task behavior during natural classroom activities. Three young children with ASD, ages 6 to 8 years old, were recruited from self-contained classrooms in a U.S. public school, along with three corresponding classroom teachers who also participated in the study. A multiple baseline design across participants was used to evaluate the intervention outcomes. The results indicate immediate increases in on-task behavior for all children during intervention, with high rates maintained during follow-up observations. The results of the social validity assessment confirmed that teachers and students found the contingency mapping intervention acceptable, effective, and useful. This study adds to previous findings of contingency mapping as an effective intervention in reducing target behaviors in a classroom environment. It also extends prior research by applying it to a special education classroom for students with ASD.

ABSTRACT This study examines the efficacy of fully immersive virtual reality (VR) to teach pedestrian safety skills to children with autism spectrum disorder. Four autistic children who met inclusion criteria related to tolerance of VR equipment, absence of problem behavior, and limited baseline skills participated. Using VR with an omnidirectional treadmill, participants were taught safe pedestrian crossing across three traffic conditions: clear crossings, busy crossings, and crossings where a vehicle came to a stop. Through a concurrent multiple probe design, pedestrian skills taught in VR were assessed for generalization across both virtual environments (VEs) and natural environments (NEs). All participants acquired the target response within the virtual teaching environments, and three of four participants demonstrated generalization across VE and NE, supporting the efficacy of immersive VR for promoting safety and independence. The findings highlight VR’s potential as a low‐risk and customizable teaching environment capable of promoting real‐world skill generalization.

ABSTRACT As fluency in technology becomes more of a requirement in many fields, identifying an effective and efficient way to teach technology skills, such as spreadsheets, is necessary. In the field of behavior analysis, many studies assessed methods to teach graphing skills, but few have reported programming for or assessing generalization of these skills. One effective way to program for generalization is through general‐case procedures, which produces behavior change across a variety of stimuli and responses while requiring minimal training time. The current study used a nonconcurrent multiple‐baseline design across participants to assess the effects of general‐case procedures and computer‐based instruction on graph training in Excel and to program for and assess within and across‐category generalization of responding with undergraduate college students. These procedures resulted in generalized responding within and across stimuli and response categories for most participants. Future research should further evaluate the application of general‐case procedures outside of behavior analysis.