John Rapp
Auburn University, Psychology, Faculty Member
For practitioners, the use of single-case experimental designs (SCEDs) in the research literature raises an important question: How many single-case experiments are enough to have sufficient confidence that an intervention will be... more
For practitioners, the use of single-case experimental designs (SCEDs) in the research literature raises an important question: How many single-case experiments are enough to have sufficient confidence that an intervention will be effective with an individual from a given population? Although standards have been proposed to address this question, current guidelines do not appear to be strongly grounded in theory or empirical research. The purpose of our article is to address this issue by presenting guidelines to facilitate evidence-based decisions by adopting a simple statistical approach to quantify the support for interventions that have been validated using SCEDs. Specifically, we propose the use of success rates as a supplement to support evidence-based decisions. The proposed methodology allows practitioners to aggregate the results from single-case experiments to estimate the probability that a given intervention will produce a successful outcome. We also discuss consideratio...
Research Interests:
The effects of conjugate reinforcement on the responding of 13 college students were examined in three experiments. Conjugate reinforcement was provided via key presses that changed the clarity of pictures displayed on a computer monitor... more
The effects of conjugate reinforcement on the responding of 13 college students were examined in three experiments. Conjugate reinforcement was provided via key presses that changed the clarity of pictures displayed on a computer monitor in a manner proportional to the rate of responding. Experiment 1, which included seven parameters of clarity change per response, revealed that responding decreased as the percentage clarity per response increased for all five participants. These results indicate that each participant's responding was sensitive to intensity change, which is a parameter of conjugate reinforcement schedules. Experiment 2 showed that responding increased during conjugate reinforcement phases and decreased during extinction phases for all four participants. Experiment 3 also showed that responding increased during conjugate reinforcement and further showed that responding decreased during a conjugate negative punishment condition for another four participants. Directions for future research with conjugate schedules are briefly discussed.
Research Interests:
Research Interests:
Research Interests:
Research Interests:
We used a changing criterion design to evaluate the extent to which differential negative reinforcement of other behavior increased compliance with wearing a medical alert bracelet for a young boy with autism. Results showed the duration... more
We used a changing criterion design to evaluate the extent to which differential negative reinforcement of other behavior increased compliance with wearing a medical alert bracelet for a young boy with autism. Results showed the duration for which the participant wore the bracelet systematically increased across trials from 5 s to 7 hr over several weeks.
Research Interests:
We evaluated the effects of noncontingent reinforcement on rumination exhibited by a young boy with autism. Specifically, the percentage of time the boy engaged in post-meal rumination was measured under conditions when he did and did not... more
We evaluated the effects of noncontingent reinforcement on rumination exhibited by a young boy with autism. Specifically, the percentage of time the boy engaged in post-meal rumination was measured under conditions when he did and did not have noncontingent, continuous access to alternative oral stimulation via a chew toy. The results show that post-meal rumination was lower when the participant had noncontingent access to a chew toy than during baseline conditions (i.e., when the toy was absent). The results of a follow-up assessment suggest that the chew toy continued to compete with rumination after 8 months of intervention. These results are briefly discussed in terms of functionally matched stimulation and motivating operations. Rumination, the chronic regurgitation, rechewing, and reswal-lowing of previously ingested food, occurs most often in populations of individuals with developmental disabilities (Rast, Johnston, Ellinger, Allen, & Drum, 1985). Previous research has evalu...
We conducted a modified paired-choice preference assessment and used a multielement design to examine the effects of noncontingent access to high- and low-preference music on vocal stereotypy exhibited by children with autism. For 3 of... more
We conducted a modified paired-choice preference assessment and used a multielement design to examine the effects of noncontingent access to high- and low-preference music on vocal stereotypy exhibited by children with autism. For 3 of the 4 participants, high-preference music (a) produced lower levels of vocal stereotypy than low-preference music and (b) reduced vocal stereotypy when compared to a no-interaction condition. Results underscore the potential importance of assessing musical preference prior to using noncontingent music to reduce vocal stereotypy.
Research Interests:
The effects of noncontingent matched stimulation (NMS) and response blocking on a boy's stereotypic behavior were evaluated using a multiple schedule that contained three 15-min components (preintervention, intervention, and... more
The effects of noncontingent matched stimulation (NMS) and response blocking on a boy's stereotypic behavior were evaluated using a multiple schedule that contained three 15-min components (preintervention, intervention, and postintervention). Results showed that stereotypy was always higher after response blocking than before response blocking and was always lower after NMS than before NMS. These results suggest that response blocking may have produced deprivation for the product of stereotypy and that NMS may have provided stimulation that was similar to the product of stereotypy.
Research Interests:
Stereotypy is often characterized as repetitious, invariant behavior that generates its own reinforcing consequence. Stereotypy represents a unique treatment challenge, because the consequences produced by stereotypy cannot be directly... more
Stereotypy is often characterized as repetitious, invariant behavior that generates its own reinforcing consequence. Stereotypy represents a unique treatment challenge, because the consequences produced by stereotypy cannot be directly controlled by the practitioner. Likewise, practitioners have relatively few options for identifying the function of repetitive behavior. Recently, several researchers have been conducting empirical studies to address these issues. This article introduces a special issue presenting some of these recent developments in the assessment and treatment of stereotypy and related behavior.
Research Interests:
Functional analysis methods have become standard practice for determining the maintaining variables of problem behavior. The analysis of within-session response patterns has been proposed as a useful adjunct to the functional analysis.... more
Functional analysis methods have become standard practice for determining the maintaining variables of problem behavior. The analysis of within-session response patterns has been proposed as a useful adjunct to the functional analysis. Many within-session analyses have been conducted on data obtained from interval scoring methods. However, interval methods only provide an estimate of within-session data. The authors briefly describe a real-time recording method and provide a rationale for its use. The authors then provide descriptions of several research studies from their lab in which real-time data were crucial in determining behavioral function from experimental analyses.
Research Interests: Psychology, Functional Analysis, Behavior Modification, Psychometrics, Behavior, and 14 moreAdolescent, Humans, Child, Behavior Therapy, Female, Male, Interval Finte element method, Data Collection, Real Time, Adult, Real-Time Data Processing, Videotape Recording, Problem Behavior, and Physical Restraint
Research Interests:
Research Interests:
Research Interests:
Research Interests:
Page 1. Chapter 7 Characteristics of Trichotillomania Raymond G. Miltenberger North Dakota State University John T. Rapp University of Florida Ethan S. Long Kennedy Krieger Institute 1. INTRODUCTION Trichotillomania is ...
This study determined the percentage of presentations at the annual conference of the Association for Behavior Analysis in 2005 with the autism (AUT) and developmental disabilities (DDA) codes (N=880) that (a) provided continuing... more
This study determined the percentage of presentations at the annual conference of the Association for Behavior Analysis in 2005 with the autism (AUT) and developmental disabilities (DDA) codes (N=880) that (a) provided continuing education credits (CEs) for Board Certified Behavior Analysts (BCBAs) and Board Certified Assistant Behavior Analysts (BCaBAs) and (b) included content that was published in a peer-reviewed outlet. Results indicate that only 77 (8.8%) presentations were ultimately published. Although posters were not eligible for CEs, posters accounted for 57.1% of the published presentations. Specifically, posters presented by a university-affiliated presenter accounted for 44.2% of presentations with published content. As a whole, only 10.4% of AUT and DDA presentations offering CEs contained data sets that were published. Considered together, these results suggest that the content provided to BCBAs and BCaBAs for CEs may not be adequately measured or sufficiently rigorou...
Research Interests:
Research Interests:
Research Interests:
ABSTRACT We repeatedly paired preferred stimuli with known establishing properties and poster boards (i.e., neutral stimuli) to examine whether these poster boards would acquire the effects of a conditioned establishing operation in five... more
ABSTRACT We repeatedly paired preferred stimuli with known establishing properties and poster boards (i.e., neutral stimuli) to examine whether these poster boards would acquire the effects of a conditioned establishing operation in five children with autism. Following pairing, the poster boards, which had been previously shown to be neutral, increased immediate or subsequent engagement in stereotypy for three of five participants. The results suggest that it is possible to condition establishing operations for stereotypy and that this process may occur inadvertently. We discuss the potential clinical implications of the results, as well as the need for future research to replicate our findings.
Research Interests:
Research Interests:
Research Interests:
Research Interests:
Research Interests:
Research Interests:
Research Interests:
Research Interests:
Research Interests:
Research Interests:
The effects of preferred stimulation on the vocal stereotypy of 2 individuals were evaluated in two experiments. The results of Experiment 1 showed that (a) the vocal stereotypy of both participants persisted in the absence of social... more
The effects of preferred stimulation on the vocal stereotypy of 2 individuals were evaluated in two experiments. The results of Experiment 1 showed that (a) the vocal stereotypy of both participants persisted in the absence of social consequences, (b) 1 participant manipulated toys that did and did not produce auditory stimulation, but only sound-producing toys decreased his vocal stereotypy, and (c) only noncontingent music decreased vocal stereotypy for the other participant, but sterotypy paradoxically increased when toys were presented with music. Using a three-component multiple schedule, the results of Experiment 2 showed that the vocal stereotypy of both participants remained below preintervention levels following the removal of auditory stimulation and that 1 participant's vocal stereotypy increased following the removal of contingent reprimands. These patterns suggest that auditory stimulation functioned as an abolishing operation for vocal stereotypy and reprimands functioned as an establishing operation for vocal stereotypy. Together, the two experiments provide a method for identifying alternative stimulation that may substitute for automatically reinforced behavior.
Research Interests:
Research Interests:
Research Interests:
Research Interests:
Research Interests:
We analyzed and treated the finger sucking of 2 developmentally typical children aged 7 and 10 years. The functional analysis revealed that the finger sucking of both children was exhibited primarily during alone conditions, suggesting... more
We analyzed and treated the finger sucking of 2 developmentally typical children aged 7 and 10 years. The functional analysis revealed that the finger sucking of both children was exhibited primarily during alone conditions, suggesting that the behavior was maintained by automatic reinforcement. An extended analysis provided support for this hypothesis and demonstrated that attenuation of stimulation produced by the finger sucking resulted in behavior reductions for both children. Treatment consisted of having each child wear a glove on the relevant hand during periods when he or she was alone. Use of the glove produced zero levels of finger sucking for 1 participant, whereas only moderate reductions were obtained for the other. Subsequently, an awareness enhancement device was used that produced an immediate reduction in finger sucking.
Research Interests:
Research Interests:
Research Interests:
Research Interests:
The authors present a case study of an 8-year-old boy with autism who engaged in operant vomiting. Functional assessment indicated that vomiting persisted in the absence of social reinforcement. After interventions involving noncontingent... more
The authors present a case study of an 8-year-old boy with autism who engaged in operant vomiting. Functional assessment indicated that vomiting persisted in the absence of social reinforcement. After interventions involving noncontingent access to preferred items, differential reinforcement of other behavior (DRO), and DRO plus time out failed to produce clinically significant decreases in vomiting, we implemented a contingent
Research Interests:
EJ607713 - Simplified Habit Reversal Plus Adjunct Contingencies in the Treatment of Thumb Sucking and Hair Pulling in a Young Child.