In 2020 the Centers for Disease Control provided the public with recommendations to slow the spread of COVID‐19 by wearing a mask in the community. In the current study, experimenters coached group home staff via telehealth to implement synchronous schedules of reinforcement to increase mask wearing for 5 adults with intellectual and developmental disabilities. Results showed the intervention effectively increased mask wearing for all participants for up to 30 min. Additionally, some participants for whom we assessed generalization of mask wearing demonstrated generalization to various community environments. Furthermore, procedural integrity data suggested staff could be coached via telehealth to implement the intervention, and staff surveys suggested the procedures and coaching were socially valid.

A variable that may influence the outcomes of stimulus preference assessments (SPAs) is whether social interaction is provided during the stimulus access period. In Experiment 1, we compared the outcomes of a Solitary paired stimulus preference assessment (PSPA) (toys only), Social PSPA (toys plus social interaction), and Combined PSPA (toys alone and toys plus social interaction) to determine whether the addition of social interaction influenced preference for toys in preschool children. In Experiment 2, we conducted a concurrent‐operant reinforcer assessment to compare the reinforcing efficacy of stimuli with and without social interaction. Experiment 1 showed preference for toys was stable across assessments (Solitary and Social PSPAs) and most participants preferred toys plus social interaction when compared in a single assessment (Combined PSPA). Experiment 2 showed that results of the Combined PSPA in Experiment 1 predicted the outcome of most participants' reinforcer assessments.

Child development involves systematic changes across physical, cognitive, and psychosocial domains throughout the lifespan. Research on development has been instrumental in the advancement of screening and assessment tools; programs for prevention, education, and intervention; and public health initiatives. Basic and applied behavior‐analytic research has led to many advances in understanding the development of children across the lifespan, primarily by focusing on the laws or principles of behavior. Researchers who apply scientific methodology when conducting basic behavior‐analytic research engage in the study and identification of behavioral processes and principles that influence learning (i.e., skill acquisition). Human subject research has produced socially significant findings; however, as history has revealed, human subject research has also produced troubling ethical predicaments, violating basic human rights and putting subjects at physical and psychological risk. Ethical principles have shaped current research practices and provide a basis from which current ethical codes are derived. It is the duty of research organizations to create ethical codes of conduct applicable to their missions. Researchers have an obligation to not only develop but also adhere to current standards for ethical research. Furthermore, researchers are obligated to effectively teach ethical research to others, so as to increase compliance with ethical standards and protect human subjects.

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