Comparing resetting to non‐resetting DRO procedures to reduce stereotypy in a child with autism

Abstract

We compared a resetting to a non-resetting differential reinforcement of other behavior (DRO) procedure to reduce stereotypy exhibited by young boy with autism. During the resetting DRO, a reinforcer was delivered contingent upon the absence of stereotypy during the DRO interval. If stereotypy occurred, the DRO interval was immediately reset. The non-resetting DRO procedure was identical, except that contingent upon stereotypy, the DRO interval continued until it expired; a new DRO interval then began.Results indicate that the DRO procedures were equally effective to reduce stereotypy, but the participant preferred the resetting DRO procedure.

A comparison of RIRD within chained and multiple schedules in the treatment of vocal stereotypy

“…Although it is best practice to provide alternative sources of reinforcement when a behavior is targeted for reduction, there could be benefit in evaluating these contingencies in isolation before combining them. There is support in the literature for the use of DRO (Gerhman et al, 2017; Neil & Jones, 2016) and DRA (Brogan et al, 2018; Hedquist & Roscoe, 2020) to reduce stereotypy, and the chained schedule without RIRD (i.e., DRA and DRO contingencies only) was effective for Kurt. Future research should involve continued evaluation of a) the necessity of using punishment when decreasing automatically maintained behavior and b) whether the effectiveness of chained schedules without RIRD can be maintained under leaner reinforcement schedules.…”

Assessment and treatment of escape from attention in the form of conversation

“…Phase 3 was similar to Phase 2, with the exception that whenever Tyson demonstrated the FCR for escape from attention, he was told, “Ok, you will have to wait 2 min” while presented with a countdown timer. If problem behavior occurred, the experimenter blocked and reset the interval; that is, Tyson had to demonstrate appropriate behavior for 2 consecutive min to escape from attention (i.e., resetting differential reinforcement of other behavior procedure; Gehrman, Wilder, Forton, & Albert, 2017). The experimenter talked continuously during this time interval to increase tolerance for attention in the form of conversation.…”

Effects of auditory stimulation on stereotypy displayed by individuals with neurodevelopmental disorders: A response to Schwartz, Ayres, and Douglas (2017)

“…Cook, Rapp, Gomes, Frazer, and Lindblad () showed that an adolescent female with ASD displayed high levels of body rocking and low levels of hand flapping when music was present. Likewise, Gehrman, Wilder, Forton, and Albert () found that a 6‐year‐old male with ASD displayed hand flapping when he had access to TV or videos. Both studies decreased their respective participant's motor stereotypy using interventions that were provided in the presence of auditory stimulation.…”