Effects of a screening procedure on pica and collateral behaviors

Pica, the ingestion of inedible objects, and several collateral behaviors of a profoundly retarded woman were measured before, during and after the application of a screening contingency for pica. A variant of visual screening, blindfold, was used. Inedible objects were removed from the subject's mouth, but not her hand, during both baseline and treatment. During treatment each occurrence of pica resulted in the covering of the subject's eyes with a blindfold for 1 min. Pica was rapidly suppressed as the treatment was introduced sequentially in each of three settings in a multiple baseline design. It was further reduced to near-zero levels during later ward-wide maintenance and follow-up. Antecedents of pica, picking and handling inedible objects, also decreased to low levels without receiving special attention. Other untreated collateral behaviors, stereotypy, destructive and aggressive behaviors and social interactions with staff and other residents, which occurred at various levels initially, showed generally positive changes although these were sometimes small.