Stimulus control of stereotypic responding: effects on target and collateral behavior

Area of Science:

• Behavioral Psychology
• Applied Behavior Analysis
• Intellectual Disability Research

Background:

• Stereotypic behaviors are common in individuals with profound intellectual disability.
• Understanding stimulus control is crucial for developing effective interventions.
• Previous research highlights the need for precise behavioral control techniques.

Purpose of the Study:

• To establish inhibitory stimulus control over stereotypic responding in two adults with profound intellectual disability.
• To investigate the effectiveness of discrimination training with overcorrection.
• To analyze generalization of inhibitory control and its effects on collateral behaviors.

Main Methods:

• Utilized a discrimination training paradigm with an overcorrection technique.
• Employed a light-based stimulus (five-light series) to signal punishment and nonpunishment contingencies.
• Implemented a multiple-baseline design to record target and non-target stereotypies.
• Assessed generalization of inhibition through tests across all stimulus lights.

Main Results:

• Established clear inhibitory stimulus control over the target stereotypic behavior.
• Obtained steep generalization gradients, indicating precise discrimination between safe and unsafe conditions.
• Observed significant increases in nonpunished stereotypies as the target behavior decelerated.
• Documented orderly generalization gradients for collateral behaviors.

Conclusions:

• Discrimination training with overcorrection can effectively establish inhibitory stimulus control in individuals with profound intellectual disability.
• Individuals can learn to discriminate between conditions, leading to sharp behavioral changes.
• Interventions targeting specific stereotypies may influence other behaviors, necessitating careful collateral behavior monitoring.