[tips] Re: Kansas punishment

[Tollefsrud, Linda]

Title: [tips] Re: Kansas punishment

Lovaas and his staff (and comparable programs) no longer use any punishment at all.  ABA staff try to avoid, if possible, even ever saying “no” since that seems to provoke negative behaviors.  The procedure is to simply provide reinforcements for more desirable behaviors and to wait for the injurious behaviors to subside.  (Of course, children who, for instance, are head-banging may wear tightly-fitting helmets to prevent injury in the meantime.)  Another technique is to reward a behavior that is incompatible with the undesirable behavior (clapping hands is, for instance, incompatible with face-slapping).   Another approach is to assume that the seemingly irrational self-injurious behaviors have a logical underpinning and to search for that.  A nonverbal child may be a head-banger because of some undiagnosed problem like migraine headaches, an abscessed tooth, etc.  There are other “sensory” interventions which are extremely popular but I am not convinced by the rationale and/or the supporting data (which are largely anecdotal).   Linda Tollefsrud, Ph.D. Professor of Psychology University of Wisconsin - Barron County 1800 College Drive Rice Lake, WI  54868 (715) 234 8176 ext. 5417 [EMAIL PROTECTED] From: Stuart McKelvie [mailto:[EMAIL PROTECTED] Sent: Wednesday, April 12, 2006 6:46 PM To: Teaching in the Psychological Sciences (TIPS) Subject: RE: [tips] Re: Kansas punishment   Linda wrote: The field of autism treatment has progressed a great deal in the last 30 years.  I think you would hard-pressed to find anyone currently in this area who uses or would advocate electric shock and/or strait jackets. I wonder if you could inform us how self-injurious behaviour is now dealt with - that is, reduced and even minimized?   Sincerely,   Stuart   ___________________________________________________________________   Stuart J. McKelvie, Ph.D.,           Phone: (819)822-9600, Extension 2402 Department of Psychology,              Fax: (819)822-9660 Bishop's University, Route 108 East, Borough of Lennoxville, Sherbrooke, Québec J1M 1Z7, Canada.   E-mail: [EMAIL PROTECTED]   Bishop's University Psychology Department Web Page: http://www.ubishops.ca/ccc/div/soc/psy --- To make changes to your subscription go to: http://acsun.frostburg.edu/cgi-bin/lyris.pl?enter=tips&text_mode=0&lang=english