Ringdahl, J. E., Vollmer, T. R., Marcus, B. A., & Roane, H. S. (1997).
An analogue evaluation of environmental enrichment: The role of stimulus preference.
Journal of Applied Behavior Analysis,
30, 203-216.
To evaluate the effects of environmental enrichment on
stereotypic self-injurious behavior (SIB), we conducted an
assessment of preference for manipulating alternative stimuli
rather than engaging in SIB. First, for each of 3 participants, a
functional analysis of SIB was conducted in Phase 1. Participants
were selected for Phase 2 if the functional analysis showed that
SIB persisted in the absence of social consequences. In Phase 2,
a preference assessment was conducted in which participants were
observed manipulating preferred stimuli in a free-operant format.
A measure was taken of time spent manipulating each stimulus and
time spent engaging in SIB. In Phase 3, environmental enrichment
was evaluated using stimuli that were preferred over the target
response, and alternative treatments were evaluated in the event
of environmental enrichment failure. Results suggested that the
free-operant preference assessment (a) predicted the efficacy or
inefficacy of an environmental enrichment procedure and (b)
suggested possible treatment alternatives when environmental
enrichment was ineffective. Collectively, the results may provide
a basis for interpreting the idiosyncratic effects of
environmental enrichment and a rationale for treatment selection
when behavioral function is unknown.
DESCRIPTORS: functional anlysis, environmental enrichment,
automatic reinforcement, self-injurious behavior, developmental
disabilities