Vaughn, B. J., & Horner, R. H. (1997).
Identifying instructional tasks that occasion problem behaviors and assessing the effects of student versus teacher choice among these tasks.
Journal of Applied Behavior Analysis,
30, 299-312.
Levels of problem behavior were assessed when 4 students with
severe disabilities received instruction on preferred versus
nonpreferred tasks and when tasks of each type were chosen by the
teacher rather than by the student. In Phase 1, interview and
direct observation assessments were conducted to identify
relative preferences for academic tasks. In Phase 2, the effects
of these lower preference and higher preference tasks on the rate
of problem behavior were evaluated using a multielement design.
The results showed that lower preference tasks were associated
with higher rates of problem behaviors and that students, when
given a choice, consistently selected the tasks that had been
identified through interview and direct observation as higher
preference. In Phase 3, we assessed whether allowing the students
to choose between pairs of lower preference tasks or between
pairs of higher preference tasks reduced problem behavior
relative to a condition in which the teacher selected the same
tasks. For 2 of 4 students, the rates of problem behavior were
lower when students (rather than the teacher) selected the lower
preference activity. Higher preference tasks for 3 students were
associated with relatively low rates of problem behavior
regardless of whether the student or the teacher selected the
task.
DESCRIPTORS: problem behavior, choice, functional assessment