An Evaluation of Choice Responding during Assessment and Treatment of Problem Behavior

We used choice-making procedures during assessment and treatment with 2 preschool-aged children diagnosed with developmental disabilities who engaged in severe problem behavior in their homes. A functional analysis identified that the children’s problem behavior was maintained by both positive and negative reinforcement. A choice assessment was conducted to evaluate each child’s relative preference for positive reinforcement (attention, tangibles) or negative reinforcement within four choice conditions. Treatment for the children consisted of functional communication training (FCT) with and without an antecedent choice-making component (FCT + choice). Treatment results indicated that both children showed comparable reductions in problem behavior and increased compliance to parent instructions across treatment conditions. A component analysis of positive reinforcers was conducted to identify active treatment variables. Overall, the results of assessment showed that the choice procedures were useful for evaluating the relative influence of positive and negative reinforcement for children whose problem behavior was maintained by multiple sources of social reinforcement.