Behavior Analysis

VIGNETTE 6.1 Sally and Cris, both supervised by Nicole, work with a 12-year-old boy with autism. Both recently finished their first graduate-level course in behavior analysis, titled Principles of Applied Behavior Analysis. Sally excelled in the class, whereas Cris struggled, but passed. During a session, right after a break and immediately before working on tasks, the client has been asking lots of questions that sometimes relate to the task and sometimes do not. Nicole has noticed that the client is not meeting his goals during these sessions and things are running longer than expected. During the supervision meeting, after observing a session, Nicole says, “It looks to me like he is asking a ton of questions; it’s a clear case of negative reinforcement. I suggest you implement a differential reinforcement procedure to redirect him to work more quickly.” Sally begins to place the client’s questions on extinction by not looking his way or answering any questions until he orients and moves toward the task. She then answers his task-related questions, briefly, when he is oriented toward the task and more so as he engages with the teaching session. In contrast, Cris does not answer any of the client’s questions and explains to him that he has to begin working. The client repeatedly asks Cris, “Why?” In turn, Cris responds, “You need to be working now and I am not answering questions.” Needless to say, Nicole notices that during sessions with Sally, the client is making better progress than he is with Cris