Handbook Of Behavior Modification With The Mentally Retarded

The development of behavior modification principles and procedures and the ensuing research have had a dramatic impact on services for mentally re tarded persons. This book is the second edition of a volume that is designed to update readers on some of these many developments. Although many of the chapter titles and authors from the first edition remain unchanged, we have added additional chapters to reflect new areas of research. The book is thus a critical review of this literature and, as such, provides essential and important notions about what we know and what can be done to expand our current knowledge. The authors of the chapters are all recognized experts who have been active in publishing in the research areas they critique. As a result, they have a good understanding of what are the major issues in the field. And because they are also active in service provision to persons with identified handicaps, their material will be especially useful to practitioners and, it is hoped, to those_ professionals who are working in the field in estab lishing data-based treatments. One important change in the field has concerned the terminology used to We are aware that persons with mental retar describe handicapped persons. dation are no longer referred to as "the mentally retarded," and although no disrespect is intended, for the sake of continuity the original title has been retained on the advice of the publisher.

In this important book, one of the most exciting and promising developments in clinical psychology-behavior modification is applied to the treatment of the mentally retarded, particularly those whose behavior poses difficult problems for institutions. Professor Gardner presents an easily intelligible yet detailed account of the concepts and practices of behavior modification and the underlying learning systems, with numerous clinical illustrations of applying specific techniques to various educational and rehabilitation problems. A thorough discussion of the inadequacies of the psychological evaluation systems normally used in education and rehabilitation is offered, along with an alternative behavior analysis approach that provides a method of translating evaluation data into treatment practices. In explaining behavior analysis, the author takes into account the limited behavioral repertoire of the retarded and environmental deficits. Individual chapters on respondent, operant, and observational learning, and a detailed discussion of a functional analysis approach to evaluation, are included. Proven behavior modification strategies are presented along with a review of related research and clinical studies. The book closes with a detailed description of a research program for the design and testing of sheltered workshop systems for the retarded and emotionally disturbed. The positive approach inherent in the belief that behavior is modifiable-even in the severely limited retarded-is in marked contrast to the pessimism of other systems of therapy, education, and training. Also, the author has concentrated throughout on making the book understandable to clinicians and students with no previous knowledge of behavior modification. Besides serving as a valuable handbook for all treatment personnel, the book can also be used as a basic text for various courses dealing with mental retardation.

Mental retardation has probably existed for as long as mankind has inhabited the earth. References to seemingly retarded persons appear in Greek and Roman literature. Examination of Egyptian mummies suggests that some may have suffered from diseases associated with mental retardation. Mohammed advocated feeding and housing those without reason. There is other evidence for favorable attitudes toward the retarded in early history, but attitudes var ied from age to age and from country to country. The concept of remediation did not emerge until the nineteenth century. Earlier, in 1798, ltard published an account of his attempt to train the "wild boy of Aveyron." A rash of efforts to habilitate retarded persons followed. Training schools were developed in Europe and the United States in the 1800s; however, these early schools did not fulfill their promise, and by the end of the nineteenth century large, inhumane warehouses for retarded persons existed. The notion of habilitation through training had largely been abandoned and was not to reappear until after World War II.

It is well known that behavior problems are a salient characteristic of children and adults with mental retardation. That is not to say that all persons with mental retardation experience behavior disorders; how ever, most studies indicate that the incidence of emotional disturbance in this population is four to six times greater than that observed in similar intellectually nonhandicapped children and adults. It is equally well known that the principal form of treatment accorded clients with mental retardation and behavior disorders is pharmacotherapy or the prescrip tion of behavior modifying drugs. Recent studies show that 6 out of every 10 individuals with mental retardation have been prescribed drugs as treatment for disorders of emotion or behavior. Unfortunately, further studies indicate that only one or 2 out of every 10 clients receiving medication are determined to be "responders," such that some thera peutic benefit is derived from their drug treatment. As noted by the title, the single major thrust of this volume is to review approaches to the treatment of behavior disorders in persons with mental retardation from a nondrug perspective. This requires the presentation of a wide range of material on treatment: basic behavior modification programming, cognitive-behavioral strategies, habilitative approaches, counseling and psychotherapy, designing therapeutic living environments, managing medical factors bearing relevance to emotional illness, intervening with families, training special education teachers and direct care staff, and supplying information on the client's rights to obtain treatment in the least restrictive and least intrusive manner.

In this important book, one of the most exciting and promising developments in clinical psychology-behavior modification is applied to the treatment of the mentally retarded, particularly those whose behavior poses difficult problems for institutions. Professor Gardner presents an easily intelligible yet detailed account of the concepts and practices of behavior modification and the underlying learning systems, with numerous clinical illustrations of applying specific techniques to various educational and rehabilitation problems. A thorough discussion of the inadequacies of the psychological evaluation systems normally used in education and rehabilitation is offered, along with an alternative behavior analysis approach that provides a method of translating evaluation data into treatment practices. In explaining behavior analysis, the author takes into account the limited behavioral repertoire of the retarded and environmental deficits. Individual chapters on respondent, operant, and observational learning, and a detailed discussion of a functional analysis approach to evaluation, are included. Proven behavior modification strategies are presented along with a review of related research and clinical studies. The book closes with a detailed description of a research program for the design and testing of sheltered workshop systems for the retarded and emotionally disturbed. The positive approach inherent in the belief that behavior is modifiable-even in the severely limited retarded-is in marked contrast to the pessimism of other systems of therapy, education, and training. Also, the author has concentrated throughout on making the book understandable to clinicians and students with no previous knowledge of behavior modification. Besides serving as a valuable handbook for all treatment personnel, the book can also be used as a basic text for various courses dealing with mental retardation. William I. Gardner is Professor Emeritus in the Department of Rehabilitation Psychology and Special Education at the University of Wisconsin School of Education; Madison. Professor Gardner has contributed widely to psychology journals and has served on the staff of the President's Panel on Mental Retardation.