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The purpose of this study was to determine if specific classroom antecedents were associated with motor and vocal tics in two males diagnosed with Tourette's syndrome. A functional assessment consisting of teacher and student interviews, direct observations, brief functional analysis, and confirmatory naturalistic observations indicated that specific antecedents could be identified for each participant. Simplified habit reversal was then implemented only under the antecedent condition that resulted in the highest rate of tics. The rate of tics decreased under the specific antecedent condition as well as at other times as validated by behavioral observations conducted at random times. The discussion focuses on the utility of conducting such assessments, the methodological and applied limitations of the current study, and avenues for further research.

In this study, parents were trained in four sessions to identify problems, conduct a functional assessment, and design an appropriate intervention based on the function of the problem behavior. First, parents were trained to operationally define problem behaviors, given examples of consequences, and discussed the functions of behavior. Second, parents were given examples of antecedents and discussed replacement behaviors. Third, procedures to increase appropriate behaviors were discussed. Fourth, procedures to decrease inappropriate behaviors were discussed. Prior to the first session and after each session, parents watched a videotaped vignette of a child exhibiting a behavior problem and completed a Problem Identification Questionnaire, Problem Analysis Questionnaire, and Intervention Design Questionnaire. A repeated-measures ANOVA was used to test for significant differences on each of the dependent variables. Results indicated that parents' scores on each of the measures improved significantly. Limitations, future research ideas, and implications for school psychologists and other professionals are discussed.

In this study, removal of a transitional object (pillow) was applied as the sole intervention for one of two siblings who sucked their thumbs. The intervention was applied only to the older sibling, whereas data were collected on the thumb sucking of both participants. Results indicated that removal of the transitional object for the older sibling reduced thumb sucking in both siblings and increased thumb sucking when the pillow was reintroduced. Discussion focuses on possible explanations for the effects of the intervention across both participants and the limitations of this study.

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