The changing criterion design (CCD) has been a recognized format of single-case research for four decades. Published examples of the CCD have been limited and the structure of the design used in the literature has varied to a degree that might engender confusion. This review examines the structure of CCD studies published to date to identify prior implementation practices and identify best practices for future use.Keywords Single-case . Changing criterion design . Best practicesThe changing criterion design (CCD) utilizes step-wise benchmarks for manipulating a dimension (i.e., accuracy, frequency, duration, latency, or magnitude) of a single behavior already present in an individual's repertoire (Cooper et al. 2007). The design has been used with behaviors where an immediate, considerable increase or decrease may be difficult to achieve or undesired; therefore, gradual shifts toward a desired goal are applied.The CCD was first described in two books published in 1971: one a short description in a book by Hall, and the other a brief study reported by Weis and Hall which used the design to reduce daily cigarette smoking by a college student. A few subsequent studies utilized this design (i.e., Brown et al. 1974;Wallace and Davis 1974) prior to the seminal article by Hartmann and Hall (1976), which described the CCD in more detail and noted its similarity to a procedural description by Sidman (1960, pp. 254-256) in reference to the evaluation of irreversible behavior. Hartmann and Hall saw the CCD as a type of multiple baseline design that could be used with a shaping procedure. In response to the CCD as a multiple baseline design, Cooper et al. (2007) point out that the behavior being evaluated in a CCD is intentionally interdependent (unlike a multiple baseline design) which can lead to an exaggerated perception of experimental control. Conceptualizing this as an extension of the multiple baseline design adds confusion. Consequently, the CCD is best suited for the acceleration and deceleration of a behavior, but is versatile in the behaviors and populations it can be applied to. Despite this, the CCD has only rarely been mentioned as a research or intervention tool since Hartmann and Hall's article.Though not as experimentally robust as other designs (e.g., the multiple baseline design, which demonstrates experimental control through staggered, independent baselines), the CCD does achieve acceptable control through baseline logic and appropriate manipulation of design structure (see Table 1 for a simplified presentation of baseline logic of the CCD). With the CCD, a baseline serves as a measurement between the absence and presence of the independent variable, as do each criterion and its subsequent criterion. Therefore, when stable responding occurs at each step, (1) predictions about future responding can be made with each criterion, and (2) replications of intervention effect are observed repeatedly. Verification can be accomplished by varying the phase length or by reverting briefly to a previous cr...

The Word Reading Test (WRT) was designed to detect effort problems specific to a learning disability sample. The WRT and the Word Memory Test (WMT) were administered to two simulator and normal control groups. The WRT showed excellent receiver operating characteristics (e.g., 90% sensitivity and 100% positive predictive power) and outperformed the WMT in detecting both reading and mental speed simulators. This finding and a double dissociation between reading and speed simulators on WRT errors and reaction time suggested specific effort effects while poor effort of simulators on the WMT suggested general effort effects. Results are supportive of the WRT as a potential effort indicator in learning disability.

The Pyramids and Palm Trees Test (PPT) is a nonverbal measure of semantic memory that has been frequently used in previous aphasia, agnosia, and dementia research. Very little psychometric information regarding the PPT is available. The purpose of this study was to investigate the psychometric properties of the PPT in a population of healthy college students. Results indicated that the PPT achieved poor test-retest reliability, failed to obtain adequate internal consistency, and demonstrated poor convergent validity, but showed acceptable discriminant validity. The results of this study suggest that the PPT lacks acceptable reliability and validity for use with a college student population.

There is increased awareness in recent years of mental health challenges faced by children in rural schools. Although much of the media attention is on internalization disorders (e.g., depression and suicidal ideation), externalization disorders (e.g., oppositional defiant disorders, attention deficit disorders, and conduct disorders) are more commonly referred within rural districts. It is common for classroom teachers to deliver stickers to students for positive behavior that can be exchanged for larger rewards. It is also common for students to lose privileges based on marks for bad behavior. These procedures are similar to traditional token economy and response cost interventions. Most of the empirical support for these interventions is based on studies of individuals with disabilities in large cities near universities. This study compared the efficacy of token economies, response cost, and a combination condition implemented class-wide in two rural elementary school classrooms. The token economy was most effective in reducing problem classroom behaviors and increasing academic engagement compared with response cost and baseline. The combination condition produced outcomes similar to that of the token economy. Social validity measures were mixed, with some teacher support for response cost based on ease of implementation. Students and teachers, however, endorsed all approaches as beneficial for improving behavior.

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