The home environments and mother-child interactions of a language-delayed group and a matched control group of normal preschool children were assessed using the Caldwell Inventory of Home Stimulation. Twenty language-delayed children were defined by a discrepancy between their Stanford-Binet, language-based, IQ score and their Leiter, non-language-based, IQ score, and by a language evaluation. Children in both groups were distributed across all socioeconomic strata. The languagedelayed group had significantly lower scores in five of the six subcategories of the Caldwell. Greatest differences were found in the involvement and responsiveness of the mother and in her avoidance of restriction and punishment. Low Caldwell scores were found through the socioeconomic strata, indicating that language delay had a stronger influence on mother-child relationship than did socioeconomic factors.

Stimulus fading techniques were compared to those of contingency management in the treatment of a 6-yr-old, electively mute girl. Experimental periods consisted of the mother rewarding the child for verbal and motor responses to scheduled tasks, while a stranger slowly entered the room and then gradually administered the task items as mother left the room. A timeout contingency for non-response to task items was also employed. Control periods consisted of a stranger administering the same tasks to the child under the same contingencies but without the presence of the mother or the use of stimulus fading. Experimental and control periods were alternated during each treatment hour. The stimulus fading procedure was found to be a necessary component of the treatment process. While the timeout contingency for non-response was found to facilitate treatment if combined with stimulus fading, it was completely ineffective without the stimulus fading.The term "elective or selective mute" refers to a person who will speak only in restricted stimulus settings. Usually, an electively mute child will exhibit adequate verbal behavior with its family in the home setting but will remain silent in the presence of other persons outside the home. Stimulus control refers to the extent to which the presence or absence of a stimulus controls the probability of a response. For electively mute children, verbal behavior is under the strong stimulus control of their parents and family. In the past, these children were considered extremely difficult to treat (Reed, 1963

Drug versus placebo effects were contrasted with those of contingency management in the treatment of a hyperactive child. Several criterion behaviors were monitored in two different settings to gauge the breadth and generalizability of drug and behavior-management effects. Medication and contingency management effects were both found to be situation specific. No interaction effects were found. Accuracy of task performance, amount of eye contact with the experimenters, frequency of repetitive hand movements, and distractible behavior were apparently unaffected by medication (Ritalin versus placebo) within the clinic. A multiple-baseline design incorporating contingency reversals revealed the reinforcement contingencies to be the crucial variable controlling behavior within the clinic. Medication effects were shown to be significant within the home setting where reinforcement contingencies were not changed. While aggressive behavior decreased as a function of Ritalin, repetitive hand movements increased.

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