An Experimental Analysis of Aggression

Abstract

Iwata, Dorsey, Slifer, Bauman, and Richman developed an assessment method to identify the operant functions of self-injurious behavior. In this study, a similar method was used to assess the operant functions of aggression displayed by children and adolescents with developmental disabilities. Although previous research has shown that aggression is an operant behavior, there has been no comprehensive analysis of aggression using analog functional analysis method. Eight children and adolescents participated. The experimental conditions involved attention, escape, materials, no interaction, and control. Results for 7 of the 8 participants identified clear operant functions (positive or negative reinforcement) for aggression. For 1 child, subsequent analyses suggested that aggression was possibly sensitive to peer attention as reinforcement.

Effects of parent training on parent and child behavior using procedures based on functional analyses

“…In addition, the experimenters observed parent and child interactions to con®rm parental report of problem behavior correlates. Finally, each of the participants except Tabbatha participated in other studies involving analog functional analyses (Vollmer, Marcus, Ringdahl, & Roane, 1995;Marcus, Vollmer, Swanson, Roane, & Ringdahl, 2001). These preliminary procedures showed that Joe's and Joel's tantrums frequently occurred during demand situations, and their analog functional analyses con®rmed that escape was a reinforcer (Marcus et al, 2001).…”

“…Finally, each of the participants except Tabbatha participated in other studies involving analog functional analyses (Vollmer, Marcus, Ringdahl, & Roane, 1995;Marcus, Vollmer, Swanson, Roane, & Ringdahl, 2001). These preliminary procedures showed that Joe's and Joel's tantrums frequently occurred during demand situations, and their analog functional analyses con®rmed that escape was a reinforcer (Marcus et al, 2001). Roger's aggression was reinforced by contingent access to materials, such as preferred toys (Vollmer et al, 1995).…”

Experimental functional analysis of aggression in children with Angelman syndrome

“…Lovaas, Freitag, Gold & Kassorla, 1965;Oliver, Hall & Murphy, 2005). It has been suggested that aggression could be sensitive to positive reinforcement in the form of access to adult attention, peer attention and tangible items (Hawkins, Peterson, Schweid & Bijou, 1966;Patterson, Littman & Bricker, 1967) and Marcus, Vollmer, Swanson, Roane & Ringdahl (2001) provide empirical evidence that aggression in children with intellectual disabilities can be positively or negatively reinforced. Hanley, Iwata & McCord (2003) carried out a meta-analysis of the functional analysis of problem behavior, and found that an operant reinforcement process could be identified for 50 out of 52 studies that reported aggression in individuals with an intellectual disability .…”

Victim and peer group responses to different forms of aggression among primary school children

“…Thus a critical component of interventions that have successfully altered children's aggressive or anti-social behaviour has been the identification and removal of those consequences that reinforce the target behaviour [e.g., Broussard and Northup, 1997;DeLeon et al, 2000;Fowler et al, 1986;Marcus et al, 2001].…”