Abstract

Functional assessment, and function-based treatments, are the gold standard for the treatment of problem behavior. Historically, these assessment and treatment evaluations have been conducted in austere clinical settings to increase internal validity. While prioritizing internal validity is critical in the initial stages of a treatment evaluation, if there is not an eventual shift to prioritizing the external or social validity of the treatment it may inevitably fail in the natural environment. The purpose of this case example is to outline a socially valid approach to the assessment and treatment of problem behavior that ensures individuals’ and their families’ lives benefit in meaningful ways. More specifically, this case-example will outline a method of prioritizing social validity to identify treatment goals, conduct functional analysis, evaluate and generalize treatment, and implement caregiver training.

Abstract

Although behavioral interventions are powerful tools for parents and teachers, they are unlikely to result in lasting change if the intervention agents find them unacceptable. After developing effective behavior intervention plans for classroom use, we compared social validity of those interventions using three measures: concurrent-chains selections from the intervention consumer (students), verbal report of the intervention agent (teachers), and maintenance of the intervention over time. All three measures of social validity identified an intervention that was acceptable to the intervention consumer and intervention delivery agent. These findings are discussed in terms of applied implications for assessing social validity.