Behavioral Assessment and Treatment: An Overview

Abstract

This chapter begins by distinguishing radical behaviorism from other approaches to assessment. Behavioral assessment is characterized by identification of current environmental stimuli that control behavior including its establishing operations, discriminative stimuli, and consequences. Behavioral assessment has a long history and has been applied effectively to assess pica. The chapter describes treatment goals, ethics of treatment and assessment and risk assessment when working with pica. Finally, the chapter illustrates common behavioral treatments. These include environmental enrichment, skills training, differential reinforcement, over correction, verbal reprimands, restraint, visual screening, habit reversal, negative practice, response blocking various aversive stimuli, overcorrection, and pica safe materials.