Abstract
Research is increasingly demonstrating the importance of monitoring indices of happiness as part of behavioral programs for individuals who have severe intellectual disabilities. We evaluated a practitioner-oriented process for identifying and validating individualized indices of this private event among three adults with autism who were nonvocal or minimally vocal. Caregiver surveys were administered to obtain agreement regarding behavior displayed when the individuals were happy and unhappy, as well as situations in which they were likely to experience happiness and unhappiness. Observations corroborated caregiver opinion in that participants displayed more happiness indices in situations reported to be accompanied by happiness, and for the most part, more unhappiness indices in reported unhappiness situations. Subsequent choices by each participant supported the validity of the individualized indices. Results are discussed regarding how identifying happiness indices can be a useful component of behavioral applications, as well as guidelines and cautions regarding use of the indices in routine practice.
Article PDF
Similar content being viewed by others
Avoid common mistakes on your manuscript.
References
Bailey, J. S., & Burch, M. R. (2002). Research methods in applied behavior analysis. Thousand Oaks, CA: Sage Publications.
Carr, E. G. (2007). The expanding vision of positive behavior support: Research perspectives on happiness, helpfulness, hopefulness. Journal of Positive Behavior Interventions, 9, 3–14.
Charlop, M. H., & Walsh, M. E. (1986). Increasing autistic children’s spontaneous verbalizations of affection: An assessment of time delay and peer modeling procedures. Journal of Applied Behavior Analysis, 19, 307–314.
Dillon, C. M., & Carr, J. E. (2007). Assessing indices of happiness and unhappiness in individuals with developmental disabilities: A review. Behavioral Interventions, 22, 229–244.
Dunlap, G., & Koegel, R. L. (1980). Motivating autistic children through stimulus variation. Journal of Applied Behavior Analysis, 13, 619–627.
Felce, D. W., & Perry, J. (1995). Quality of life: Its definition and measurement. Research in Developmental Disabilities, 16, 51–74.
Fisher, W., Piazza, C. C., Bowman, L. G., Hagopian, L. P., Owens, J. C., & Slevin, I. (1992). A comparison of two approaches for identifying reinforcers for persons with severe and profound disabilities. Journal of Applied Behavior Analysis, 25, 491–498.
Green, C. W., & Reid, D. H. (1996). Defining, validating, and increasing indices of happiness among people with profound multiple disabilities. Journal of Applied Behavior Analysis, 29, 67–78.
Green, C. W., & Reid, D. H. (1999). Reducing indices of unhappiness among individuals with profound multiple disabilities during therapeutic exercise routines. Journal of Applied Behavior Analysis, 32, 137–148.
Green, C. W., Reid, D. H., Rollyson, J. H., & Passante, S. C. (2005). An enriched teaching program for reducing resistance and indices of unhappiness among individuals with profound multiple disabilities. Journal of Applied Behavior Analysis, 38, 221–233.
Ivancic, M. T. (2000). Stimulus preference and reinforcer assessment applications. In J. Austin & J. E. Carr (Eds.), Handbook of applied behavior analysis (pp. 19–38). Reno, NV: Context Press.
Lattimore, L. P., Parsons, M. B., & Reid, D. H. (2007, May). Identifying and validating indices of happiness and unhappiness among nonvocal adults with autism. In D.H. Reid (Chair), Enhancing quality of life among people with severe disabilities and their support staff. Symposium conducted at the 2007 Association for Behavior Analysis Annual Convention. San Diego, CA.
Lindauer, S. E., DeLeon, I. G., & Fisher, W. W. (1999). Decreasing signs of negative affect and correlated self-injury in an individual with mental retardation and mood disturbances. Journal of Applied Behavior Analysis, 32, 103–106.
McTernan, M., & Ward, N. (2005). Outcomes that matter: Parents’ perspectives. Mental Retardation, 43, 14–220.
Moore, K., Delaney, J. A., & Dixon, M. R. (2007). Using indices of happiness to examine the influence of environmental enhancements for nursing home residents with Alzheimer’s Disease. Journal of Applied Behavior Analysis, 40, 541–544.
Powers, M. D. (2000). What is autism? In M. D. Powers (Ed.), Children with autism: A parents’ guide (pp. 1–44). Bethesda, MD: Woodbine House.
Reid, D. H., & Green, C. W. (2006). Life enjoyment, happiness, & antecedent behavior support. In J. K. Luiselli (Ed.), Antecedent assessment & intervention: Supporting children & adults with developmental disabilities in community settings (pp. 249–268). Baltimore: Brookes Publishing.
Reid, D. H., Parsons, M. B., Towery, D., Lattimore, L. P., Green, C. W., & Brackett, L. (2007). Identifying work preferences among supported workers with severe disabilities: Efficiency and accuracy of a preference-assessment protocol. Behavioral Interventions, 22, 279–296.
Schalock, R. L. (Ed.). (1997). Quality of life: Vol. II. Application to persons with disabilities. Washington, DC: American Association on Mental Retardation.
Sigafoos, J., & Dempsey, R. (1992). Assessing choice making among children with multiple disabilities. Journal of Applied Behavior Analysis, 25, 747–755.
Smith, A. J., Bihm, E. M., Tavkar, P., & Sturmey, P. (2005). Approach-avoidance and happiness indicators in natural environments: A preliminary analysis of the Stimulus Preference Coding System. Research in Developmental Disabilities, 26, 297–313.
Toole, L. M., Bowman, L. G., Thomason, J. L., Hagopian, L. P., & Rush, K. S. (2003). Observed increases in positive affect during behavioral treatment. Behavioral Interventions, 18, 35–42.
Author information
Authors and Affiliations
Corresponding author
Rights and permissions
About this article
Cite this article
Parsons, M.B., Reid, D.H., Bentley, E. et al. Identifying Indices of Happiness and Unhappiness Among Adults With Autism: Potential Targets for Behavioral Assessment and Intervention. Behav Analysis Practice 5, 15–25 (2012). https://doi.org/10.1007/BF03391814
Published:
Issue Date:
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/BF03391814