Assessment Of Preferences For Individuals With Severe Disabilities

Abstract

Identifying preferences for individuals with disabilities is a big challenge for behavior analysts, teachers, and parents. Some individuals with disabilities lack the ability to verbally communicate their likes and dislikes, or wants and needs on a daily basis. When a loved one or teacher mistakes an indication of preference and produces an undesirable stimulus, this frequently causes aberrant responses. For these reasons, it is important that an efficient means of identifying preferences for individuals with disabilities is devised. The following pages examine areas of research into the study of individual preferences for specific stimuli and the different means of assessing these preferences. This research will allow parents and teachers to implement interventions to combat challenging behaviors or develop workable programs that will allow all individuals to succeed in their lives.

Date of Award	2008
Original language	American English
Awarding Institution	Eastern Illinois University