Body Experiences of Persons who are Congenitally Blind: A Phenomenological-Psychological Study

The aim of this qualitative-interpretive, phenomenological-psychological study was to discover the essential dimensions (distinctive features) of the body experiences of congenitally blind people. The information was obtained through semi structured interviews, consisting of open-ended questions, to which the subjects could reply freely and at length. Of the various forms of body experiences mentioned in the interviews, three are discussed in this article: the functional body, the objectified body, and the identity-creating body.

Positive Reinforcement Interventions in the Classroom

Positive reinforcement procedures represent a non-aversive treatment strategy for the management of behavior disorders of developmentally handicapped persons. However, very few studies describe the way reinforcement methods can be applied to the management problems of individuals with vision impairments. This article presents two studies in which positive reinforcement programs were utilized to treat the aggressive and noncompliant behavior of visually impaired, multiply handicapped students within special education classrooms. The reinforcement interventions were extremely effective with both groups of students and, in one case, produced substantial generalization to a non-treated problem behavior.

Differential Reinforcement to Reduce Disruptive Behaviors in a Blind Boy with a Learning Disability

Differential reinforcement of low rates of responding was used to reduce the disruptive behaviors of a blind boy with a learning disability. The number of disruptive behaviors that the boy could not exceed in any given day to earn reinforcements was established. If the subject did not exceed the established criterion, he was given access to reinforcers at the end of the school day. An overall 88 percent reduction was observed in the target behaviors across a 26-day period.

Behavioral Treatment of Aggression and Self-Injury in Developmentally Disabled, Visually Handicapped Students

Management problems are often encountered among developmentally disabled populations. The authors describe behavior modification treatment procedures that were applied by direct-care staff in a residential school to control severe aggression and self-injury in two developmentally disabled, visually handicapped students. In one case, the aggressive and self-injurious behaviors of an 11-year-old with vision and hearing deficits were reduced by positive-practice overcorrection. In the other, a blind adolescent's self-injurious behavior was eliminated by a combination of restitutional overcorrection, verbal command, and response-immobilization techniques. The practicality of applying behavioral treatment procedures in educational settings for visually handicapped students is discussed.

Gifted students and behavior modification

Research in the use of behavior modification with gifted students was conducted through computer searches and a review of the literature. The small number of studies using behavior modification with gifted students was noted. Among the various recommendations and conclusions made by the reviewer were that behavior modifications be used with gifted underachievers, the disadvantaged gifted, the culturally different gifted students, the maladjusted gifted students, and other academically gifted students in order to eliminate their maladaptive behaviors and to develop and strengthen their adaptive behaviors. Further recommendations were that behavior modification be used with greater frequency and at an earlier age with the academically gifted, that it be used to enhance the unique attributes of all the gifted, that it be used to teach research techniques to the gifted to make them more independent of low capability teachers, and that it be used with the culturally different to motivate them intellectually outside their hostile environment.