You learned about the skill acquisition strategies of shaping and chaining, as well as the antecedent modification that can be used to prevent the expression of unwanted behavior. Shaping is a strategy used to develop a skill that is currently not in the client’s repertoire. It is a stand-alone behavior that is shaped from an elementary form to the final, desired terminal form — the ultimate skill topography. The chaining procedure can be used to break down a complex skill in which the client has some experience into smaller, teachable components. Developing proficiency in each component, and joining them in sequence, results in skill proficiency in a specific task. These acquisition programs can be utilized to train a variety of behaviors, including routines of daily living, such as brushing teeth, dressing, bathing, making a bed, and loading a dishwasher — and the list goes on and on. In addition to these acquisition strategies, you explored the antecedent modification procedures of non-contingent reinforcement, high-probability (high-p) request sequences, and functional communication training (FCT). These antecedent modification approaches are applied to prevent unwanted behaviors and to bring about desired responses. Read(Transcripts) Read the following scenario. Setting the Scene: Freddie is a 7-year old second grader. He was diagnosed with autism when he was 2 years old. Freddie has a loving family that consists of his mother, father, and two older brothers. Recently, Freddie woke up in the middle of the night in terrible pain — it was a severe toothache. His parents took him to a pediatric dentist, Dr. Jim, who told them that Freddie had an abscess of his second molar of the right upper jaw. Thankfully, this was a baby tooth and would have been lost by, at the latest, 12 years of age. The parents explained that Freddie is very resistant to brushing his teeth, or even having his parents brush his teeth. They expressed great concern about his health and the impact his oral hygiene would have. Dr. Jim told Freddie’s parents that he had seen many cases just like Freddie’s and that he always refers his patients who have this “resistance” to a BCBA who designs individualized skill acquisition programs to increase independence in brushing teeth, as well as reduce the resistance. Freddie’s parents were thrilled to learn that there is this type of help available to them — for Freddie’s oral hygiene and other activities of daily life with which Freddie struggles. This could help Freddie in so many ways! Discussion: Explain the skill acquisition procedures of shaping and chaining. Discuss the role of differential reinforcement (DR) in the shaping procedure. Discuss the role of the task analysis in the chaining procedure. What is the rationale for using each of these procedures? Describe a teeth-brushing chaining procedure for Freddie. Include a complete task analysis. Discuss a chaining procedure (forward chaining, backward chaining, or total task chaining) for this procedure and explain the steps in the procedure with regard to Freddie’s teeth-brushing chain.