Problem Behavior Assessment and Intervention in IDEA Part C Services

January 20, 2026 updated by: Stephanie Gerow, University of Nevada, Las Vegas

Problem Behavior Assessment and Intervention in IDEA Part C Services: A Single-Case Study

The purpose of this study is to evaluate the effect of function-based assessment and intervention to reduce problem behavior in children with developmental disability or delay in the context of IDEA Part C services. The investigators will conduct a single-case study to evaluate the efficacy of the intervention.

Study Overview

Status

Recruiting

Conditions

Intervention / Treatment

Study Type

Interventional

Enrollment (Estimated)

9

Phase

  • Not Applicable

Contacts and Locations

This section provides the contact details for those conducting the study, and information on where this study is being conducted.

Study Contact

Study Locations

  • United States
    • Nevada
      • Las Vegas, Nevada, United States, 89154
        • Recruiting
        • University of Nevada Las Vegas
        • Contact:

Participation Criteria

Researchers look for people who fit a certain description, called eligibility criteria. Some examples of these criteria are a person's general health condition or prior treatments.

Eligibility Criteria

Ages Eligible for Study

  • Child

Accepts Healthy Volunteers

Yes

Description

Child Inclusion Criteria:

  • age birth to 5 years old
  • has a developmental disability or delay based on caregiver report and/or receiving early intervention services
  • has problem behavior, as reported by the caregiver and/or early intervention professional

Caregivers (e.g., parent, grandparent) of eligible child participants will participate with their child as the implementer of all procedures.

An early intervention professional will participate with each caregiver-child dyad to coach the caregiver, in addition to the researcher.

Study Plan

This section provides details of the study plan, including how the study is designed and what the study is measuring.

How is the study designed?

Design Details

  • Primary Purpose: Treatment
  • Allocation: N/A
  • Interventional Model: Single Group Assignment
  • Masking: None (Open Label)

Arms and Interventions

Participant Group / Arm
Intervention / Treatment
Experimental: Intervention
Following baseline (i.e., no intervention/business as usual) sessions, children will receive the intervention, consisting of a function-based intervention. This intervention will be implemented by the caregiver. The intervention will consist of teaching the child an alternative, appropriate skill (usually communication) to replace the problem behavior. The caregiver will provide reinforcement for the appropriate skill and no reinforcement (i.e., extinction) following problem behavior. The caregiver will also learn and use general strategies for teaching social-emotional skills (e.g., setting appropriate rules) as part of the intervention.
Behavioral: Function-based assessment and intervention
This intervention will be implemented by the caregiver. The intervention will consist of teaching the child an alternative, appropriate skill (usually communication) to replace the problem behavior. The caregiver will provide reinforcement for the appropriate skill and no reinforcement (i.e., extinction) following problem behavior. The caregiver will also learn and use general strategies for teaching social-emotional skills (e.g., setting appropriate rules) as part of the intervention.

What is the study measuring?

Primary Outcome Measures

Outcome Measure
Measure Description
Time Frame
Problem Behavior
Time Frame: The investigators plan to conduct approximately weekly observations, with a total of 15 observations.
The investigators will conduct 5-min observations and record the frequency of the child's problem behavior (e.g., aggression, self-injury, screaming) during each session. The specific problem behavior(s) recorded will be defined individually by participant.
The investigators plan to conduct approximately weekly observations, with a total of 15 observations.

Secondary Outcome Measures

Outcome Measure
Measure Description
Time Frame
Appropriate Behavior
Time Frame: The investigators plan to conduct approximately weekly observations, with a total of 15 observations.
The investigators will conduct 5-min observations and record the frequency of the child's appropriate behavior (e.g., communication) during each session. The specific appropriate behavior(s) recorded will be defined individually by child participant.
The investigators plan to conduct approximately weekly observations, with a total of 15 observations.

Collaborators and Investigators

This is where you will find people and organizations involved with this study.

Sponsor

University of Nevada, Las Vegas

Collaborators

Institute of Education Sciences

Study record dates

These dates track the progress of study record and summary results submissions to ClinicalTrials.gov. Study records and reported results are reviewed by the National Library of Medicine (NLM) to make sure they meet specific quality control standards before being posted on the public website.

Study Major Dates

Study Start (Actual)

September 30, 2025

Primary Completion (Estimated)

May 1, 2027

Study Completion (Estimated)

May 1, 2027

Study Registration Dates

First Submitted

June 24, 2024

First Submitted That Met QC Criteria

January 9, 2025

First Posted (Actual)

January 13, 2025

Study Record Updates

Last Update Posted (Actual)

January 22, 2026

Last Update Submitted That Met QC Criteria

January 20, 2026

Last Verified

January 1, 2026

More Information

Terms related to this study

Keywords

Additional Relevant MeSH Terms

Other Study ID Numbers

  • UNLV-2024-418

Drug and device information, study documents

Studies a U.S. FDA-regulated drug product

No

Studies a U.S. FDA-regulated device product

No

product manufactured in and exported from the U.S.

No

This information was retrieved directly from the website clinicaltrials.gov without any changes. If you have any requests to change, remove or update your study details, please contact register@clinicaltrials.gov. As soon as a change is implemented on clinicaltrials.gov, this will be updated automatically on our website as well.

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