Description of the Strategy

Behavioral problems in adults with mental health and/or developmental disabilities are a primary causative factor in the exclusion of these individuals with challenges from mainstream education, leisure, employment, and independent-living opportunities. While interventions based on the principles of applied behavior analysis have, for the most part, been effective in remediating behavioral difficulties, implementation of these procedures can be both time-consuming and unreliable.

Shadowing is a strategy developed to help program staff consistently implement behavior change programs. The technique is defined by its most salient characteristic, the provision of a mediator to provide extra support to a challenged individual, typically, but not necessarily, in the form of 1:1 training and supervision. In practice, shadowing encompasses a process [Page 529]of observation, ...