Conspicuous by the their absence: Studies comparing and combining risperidone and applied behavior analysis to reduce challenging behavior in children with autism

Both risperidone, an atypical antipsychotic drug, and functionbased behavior-analytic interventions are popular and empirically validated treatments for reducing challenging behavior in children with autism. The kind of research that supports their effectiveness differs, however, and no published study has directly compared their effects or examined the two in combination. The research methods characteristic of applied behavior analysis may provide a useful basis for comparing the effects of risperidone and behavioranalytic treatments, alone and in combination, and researchers are encouraged to pursue this line of investigation. 2009 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved. * Corresponding author. Tel.: +1 269 387 4483; fax: +1 269 387 4550. E-mail address: [email protected] (A. Poling).