ABSTRACT
This chapter focuses on the learning basis for problem behavior areas. It argues that work behaviors, academic skills, social skills, verbal behaviors, and emotional behaviors are all acquired and maintained in terms of a common set of learning principles. The mentally retarded, influenced by the same set of learning variables that influence and control much of the behavior of all humans, can experience a wide range of learning difficulties and deficits. The treatment or behavior change approach is an educational one. If a person is experiencing difficulty, he is presenting symptoms of a poor educational experience. The retarded may exhibit too much behavior in terms of general environmental requirements. Excessive behavior patterns are quite likely to be labeled as deviant or pathological by the social environment. Because of the apparent visibility of such behaviors, it is easy to notice conflict with or deviation from standards of conduct.
