Brett R Kuhn

University of Nebraska Medical Center | UNMC · Department of Psychology

Introduction: Introduction Sleep disturbances are common in adolescents with neurodevelopmental disorders (NDDs). Inclusion of vulnerable populations such as adolescents with NDDs into sleep intervention efforts is essential as they are at high-risk for poor physical/mental health outcomes. The objective of this study is to pilot a sequential, mult...

There is compelling evidence to support behavioral interventions as the first-line approach for bedtime resistance in young children. Among the behavioral treatment options, extinction (“cry it out”) has the most extensive empirical support and tends to produce the most rapid gains. There are well known problems with the use of extinction, however,...

Note: The American Psychological Association (APA) and the American Academy of Pediatrics (AAP) recently came out publicly against all disciplinary spanking, relying primarily on only one of three statistical summaries of relevant scientific studies published since 2004. This analysis compares the conclusions of all three summaries and now adds mor...

This study evaluated the effectiveness of Bedtime Fading with Response Cost (BFRC) in decreasing sleep disturbances in children with Autism Spectrum Disorder (ASD) using parents as change agents by implementing treatment in the home environment. A non-concurrent multiple baseline design across three participants was used. Results indicate that BFRC...

The original version of this article unfortunately contained errors. The errors induced during the production process are corrected. The correct keywords, figures and tables are given below.

This study investigated the relationship between nightmares and anxiety in young children. A sample of 45 parent- child pairs completed a demographic questionnaire, parent- and child-reported nightmare questionnaires, and a parentreported anxiety scale. Results indicated that children reported significantly more nightmares and a higher level of nig...

This study investigated the relationship between nightmares and anxiety in young children. A sample of 45 parent–child pairs completed a demographic questionnaire, parent- and child-reported nightmare questionnaires, and a parent-reported anxiety scale. Results indicated that children reported significantly more nightmares and a higher level of nig...

Increased demand for applied behavior analysis (ABA) services has increased the need for additional masters-level practitioners and doctoral-level academicians and clinical directors. Based on these needs, the University of Nebraska Medical Center’s (UNMC) Munroe-Meyer Institute has developed a PhD program. The academic structure at UNMC allowed us...

This entry summarizes scientific information about three aspects of parental discipline: nurturance as a foundation for discipline, preventive strategies, and appropriate responses to misbehavior. A conditional sequence model integrates contradictory recommendations about disciplinary responses into a comprehensive overview consistent with an autho...

Children with sleep disturbances frequently present with coexisting medical, neurodevelopmental, or behavioral conditions that require clinicians to enhance or alter evidence-based treatments. The primary aim of this article was to provide additional tricks of the trade to help practicing clinicians effectively manage behavioral sleep problems in y...

The excuse-me drill (EMD) is a behavioral protocol to promote independent sleep initiation skills and reduce bedtime problems in young children. EMD is designed to reduce bedtime problems and frequent nighttime awakenings in young children. The procedure combines the complementary forces of extinction and reinforcement to teach young children the k...

Book Description: Therapy in Sleep Medicine, by Drs. Teri J. Barkoukis, Jean K. Matheson, Richard Ferber, and Karl Doghrami, provides the clinically focused coverage you need for rapid diagnosis and effective treatment of sleep disorders. A multidisciplinary team of leading authorities presents the latest on sleep breathing disorders (including obs...

Sleep is a major component of good mental and physical health, yet over 40 million Americans suffer from sleep disorders. Edited by three prominent clinical experts, this volume is the first reference to cover all of the most common disorders (insomnia, sleep apnea, restless legs syndrome, narcolepsy, parasomnias, etc) and the applicable therapeuti...

This study estimates the causal effects of six corrective actions for children's problem behaviors, comparing four types of longitudinal analyses that correct for pre-existing differences in a cohort of 1,464 4- and 5-year-olds from Canadian National Longitudinal Survey of Children and Youth (NLSCY) data. Analyses of residualized gain scores found...

Parents of young children with severe emotional and behavior problems have few services from which to choose if their child is expelled from preschool for aggressive and disruptive behavior. Two case studies provide an overview of a multicomponent, intensive, day-treatment program for children with moderate to severe behavior disorders. Proximal an...

To determine 1-year outcomes of a four-component behavioral therapy (BT) sleep intervention (Individualized Sleep Promotion Plan [ISPP]) versus a healthy eating control (HEC) on cancer-related fatigue in women receiving breast cancer adjuvant chemotherapy treatment (CTX). A total of 219 participants from 12 oncology clinics were randomly assigned i...

Background: To determine whether sleep quality and fatigue associated with breast cancer adjuvant chemotherapy treatments can be improved with behavioral therapy (BT) [Individualized Sleep Promotion Plan (ISPP©)] including modified stimulus control, modified sleep restriction, relaxation therapy, and sleep hygiene. Methods: Randomized-controlled tr...

To review and critically evaluate the association between sleep, anxiety, and depression in children and provide recommendations for future research. A literature search was conducted using MEDLINE and PsychINFO computerized databases and bibliographies of relevant articles. A surprisingly small but growing research base exists on the relation betw...

Fatigue is the most prevalent and distressing symptom experienced by patients receiving adjuvant chemotherapy for early stage breast cancer. Higher fatigue levels have been related to sleep maintenance problems and low daytime activity in patients who have received chemotherapy, but knowledge describing these relationships prior to chemotherapy is...

This paper reviews the evidence regarding the efficacy of behavioral treatments for bedtime problems and night wakings in young children. It is based on a review of 52 treatment studies by a task force appointed by the American Academy of Sleep Medicine to develop practice parameters on behavioral treatments for the clinical management of bedtime p...

This paper reviews the evidence regarding the efficacy of behavioral treatments for bedtime problems and night wakings in young children. It is based on a review of 52 treatment studies by a task force appointed by the American Academy of Sleep Medicine to develop practice parameters on behavioral treatments for the clinical management of bedtime p...

The prescription rates of clonidine have risen dramatically and the extent to which these increases can be attributed to treatment of sleep disturbance is unknown. Surveys were mailed to 800 pediatricians across four geographically diverse states to assess prescribing practices specific to sleep disturbance. Ninety-six percent of the respondents tr...

This meta-analysis investigates differences between the effect sizes of physical punishment and alternative disciplinary tactics for child outcomes in 26 qualifying studies. Analyzing differences in effect sizes reduces systematic biases and emphasizes direct comparisons between the disciplinary tactics that parents have to select among. The result...

To evaluate the efficacy and acceptability of a social story with tangible rewards to reduce children's disruptive bedtime behavior and frequent night waking. Four children (ages 2 to 7), with clinically significant disruptive bedtime behavior, received the intervention, which consisted of a social story (The Sleep Fairy) that sets forth (a) parent...

Selection bias can be the most important threat to internal validity in intervention research, but is often insufficiently recognized and controlled. The bias is illustrated in research on parental interventions (punishment, homework assistance); medical interventions (hospitalization); and psychological interventions for suicide risk, sex offendin...

Behavioral interventions have been identified as the treatment of choice for many forms of pediatric sleep disturbance. We adopt criteria established by the Task Force on Promotion and Dissemination of Psychological Procedures (1996) to evaluate the literature base describing behavioral interventions for pediatric sleep disturbance. Three well-esta...

To evaluate outcomes of an intervention designed to promote sleep and modify fatigue after adjuvant breast cancer chemotherapy. Prospective, repeated measures, quasi-experimental, feasibility study. Midwestern urban oncology clinics. 21 female participants, ages 43-66 years (meanX = 55.3) with stage I or II breast cancer status post four cycles of...

Sleep disturbance affects nearly 25% of infants and toddlers, resulting in fatigue, stress, and family dissatisfaction. This review describes empirically-based treatments for infant and toddler sleep disturbance involving difficulty settling and night waking, including behavioral and pharmacological approaches. Pharmacological interventions include...

Two hundred and fifty-three mothers were surveyed regarding attention deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) symptoms in their preschool children (aged 2-6 years). Twenty-four children (9.5%) met DSM-IV criteria (criterion A only) for ADHD based solely on parent report. Mean ratings of the three core symptoms of ADHD (hyperactivity, impulsivity, and...

This article provides guidelines for counselors interested in developing their own assessment procedure to evaluate child and adolescent sleep disturbance. The guidelines include reviewing the developmental and medical history, screening for parental psychopathology, obtaining a child behavior rating scale and sleep diary, and conducting a semistru...

Nonretentive encopresis refers to inappropriate soiling without evidence of fecal constipation and retention. This form of encopresis accounts for up to 20 percent of all cases. Characteristics include soiling accompanied by daily bowel movements that are normal in size and consistency. An organic cause for nonretentive encopresis is rarely identif...

Treating epilepsy in children is different from treating epilepsy in adults. Unique epilepsy syndromes, drug pharmacokinetics and unique treatments all contribute to the challenges involved in treating children with epilepsy. Even when the same drug is used to treat the same type of seizure, there are differences in drug pharmacokinetics, adverse e...

Primary nocturnal enuresis (PNE) is prevalent among the pediatric population, but not all professionals are aware of the current research regarding the etiology and treatment of this disorder. This paper presents a broad overview of PNE, including etiology and evaluation, with a specific emphasis on treatment issues. The most current treatments (im...

We present behavioral treatment guidelines, based on empirically established behavioral interventions, for pediatric paroxysmal disorders. The guidelines include affirming the disability and normalizing the role of the environment; teaching the child anticonvulsant coping behaviors; giving caregivers guidelines to encourage independent functioning;...

Changing attitudes on the part of dentists and parents alike have resulted in increasing interest by dentists to develop additional child behavior management techniques. Collaborative research between dentists and behavioral psychologists has been encouraged by the American Academy of Pediatric Dentistry (AAPD) to address these concerns, but additi...

In recent decades, pediatric medicine has undergone a shift in focus from infectious diseases to the effects of behavior on the health and development of children. At the same time, behavior analysts have increasingly evaluated the direct application of their technology to the development and maintenance of child health behavior. Unfortunately, app...

Typescript (lithograph copy). Thesis (Ph. D.)--Oklahoma State University, 1992. Vita. Includes bibliographical references.