Resurgence of Clinically Relevant Behavior: A Systematic Review

Abstract

Resurgence is the recurrence of target responding when reinforcement conditions have worsened. Resurgence of clinically relevant behavior can occur during planned and unplanned changes in treatment. Although resurgence is possible across many treatment contexts and participants, it may be especially relevant to the treatment of children. The purpose of this article was to systematically review research on the resurgence of clinically relevant behavior to identify the common demographics of included participants and potential practice implications. The results of the review found 22 articles published between 2015 and 2020 focused on the resurgence of clinically relevant behavior. These 22 articles primarily utilized child participants with autism spectrum disorder (ASD) diagnoses. Although one of the goals of this review was to identify potential practice implications for mitigating the resurgence of clinically relevant behavior, it appears that research is still too preliminary to develop standardized practice guidelines. However, key findings, considerations for practitioners, and future research directions are discussed.