How are you adjusting reinforcement to reduce maladaptive behavior? Can you reinforce a more appropriate, alternative behavior to replace the maladaptive behavior?
A key component of managing repetitive behaviors will be to teach the student a more appropriate, alternative behavior; in other words, a replacement behavior.
For example, if the student tends to compulsively “fix” some feature of a classroom or work environment in a way that impacts his work or the work of others, think about what might serve as a more appropriate alternative.
Here are a few ideas:
What are some reinforcing consequences you can deliver either immediately following the desired behavior or following a practice session– things that this particular student enjoys, wants, seeks out, etc.?
Involve the student in coming up with reinforcing consequences. Ask him to write down some favorite activities or rewards.
Are you using labeling and social praise to make the contingency between desired behavior and reinforcing consequence clear to the student?
Given the sensitive nature of this topic, you may need to deliver your praise in private, or in a discrete fashion (e.g. checkmark on card that the student can see, thumbs up or an agreed-upon nonverbal signal).
What reinforcing consequences can you arrange that are more naturally or intrinsically connected to the targeted replacement behavior?
The replacement behavior might serve the same function (a more appropriate self- soothing behavior to replace a less appropriate self-soothing behavior). In this case, the new behavior has a naturally reinforcing consequence – it soothes the student.