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Stereotypy and Repetitive Behaviors

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Handbook of Intellectual Disabilities

Part of the book series: Autism and Child Psychopathology Series ((ACPS))

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Abstract

A category of inappropriate behaviors in which individuals with intellectual disabilities engage that do not fit into the typical classifications of aggressive, disruptive, or self-injurious behavior exists. These behaviors include stereotypy, ritualistic behavior, and perseverative behavior related to unusual interests. Stereotypic behaviors are defined as repetitive, coordinated, seemingly purposeless, rhythmic behaviors that are most often maintained by automatic reinforcement (Chebli, Martin, & Lanovaz, 2016; Rapp & Vollmer, 2005; Singer, Mink, Gilbert, & Jankovic, 2016). Common topographies of stereotypy fall into the following categories: whole body (e.g., body rocking), head (e.g., head nodding), hand/finger (e.g., hand flapping), locomotion (e.g., jumping), object (e.g., object spinning), and sensory (e.g., covering ears; Lam & Aman, 2007). In addition to motor stereotypy, individuals with intellectual disabilities also engage in vocal stereotypy (e.g., repetitive sounds or words; Lanovaz & Sladeczek, 2012).

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Correspondence to Jessica Akers .

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Akers, J., Davis, T., Gerow, S., Hodges, A., Weston, R. (2019). Stereotypy and Repetitive Behaviors. In: Matson, J.L. (eds) Handbook of Intellectual Disabilities. Autism and Child Psychopathology Series. Springer, Cham. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-030-20843-1_31

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