True rapprochement attempts should be welcomed as initiatives to promote understanding between different theoretical positions and in the interest of parsimony. Persuasion attempts to achieve behaviour change, based on the moral imperative, should be inspected very closely indeed.

Our recent attempt (Emerson and McGill, 1989) to suggest a rapprochement between normalization and applied behaviour analysis has proven to be a contentious venture. Baldwin (1989) has made a case for dismissing our argument on the grounds that it is an attempt by “normalization advocates” to take over applied behaviour analysis. He suggests that, as we have made no case for this other than “simplistic de facto moralizing” (p. 307), our paper will be transparent to behavioural practitioners whose moral integrity, it is implied, we have assaulted. In contrast, Baldwin suggests that there is a case for applied behaviour analysis subsuming normalization, although this is considered problematic because of the weakness of the latter position and the “excessive zealotry, proselytizing and evangelizing” (p. 306) of its proponents (ourselves presumably included).

Single definitions of complex terms do not exist. Previous authors have identified one possible translation of “rapprochement”. Equally, other definitions exist: “to bring together, to approach” (Webster's Collegiate) or “a drawing together” (Chamber's Concise).

Generalized and social anxieties are common psychological problems which frequently coexist. The present study examined the efficacy of a multimodal therapy strategy for these problems. As there is no close correspondence between the three response systems in which anxiety is manifested, therapeutic strategies were selected for inclusion in the programme with the aim of targeting irrational cognitions, non-assertive behaviours, and physiological arousal. A battery of self-report instruments as well as a blood-pressure meter were used to monitor changes in these response systems. Questionnaires were rated by the 24 participants on two pre-and two post-treatment occasions. While significant reductions were found for nine questionnaires, no change was observed for blood-pressure levels. It was submitted that benefits of multimodal therapy can be best appreciated by giving attention to the number of areas of change produced in therapy as well as absolute levels of change.

The present study was carried out to evaluate the effectiveness of psychological methods on the group treatment of insomnia. Assessments were administered on measures of general and physical health, symptoms associated with anxiety and benzodiazepine usage and specific measures related to sleep pre- and post-treatment, and at a one year follow up. Fifteen patients were referred from GPs in one practice, and were sequentially assigned into three groups. Treatment took the form of 11 to 13 sessions of weekly group therapy. The group treatment consisted of (1) cognitive-behavioural strategies, including sleep monitoring, stimulus control, cognitive restructuring, problem solving, anxiety management and progressive relaxation; (2) sleep education; (3) gradual drug withdrawal. The results indicated that immediate post-treatment improvements on measures of general health, symptom reduction, reduction of hypnotic-sedative medication, and on the quantity and quality of sleep were maintained after an interval of one year after treatment. Insomnia was less severe, less frequent, of shorter duration and more easily managed. However, there were no improvements on measures aimed to assess general coping strategies nor on measures of sleep maintenance insomnia between the three periods. The findings and implications for future research in this area are discussed.

The five participants in this study were adult long-term residents of institutions for people with mental handicap who had only rudimentary numerical and monetary skills. All were successfully trained, using methods based on “errorless stimulus fading” techniques within a multiple-baseline experimental design, to recognize the seven British coin types and to judge their relative value. Recognition training incidentally resulted in ability to name the coins. Training at each skill required four to seven sessions of up to 20 minutes each, at intervals of 24 hours or more. Performance remained accurate at three-week and six-month follow-up. In four out of five subjects, improvement at recognition could be attributed specifically to the training sequence.