Association for Behavior Analysis International

Previous research has focused on interventions such as Response Interruption and Re-Direction (RIRD, Ahearn et al., 2007), Non-contingent Reinforcement (NCR, Falcomata et al., 2004) to reduce stereotypic behavior. This study aimed to assess effectiveness of antecedent cues (Conroy et al., 2005) in decreasing vocal stereotypy. Participant was a 14-year-old boy with autism who engaged in nonfunctional speech and high rates of automatically reinforced vocal stereotypy. A functional assessment indicated that the behavior was maintained by automatic reinforcement. The intervention for this single case study design involved the use of a wooden chair along with a placard with QUIET written in red font as an antecedent-based intervention to bring vocal stereotypy under stimulus control. Vocal stereotypy which was in excess of 90% of intervals observed in baseline reduced to 0 within 7 sessions of intervention. Brief follow up probes demonstrated a positive impact of this intervention across settings (home and school) too.

Many children diagnosed with an autism spectrum disorder (ASD) face significant barriers obtaining affordable and effective treatment, including finding enough Applied Behavior Analysis (ABA) practitioners, insufficient access to supervision in rural areas, procedural drift, and high rates of practitioner turnover. As new technology are being developed to aid ABA practitioners and overcome these barriers is the use of social robots. In this poster, we present The Penguin for Autism Behavioral Intervention (PABI) social robot, and its potential to be a functional tool for families and ABA practitioners. PABI is a toy-like device that simulates social responses and can potentially diagnose, measure, and improve a child’s understanding and use of social cues. The PABI also provides a video report that can be reviewed by the therapists and act as a time-saver since the data is automatically recorded. Methods for increasing child engagement, standardizing procedures, aiding in data collection, enhancing supervision, and reducing cost will be presented.

Two nonverbal toddlers with ASD and their parents participated in the study. A pre-post design was used, in which parents completed 4 2-h workshops and 6 1-h monthly training sessions. In the workshop, parents were taught reinforcement, antecedent manipulation, prompting, and task analysis. In the training sessions, parents were provided modeling, performance feedback, and problem solving. Child and parent outcomes were assessed before and after the intervention using standardized questionnaires. Child's words understood, words said, and gestures produced were assessed by the MacArthur Communication Inventories (CDI; Fenson, Pethick, Renda, & Cox, 2000), and child's problem behaviors were assessed by the Child Behavior Checklist (CBCL; Achenbach, 1991). Parents were also provided with the Parent Stress Index (PSI, Abidin, 1995). Results demonstrated that intervention increased number of words understood and said in both toddlers. There was also tendency of decrease in child's problem behavior and parental stress. Findings are discussed in relation to providing parents with the tools to engage and communicate with their nonverbal toddlers with ASD.

This study evaluated Self & Match, a self-monitoring intervention that has student-teacher match component and reinforcement, to improve appropriate classroom behavior of seven students diagnosed with an autism spectrum disorder, receiving applied behavior analytic services as a part of their individualized education program (IEP). Using a multiple-baseline within-subjects and across behaviors with a probe assessment design, the effectiveness of Self & Match was evaluated in the classroom setting. The results indicated that Self & Match is an effective intervention that leads to increases in appropriate classroom behavior and decreases in maladaptive classroom behavior for students with an autism spectrum disorder in the classroom setting.

Self-feeding is typically part of a childs natural development. When this does not occur, it is necessary to intervene in the acquisition of such skills. Although teaching independent skills is a focus of many behaviorally based habilitative programs, the literature on establishing independent self-feeding/drinking is relatively sparse, with only one study that focused on the development of self-drinking skills using a backward chaining procedure. Hagopian et al.(1996) used a combination of backward chaining and bolus fading to treat total liquid refusal. The purpose of the current study was to extend the findings of Hagopian et al. by using backward chaining to increase self-drinking from a cup in a child diagnosed with autism spectrum disorder. The effects of a backward chaining procedure were assessed using an embedded probe design. Interobserver Agreement (IOA) data were collected on 60% of all sessions, and averaged 100% for acceptance and compliance. Results showed successful acquisition of self drinking and are discussed in relation to the increased need for applied research on skill acquisition programs for children with feeding problems.

The purpose of this study was to use a staff-implemented video prompting strategy to teach academic skills to elementary students with autism and intellectual disabilities in inclusive classrooms. Participants included three students with autism and intellectual disabilities. Video prompting (i.e., the intervention) is the visual presentation (i.e., a video) of step-by-step prompts allowing students to complete one step at a time. This intervention incorporated evidence-based practices such as task analyses, systematic prompting, and positive reinforcement. A multiple probe across participants and behaviors research design was used. We relied heavily on stakeholder opinions in the development of the intervention (i.e., the video prompts). The skills taught using video prompting were determined in collaboration with paraprofessionals, special educators, and general education content. The dependent variable measured the percentage of independent, correct steps of a task analysis. All students increased their level and/or trend for each skill from baseline to intervention conditions. The staggered introduction of skills and consistent adjacent probe conditions across conditions strengthened the study’s internal validity. Planned variations in implementers and settings increased the generalizability of the study. Staff members completed social validity surveys indicating positive feedback with respect to cost and feasibility of implementation.

The purpose of this study was to identify the effects of the participation in golf practice program on the stereotype behaviors of students with autism spectrum disorder through visual analysis of ABA(applied behavior analysis). Four students with autism spectrum disorder participated in the golf practice program of the "D" university social education center and were positioned in a special class of the Daegu "K" high school. This study was designed in A-B-A-B type of the withdrawal design method as single subject research design and was performed 35 times for 5 weeks. The frequency of the problem behavior occurred and average of each stage were measured and then the result was viewed through visual analysis of ABA. The findings of this study are as follows : The rate of participation in golf practice program is a little different. However, Golf lesson Program reduces stereotype behaviors of ASD student A, ASD student B, ASD student C and, ASD student D.

This case study presents results from a play-based applied behavior analysis intervention used with a two-year-old diagnosed with autism. The intervention was implemented in a play setting, with the child's mothers serving as co-therapist. Today increasing numbers of children under age three are being diagnosed with autism. Infants and toddlers, with or without autism, have very different abilities and needs than older children, thus traditional ABA approaches such as DTT are often difficult to employ or unsuccessful. Toddlers (children aged 1-3 years) require more frequent breaks and activity changes, less direct instruction, and more choice in the activities than older children. Preschoolers and older children can understand or be taught principles of if-then; they understand that sitting at a table and completing the task will earn them a reward or a break. Toddlers may not have the ability to grasp this concept, nor the patience to wait for the reward. The egocentric nature of typical toddlers combined with the aloofness of children with autism make discrete trial instruction in specific skills challenging. Incidental teaching strategies can be employed to assist with these issues. The current study utilized ABA technique of DTT within the context of natural play activities, hence the term play-based ABA. The participant in this case study was a male child, aged 23 months at the onset of therapy, with a diagnosis of autism. His therapy consisted of three 1.5 hour per week sessions and lasted six months. Prior to beginning therapy, parents completed the Developmental Assessment of Young Children (DAYC; Voress & Maddox, 1998) and the Receptive-Expressive Emergent Language Scale 3rd Edition (Bzoch, League, & Brown, 2003) to obtain a baseline scores for skills targeted for therapy, including communication, social-emotional, adaptive behavior, and cognitive. Subject made better-than-expected gains in both communication and social-emotional skills after two months of 4.5 hours of therapy per week. In communication, he demonstrated a three-month gain and in social-emotional he showed four months gain according to the DAYC. Suggestions and implications for continued research are discussed.

To determine the effects of different schedules of reinforcement on task performance and preference, participants completed tasks on a continuous or discontinuous schedule of reinforcement (longer durations of work for larger amounts of reinforcement versus shorter durations of work for smaller amounts of reinforcement). Three males diagnosed with Autism Spectrum Disorder with limited vocal communication abilities completed a specified number of tasks before receiving 5-minute or 30-second access to a preferred stimulus. To enhance discrimination, color-coded token boards were used to represent each schedule. First, participants were exposed to the schedules in an alternating fashion to compare the response rate across conditions. Participants were then given the opportunity to select between the two schedules to determine whether a preference emerged. This study replicated and extended the procedures of DeLeon et al (2014) by including individuals with limited communication abilities and adding a token board in both the discontinuous and continuous conditions. All three participants produced a higher rate of responding in the continuous schedule of reinforcement, suggesting this to be the more efficient of the two. Additionally, two participants showed a preference for the continuous condition.

Writing is essential to human communication. A severe deficit in handwriting is known as dysgraphia, a problem frequently associated with Autism Spectrum Disorders (ASD). Video self-modeling (VSM) has proven effective for children with ASD by strengthening social skills, verbalizations, and daily living skills. However, there remains a paucity of information regarding the use of VSM for the treatment of dysgraphia in children with ASD. Because VSM has demonstrated success in the acquisition of many types of skills, it may prove similarly effective for remediating dysgraphia in children with ASD. This study seeks to determine if VSM is an effective treatment for improving handwriting legibility and proficiency. Data will be collected from 3 participants, ages 7-9, within a day treatment center setting. After establishing a baseline level of behavior for writing simple words, the researchers will administer the VSM treatment and rate the legibility of the participants responses based on scores recorded in baseline, treatment, and maintenance phases. A pretest/ posttest evaluation will determine changes in handwriting proficiency. This would be an important contribution to the existing literature, and would enhance social change initiatives through strengthening the communication skills of individuals with ASD.

Early intervention in a multicultural context can be an important challenge for clinical settings. On one hand this situation challenges service providers to implement best practices and on the other hand immigration families face multiple barriers on their way to access appropriate intervention. A better understanding of the factors leading to an optimal service path for these families would support the development of suitable parental services, encourage their involvement and thus maximize the response offered by their child to interventions. The overall objective of this project is to document the barriers and facilitators experienced by 30 immigration families whose child has an ASD, during services covering the early childhood period (0-6 years). The goal of the current presentation is to illustrate the parental evaluation (quantitative and qualitative data) of the quality of their trajectory for accessing early intensive behavioral intervention (EIBI) in public services and their evaluation of the program implementation in the child's environments. Data are analysed according to five indicators related to a model of evaluation that we developed (questionnaire TAP : valuation de la trajectoire en autisme par les parents) : 1) continuity between services and professionals, 2) flexibility of the intervention, organisation and professionals, 3) accessibility of the services, professionals and information, 4) validity of the information and the services; 5) empathy (help) from the professionals in their ongoing process.

Five elementary students with educational classifications of autism participated in a social group targeting food preferences. Prior to treatment, parents of children were asked to provide information regarding eating behaviors, including a list of foods they would like their child to eat. Baseline data was also collected in the school; children's propensity to try novel foods was assessed in a discrete trial format. Each week children assembled, learned about target foods, and were given the opportunity to try them. Food tasting was reinforced with attention (i.e., peer and adult) and tangible items (e.g., food medals). Dependent group contingencies were incorporated to further reinforce food tasting. Elements of vicarious reinforcement were also present. Children's propensity to try novel foods was assessed outside of sessions each week. In addition, after 10 weeks of treatment, children were again given the opportunity to try to novel food items. Comparative analyses of baseline and treatment data will be conducted. Results will be discussed including limitations, avenues for future intervention and research.

ABSTRACT Despite the increasing usage of Augmentative and Alternative Communication systems (AAC) for students with severe communication impairments, little research has been conducted to evaluate the quality of special educator preparation programs in providing essential skills and professional knowledge to use AAC. The purpose of this study was to examine preservice special education teachers' perceptions regarding their preparation program, with respect to how well it prepared them to use AAC with students who have severe communication impairments. A total of 27 preservice teachers (emphasized whether Early Childhood Special Education or Intellectual Disabilities) completed an online questionnaire (32 survey items). The findings of the study indicate that the majority of participants believed that their preparation program made them aware of the needs and abilities of students with severe disabilities. However, the most of participants agreed that they need more training on how to access, identify and implement AAC and also agreed that their preparation program had not offered them enough knowledge regarding teaching students who use AAC. To conclude, implications for practices and recommendations for future research are discussed.

The ability to read influences not only the academic success but can have long-term impacts on individuals quality of life. Acquisition of literacy skills will help with social, communication, leisure, daily living and vocational skills. However students with autism and co-occurring intellectual disability (ID) acquire limited if any reading skills by the end of their school education. This research supported by the charity RESPECT and Marie Curie actions, is aimed at providing individualised intervention for reading and comprehension for students with ASD and moderate/severe ID (> 6y) using an online computer based reading program. Headsprout early reading (HER) is scientifically developed software comprising of 80 progressive reading lessons. HER was adapted to each learners pace and ability using interactive touch screen, in a single system research design. The study participants had minimal reading skills and intervention was carried out in special schools or home settings. Acquisition of reading skills (phonics, phonemic awareness, vocabulary development, fluency, and comprehension) was recorded, pre-test/post-test; data will be presented. Comparison of gains in the early reading skills is also made between the groups of participants having verbal ability vs. low verbal and/or read aloud ability: results and potentials will be discussed.

Even if early intensive behavioral intervention (EIBI) programs have been shown to be efficient in improving several spheres of the development in children with Autism Spectrum Disorders (ASD), there is few studies on long term effects (maintenance) of the outcomes of this intervention during school period. This study is a follow up on three years for 68 children enrolled in a public community based EIBI program (20 hours per week for one year). Standardized measures on cognitive fonctionning (WPPSI-III), adaptive behaviors (ABAS-II), socio-emotional adaptation (SCBE) and autism symptoms (CARS, GARS) have been administered every year by the research team. The data have been taken at intake (baseline), after one year of EIBI (post) and after one year of school without ABA intervention (maintenance). Data after two years of school (time 4) have also been documented for 10 children. Results showed marked individual differences in the patterns of change over time and significant changes in all the measures between the baseline and after one year of EIBI. Data are relatively stable between time 2 (post) and time 3 (after one year of school). Implications for services beyond early childhood would be discussed in conclusion of this presentation.

Food refusal and selectivity are common problems in children with developmental disabilities and may be exhibited in a variety of ways. Generally, these behaviors can be described as noncompliance with instructions to eat. Research shows that behavioral intervention methods have been used to treat these behaviors; however, the majority of the published literature targets increased food consumption rather than increased food variety (Marshall, Ware, Ziviani, Hill, & Dodrill, 2014). The current study used differential reinforcement and shaping to increase the variety of foods consumed. Access to preferred items was provided contingent upon eating a bite of food. Shaping consisted of systematically increasing the response requirement from a seemingly easy response (i.e., touch the food) to the most difficult response (i.e., chew and swallow the food). Level of food consumption was evaluated using a combined multiple baseline plus changing criterion design. Following intervention, all participants expanded their food repertoire.

Self-injurious behaviors are defined as behaviors which lead to inflicting pain or physical injury to oneself (Tate et al., 1966). Such behaviors are markedly varied, differing in terms of location, duration and intensity. Included in the category are both mild responses and those capable of directly endangering the sufferer's life (Matson , 1989). Over the last thirty years, most research has concentrated on establishing functional relationships between antecedent and consequent stimuli and behavior, in order to find the most successful methods of eliminating them. The aim of our study was to find effective methods which could be used to reduce self-injurious behavior in a three-year-old girl with. To analyze our results we used the ABC research model (Bailey, 2002), in which stage A means the baseline measurements, whereas the measurements conducted at stages B and C show the behavioral changes that result from our therapeutic activities. The results of our research show that a set of properly selected behavior analysis techniques are very effective in eliminating self-injurious behaviours.

Abstract Augmentative and Alternative Communication systems (AACs) have been used to support communication abilities of children with severe communication impairments. The purpose of this paper is to present the effectiveness of Picture Exchange Communication System (PECS) as an element of AAC. Discussion indicates that PECS is a supportive and meaningful technique for increasing communication skills for children with limited functional communication skills. Finally, this paper discusses how educators can support the use of PECS and other AACs.

The verbal behavior "daijyoubu" (Are you OK? in English) is important in social communication. Although most children acquire the behavior, some children with autism spectrum disorder (ASD) and intellectual disabilities have difficulties to it. The purpose of present study was to examine how two children with ASD and intellectual disabilities (an 11-year old and a 6-year old) initiated the behavior, utilizing cues in verbal stimuli "itai" and "uwa" (Ouch! and Wow! in English) from research staff. Situations of this study included painful and surprised situations. In the painful situations, the staff pretends to be injured. In the surprised situations, the staff pretends to be surprised. Dependent variable was probability of the behavior. In Intervention 1, Participants were trained only painful situation by using verbal prompt "daijyoubu". Probe was to investigate how children with ASD initiated the behavior in painful and surprised situations. No behavior was observed in both situations of Probe. In Intervention 2, same children are instructing by using video.

Previous studies show that, even if the development of children with autism spectrum disorders (ASD) improve significantly after early intensive behavioral intervention (EIBI) program, it seems that there is few impact on parental stress and distress. This could be explained by many factors: the intervention is child-centered or the possibility that our outcomes measures are not sensitive to changes or adapted to our population. To better understand this question, we adapted and validated a French version of the BEACH Center Family Quality of life Scale (FQOL Beach Scale), in order to have a more sensitive family-centered tool. The communication present the French structure of the BEACH on 452 (245 mothers; 207 fathers) parents of children aged 5 and under who were recently diagnosed with ASD. Data according to families and children (descriptive) and their relationship with the new structure of the BEACH (factorial analysis) will be presented. Results show that parents FQOL mean scores was 92.41 (SD=14.57; Range= 42-125) for Satisfaction at the beginning of receiving EBI services. Guidelines on how the BEACH can be used in public EBI services to measure the impact of services on families at several points in times and to evaluate effectiveness of EBI will be presented.

A major challenge in implementing early behavioral intervention (EBI) program in non-English speaking community is the lack of validated and adapted evaluation and intervention tools. We also need standardized instruments that would be sensitive enough to measure changes in the course of intervention but would also be user-friendly for staff and families. This communication present the results on the French structure of the Developmental Behavior Checklist- Under 4 (DBC-U4) on 650 with autism spectrum disorders (ASD) and/or global developmental delay (GDD). As part of a major project, this French validation of the DBC-U4 was made for children with ASD and/or GDD between 2 and 7 years old. The new structure of this test would be presented and some results in regard of the differences on gender, ages, sociodemographic data would be discuss. Sociodemographic data and their relationships with the three factors of the DBC-U4 (exploratory factor analysis) will be presented. Guidelines on how the DBC-U4 can be used in public EBI services to better screen for problem behaviors (PBs) in young children and to evaluate effectiveness of EBI will be presented.