Association for Behavior Analysis International

Many individuals were unable to receive medical services as due to the coronavirius-19 pandemic. The present study sought to determine a method to deliver behavior-analytic instruction directly to children diagnosed with autism spectrum disorder via an online format. Treatment was conducted initially in a clinical setting and consisted of mand training and discrete-trial instruction delivered at various distances (next to the participant, 3ft, 7ft, and outside the participants room). Participants were provided with a tablet through which instruction was delivered while the experimenter shared their screen or presented instructions on camera (i.e., virtually). During mand training, a preferred video was played, paused, and the client manded for the continuation of the video. Discrete-trial instruction was comprised of the presentation of skills in training interspersed with mastered tasks. Results suggest that training in a clinical setting across varying distances was effective to establish telehealth as a modality for therapists to deliver treatment directly to clients.

Children with Autism Spectrum Disorder (ASD) often exhibit deficits in daily living skills, including toileting skills. Previous studies have evaluated components of common toilet training practices, including differential reinforcement, sit schedules, fluid loading, underwear, and wet alarms. The purpose of this study was to evaluate whether it would be possible to coach caregivers via telehealth to implement the toilet training treatment package as described by Perez et al. (2020) with high integrity and whether this would result in positive outcomes for children. Three caregiver-child dyads participated in this study. A researcher coached caregivers on the implementation of the protocol using a modified behavioral skills training approach via telehealth. Caregivers submitted data daily and weekly audio recordings for treatment integrity checks. The sit schedule fading was individualized to meet the needs and preferences of each family. All caregivers implemented the protocol with high integrity. Two participants met the mastery criteria at the 90-min sit schedule and maintained performance at the 1- and 6-week maintenance follow up probes. The third participant had interruption of treatment due to family circumstances. The utility of telehealth coaching and adaptations to meet the individual needs of clients will be discussed.

The number of individuals who are diagnosed with autism spectrum disorder (ASD) in Taiwan has been increasing (Ministry of Health and Welfare, 2019), but education professionals in this country lack the resources and training necessary to serve this population effectively. Telehealth is a promising modality for disseminating this training worldwide. To promote the dissemination of applied behavior analysis (ABA) in Taiwan, three teachers from a private school in Taiwan were first trained to implement discrete trial teaching (DTT) with their students and then were trained to teach another educator at their school. The experimenter conducted behavioral skill training (BST) through telehealth to evaluate the effectiveness and acceptability of this training modality. Results indicated that the training was effective and that the participants successfully implemented the procedures across multiple students in their classrooms. These findings replicate and extend the current literature suggesting that the use of telehealth is an effective and socially valid method for disseminating ABA to countries with limited resources.