Association for Behavior Analysis International

Peer-mediated interventions are evidence-based practices in which neurotypical peers are trained to provide instruction to individuals with ASD or other disabilities. Peer-mediated interventions might entail the peer serving as a model, teaching the peer to manage contingencies (e.g., deliver a reinforcer), or training the peer to initiate with another learner to increase the number of opportunities for peer interactions. This symposium will review peer-mediated interventions used to teach job interview skills to autistic college students and interactive play skills to a young child with ASD, where the peer interventionist was another young child with ASD. The results indicated both peer-mediated interventions were effective and there were benefits for the interventionist and the target peer. However, peer-mediated intervention may not be effective if the target peer does not attend to the behavior of the peer model. The last presentation reviews peer-monitoring, which involves teaching an individual to attend to and imitate behavior of a model, which in turn could facilitate observational learning (Taylor et al, 2012). Three young children with ASD were taught peer monitoring responses and results indicated an increase in observing responses for all participants along with an increase in new operants.

Participants should have a foundational understanding of behavioral assessments and methods of increasing socially appropriate behaviors and decreasing maladaptive behaviors. Participants should have a general knowledge of imitation skills and the methods of behavior skills training.

As children enter preschool, their peers play an important role in learning social communication and play skills. Typically developing children generally acquire these skills while interacting with their peers in the natural environment. However, children with autism spectrum disorder (ASD) often require explicit instruction to learn skills in these areas. Peer-Mediated Interventions (PMIs) is an evidence-based based teaching approach that trains neurotypical peers how to teach children with ASD new behavior, communication, and social skills. Yet, the research on PMIs with preschool-aged children is limited, and all studies have included neurotypical peers as the peer interventionist. The present study evaluated the effects of a training package on the correct implementation of the procedural steps of a PMI with a preschool-aged peer model with ASD and its effects on interactive play with a target participant with ASD. A combined noncurrent and concurrent multiple probe design across activities was utilized. Results demonstrated that the training package was functionally related to the peer models correct implementation of the procedural steps and the percentage of intervals in which the target participant engaged in interactive play.

The current literature focuses on teaching the components of observational learning utilizing peer or adult models. Keohane, Luke, and Greer (2008) examined attending to specific components of social behavior such as responding to voices and faces that may enhance social relationships for children on the spectrum. The current research question addressed is: Can we extend the research by teaching children with autism peer monitoring to increase observing behaviors and develop key components of observational learning in three students utilizing the teaching strategies addressed in Taylor et al. (2012). A non-concurrent multiple probe across behaviors design was used to assess the effectiveness of the peer monitoring treatment on observing responses. The results demonstrated an increase in observing responses across all participants after acquiring three new operants through peer monitoring training and generalization of three more operants with a novel peer. Future research would examine what components of the peer monitoring treatment may be sufficient to increase observing responses in young children with autism.