Association for Behavior Analysis International

When you discover a problem worth addressing, how do you professionally become part of the solution? Drowning is the primary cause of accidental death in children with autism (Alaniz, Rosenberg, Beard, & Rosario, 2017). Drowning incidents in such children most commonly occur in ponds, close to home, and include running away (Guan & Li, 2017). Yet, a systematic review of behavioral interventions for swimming found that only one study focused on water safety (Martin & Dillenburger, 2019). This paper focuses on next steps. The efforts of a large Midwest organization will be used as a case study. The paper is a practical example of how to create additional research data while working within a practice organization (LeBlanc, Nosik, & Petursdottir, 2018), partner with others both in and outside the field (LaFrance, Weiss, Kazemi, Gerenser, & Dobres, 2019), and practice within one’s scope of competence (Brodhead, Quigley, & Wilczynski, 2018), all in an effort to strengthen the role of behavior analysis in a needed area, in this case to teach swimming. The paper strives to become a resource for others who wish to pursue similar endeavors but need additional help to start their own journey.

It is recommended that children ages 6-17 engage in 60 minutes or more of moderate to vigorous physical activity (PA) daily. However, many children do not meet these guidelines, especially those with disabilities. Furthermore, individuals on the autism spectrum often lack the social and communicative skills necessary to participate in PA with others. In order to promote positive PA behaviors, it is essential to include interventions that teach the importance of PA and how to engage in it appropriately. The purpose of this study was to 1. Examine intensity of the PA during sessions; 2. Examine use of a social story to teach exercise intensity; and 3. Examine use of social stories in addition to heart rate monitors to teach PA intensity. Nine male participants ages 8-11 with ASD were recruited. Data were collected during 30-minute sessions three days/week for 5 weeks. All participants wore a heart rate (HR) monitor and a perceived exertion scale was completed twice each session. An A/B/B+C design was used. Phase A, participants wore HR monitor and engaged in the required PA. In Phase B, participants read or were read a social story which explained the importance of and what to expect when engaging in PA. Phase B+C, participants continued to use the social stories, but also self-monitored their HR using an iPad). Results indicated that most participants engaged in moderate levels of PA during sessions however, there was no clear indication that participants were able to self-monitoring of HR intensity increased PA.