Premium
Using audio script fading and multiple‐exemplar training to increase vocal interactions in children with autism
Author(s) -
GarciaAlbea Elena,
Reeve Sharon A.,
Brothers Kevin J.,
Reeve Kenneth F.
Publication year - 2014
Publication title -
journal of applied behavior analysis
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 1.1
H-Index - 76
eISSN - 1938-3703
pISSN - 0021-8855
DOI - 10.1002/jaba.125
Subject(s) - autism , fading , psychology , generalization , conversation , singing , cognitive psychology , developmental psychology , communication , computer science , decoding methods , mathematical analysis , telecommunications , mathematics , management , economics
Script‐fading procedures have been shown to be effective for teaching children with autism to initiate and participate in social interactions without vocal prompts from adults. In previous script and script‐fading research, however, there has been no demonstration of a generalized repertoire of vocal interactions under the control of naturally occurring relevant stimuli. In this study, 4 boys with autism were taught to initiate a conversation in the presence of toys through the use of a script and script‐fading procedure. Training with multiple categories and exemplars of toys was used to increase the likelihood of generalization of vocal interactions across novel toys. A multiple‐probe design across participants was used to assess the effects of these procedures. The intervention successfully brought interactions by children with autism under the control of relevant stimuli in the environment. Future research pertaining to the specific implementation of these procedures (e.g., fading, script placement, participant characteristics) is discussed.