Introduction: The purpose of this study was to decrease the number of talk-outs displayed with a 3rd grade student with autism. She engaged in these behaviors during work time, specialty classes such as physical education, music and library, and group work. Method: A multiple baseline probe design was used to measure the effectiveness of…

CBT is a promising treatment for children with autism spectrum disorders (ASD) and focuses, in part, on children's independence and self-help skills. In a trial of CBT for anxiety in ASD (Wood et al. in J Child Psychol Psychiatry 50:224-234, "2009"), children's daily living skills and related parental intrusiveness were assessed. Forty children…

Choice between alternative response options has received much attention in both basic and applied research. However, there is limited study on the effects of choice of task order on responding. This study examined the effect of choice of task order on on-task behavior, duration to complete the tasks, and problem behaviors in 2 children with autism…

As individuals with autism age out of the educational system, families and practitioners are faced with a number of challenges, including placement concerns and limited behavioral support. Among the most significant concerns is the assessment and treatment of challenging behavior in this population. While assessment and treatment strategies have…

Multiple dimensions of comprehensive treatment models (CTMs) for learners with autism were evaluated in this study. The purpose of the study was to provide evaluative information upon which service providers, family members, and researchers could make decisions about model adoption, selection for a family member, or future research. Thirty CTMs…

Aim: The purpose of this systematic review was to examine the quality of conduct of experimental studies contributing to our empirical understanding of function-based behavioural interventions for stereotypic and repetitive behaviours (SRBs) in individuals with autism spectrum disorders (ASDs). Method: Systematic review methodology was used to…

This exploratory study assessed the effectiveness of a cross-age tutoring intervention on adaptive behavior goals of three PreKindergarten/Kindergarten-aged students with labels of autism spectrum disorder. Data were collected in an inclusive environment; the school library. Three fourth grade general education cross-age tutors were trained to use…

This study examines child and family characteristics thought to affect the dosage and type of common in-school and private services (i.e., speech language therapy (SLT), occupational therapy (OT) and applied behavior analysis (ABA)) received by children with ASD. Participants included 137 families and their preschool-aged children with ASD from…

During the past 2 decades, pivotal response treatment (PRT) has emerged as an evidence-based methodology for intervening with the behavioral, communicative, social, and academic impairments of children with autism. Unlike other highly structured behavioral interventions for autism, PRT emphasizes principles over procedures and focuses on enhancing…

We evaluated a treatment for elopement maintained by access to stereotypic door play. First, we conducted a functional analysis of elopement that produced undifferentiated results. Next, we conducted an assessment in which we evaluated the relation between elopement and door play. Results suggested a functional relation between the 2 behaviors…

Difficulty with social competence is a core deficit of autism spectrum disorder (ASD). Research on typically developing children suggests the amount of adult talk they are exposed to can positively affect their social competence. With growth in the number of children with ASD entering the inclusive preschool classroom, there is a need to…

A primary deficit seen in many children with autism, particularly those with limited verbal repertoires, is repetitive and rote verbal behavior. This type of repetitive or rote verbal behavior can be stigmatizing and may severely limit access to primary reinforcers. Therefore, it may be beneficial to attempt to increase response variability in…

Bruxism, forceful grinding of one's teeth together, can produce destructive outcomes such as wear on the teeth and damaged gums and bone structures. The current study implemented a multicomponent intervention that consisted of vocal and physical cues to decrease rates of bruxism. A partial component analysis suggested that the vocal cue was only…

Reinforcers contingent on response variability exert powerful and precise control over levels of variability, from stereotypy to stochasticity. This paper reviews how variability-contingent reinforcers interact with non-contingent, eliciting events to influence the variability of operant responses. Relationships to stimulus control, choice,…

Rumination involves regurgitation of previously ingested food, rechewing the food, and reswallowing it. In the current study, a child with autism displayed chronic rumination, resulting in the decay and subsequent removal of several teeth. After several treatments failed, including thickened liquids and starch satiation, the participant was taught…