This study examined the effectiveness of Sensory Stories on "circle time" behaviors in preschool children with autism. This single-system ABA design with a convenience sample of four participants consisted of one week for each A phase and two weeks for the B phase. The intervention phase (B) consisted of reading a Sensory Story from one…

In this study, the authors examined the relationship between engagement in social interaction with peers and stereotypic behavior. Three children with autism with relatively high rates of stereotypic behavior and low rates of social engagement with peers participated in the study. Two typically developing peers learned to direct social initiations…

Within the context of behavioral economics, the ratio of response requirements to reinforcer magnitude is called "unit price." In this investigation, we yoked increases in reinforcer magnitude with increases in intervals of differential reinforcement of other behavior (DRO) to thin DRO intervals to a terminal value. (Contains 1 figure.)

This study examined progress after 1 year of treatment for children with autism who received a mean of 36 hours per week one-to-one University of California at Los Angeles Applied Behavior Analysis (UCLA ABA) treatment. Two types of service provision were compared: an intensive clinic based treatment model with all treatment personnel (N = 23),…

Social Stories are an extensively used intervention to address behaviour difficulties of children on the autistic spectrum. This article summarizes what Social Stories are and sets out to determine whether there is any relevant literature demonstrating the effectiveness of this intervention. Whilst the existing literature suggests positive…

Three aversive conditioning programs were conducted to deal with self-injurious behavior at a residential facility for autistic, brain damaged and retarded children and adolescents. In study 1, mild electric shock paired with a neutral stimulus was moderately effective in decreasing lip biting and head striking in an autistic 15-year-old. Case 2…

Two experiments with four autistic children (ages 5-13) demonstrated that reinforcement of appropriate toy play was an effective means of reducing disruptive behaviors of autistic children in unsupervised settings. (Author/DB)

Effects of sensory extinction procedures on nontargeted self-stimulatory behaviors of two autistic boys (7 and 12 years old) were assessed. In Experiment 1 application of sensory extinction for target behaviors resulted in decreased topographically similar behavior, but no change in dissimilar behavior. In Experiment 2, suppression also occurred…

Analysis of effects of intertrial intervals on correct responding and self-stimulatory behavior by four autistic children (6-11 years old) revealed that short intertrial intervals produced decreased levels of self-stimulation and increased levels of correct responding. (Author/CL)

A token economy was employed for the sequential modification of three high-priority behavioral deficits in a disturbed, autistic child: appropriateness of dress, academic achievement, and appropriate group walking. After establishing a stable baseline rate for all behaviors in both settings, the treatment was systematically implemented until all…

When positive reinforcement was presented via teacher verbalizations in a noncontingent fixed-time schedule, two autistic children (six and nine years old) increased their percentage of correct responding on difficult and easy tasks. (Author/CL)

This paper reviews the literature on autism in general and examines in some detail the research on the Lovaas method of early intervention. The general review is divided into subsections which cover the following topics: historical perspectives, definition of autism, causes of autism, characteristics of people with autism, diagnostic criteria,…

Fourteen parents of autistic children participating in a home-based behavioral program viewed their treatment more favorably than a comparison group of parents receiving more usual forms of treatment. Most had an accurate impression of treatment, but half found it hard to use the methods suggested. (Author/CL)

The experiment assessed, within a multiple baseline design, the possibility of improving the learning of three autistic children (4 to 7 years old) by changing arbitrary response-reinforcer relationships so that the target behaviors became functional (i.e., a direct part of the response chain required for the child to procure the reinforcer).…

This study of an adolescent with mental retardation and autism found that pica of cigarette butts was maintained in a condition with no social consequences when cigarettes contained nicotine but not when cigarettes contained herbs without nicotine. A procedure based on stimulus control, which reduced cigarette consumption to zero, is described.…