Ways to improve communication, comprehension, and language skills and to adapt strategies and media to emphasize visual aspects are suggested to accommodate hearing impaired trainees. (SK)

Factors that affect the development and selection of social skills training programs with severely handicapped students are reviewed. Training procedures used with this group are also discussed. The author argues that efforts to develop acceptable social behavior in these students must systematically produce maintenance and generalization of…

The paper proposes a conceptual framework with which to view employability of persons with severe disabilities. The central features of autonomy of adaptability in applied research programs in competitive employment are examined. Strategies to promote autonomy of performance are identified: self-control techniques, withdrawal of treatment…

Forty-nine adults with severe intellectual disabilities in 13 small staffed homes in England were evaluated for their participation in meaningful activities and adaptive behavior. Residents of homes which implemented the "active support" model of care showed significantly increased engagement in meaningful activities and adaptive…

An imitation training procedure was employed in Australia with an 18-year-old echolalic female in an effort to enhance daily functioning. One hundred sentences in the following curriculum areas were taught: domestic, vocational, community, and leisure. Results are discussed in terms of imitation across curriculum domains and grammatical types. (JW)

This manual describes a program for training direct service staff to teach adaptive skills to people who have severe disabilities. Research has demonstrated that the Teaching-Skills Training Program improves on-the-job work performance of staff while teaching clients, requires a small amount of trainer and trainee time (typically less than one…

Four mentally retarded children (ages 4-11), 3 with autism, were successfully taught various adaptive behaviors for self-care skills. Training procedures involved the whole-task method and included modeling, verbal instructions, prompting, and edible and social reinforcement. (Author/JDD)

This study investigated the differential effectiveness of assertiveness and problem-solving training on 28 dually diagnosed (mild mental retardation and mental disorders) patients' adaptive social behavior, distress and psychiatric symptoms, anger control, and problem-solving coping skills. Improvements resulted from combined assertiveness and…

This curriculum was designed to train approximately 250 community health representatives (CHRs), to teach visually impaired and blind Indian elders and their families necessary independent living skills. The curriculum aims to sensitize CHRs to the impact of visual impairment upon elderly persons and their families, and to provide basic…

The study examined the effects of physical fitness training and reinforcement on the maladaptive behaviors of five institutionalized mentally retarded/emotionally disturbed adults. Results showed a dramatic decrease of target behavior during intervention phases and a clear increase during the baseline and maintenance phases. (Author/JDD)