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Although research shows early intensive behavioral intervention is efficacious when delivered in university or private intervention centers, little is known about effectiveness or feasibility of disseminating early intensive behavioral intervention to larger communities. The Michigan State University Early Learning Institute was developed to address gaps in distribution of early intensive behavioral intervention to community settings, with an emphasis of serving children and families on Medicaid. This short report describes the Early Learning Institute's approach and preliminary utilization data among Medicaid families. Results suggest the model has potential for dissemination within community settings and promote utilization among Medicaid children.

By engaging with family members through video-chat technology, children with autism spectrum disorder (ASD) may access additional opportunities to develop social connections to build familial cohesion and access emotional support. The purpose of this study was to evaluate a behavioral intervention package in teaching social conversation via video-chat. Using a non-concurrent multiple-baseline across participants with an embedded alternating treatments design, three seven-year-old males with ASD were taught two variations of a social conversation. Their conversation skills generalized to unfamiliar adults, some of whom had no prior experience with children with ASD. When visual supports were removed, participants appropriately varied their social conversations. Social conversations continued to occur 2 weeks following the completion of the study. Results and implications are discussed.

This study examined the associations between sleep and challenging behaviors for average and night-to-night fluctuations in sleep, in 39 children with autism spectrum disorder (ASD) receiving intensive behavioral intervention (IBI). Child sleep was recorded (via actigraphy) for five nights in conjunction with clinician-reported observations of challenging behaviors. Results indicated that on average, poor sleep was associated with higher rates of repetitive behavior, negative affect, and a composite of overall challenging behaviors. These findings suggest that average sleep patterns are important within the context of IBI (rather than night-to-night fluctuations). Interventions aimed at improving overall patterns of sleep may have important cascading effects on challenging behaviors and developmental outcomes for children with ASD and their families.

The purpose of this study was to investigate the effects of a shared reading intervention on narrative story comprehension and task engagement of students with autism spectrum disorder (ASD). A single-case multiple baseline design was used, and three elementary-aged students with ASD participated in this study. The shared reading intervention included before, during, and after reading strategies (i.e., topic anticipation, dynamic reading, story retelling). Results of this study indicated that all participants demonstrated noticeable improvements in reading comprehension. Despite the longer duration of intervention sessions as compared to baseline sessions, participants showed similar or better task engagement with intervention. Improved reading outcomes were maintained at follow up for all participants. Implications for practical implementation and future research were discussed.

We evaluated the effects of an activity schedule embedded within an iPad on varied play across applications. After establishing a pattern of repetitive gameplay, we taught three children with autism to follow the activity schedule using physical guidance. All participants increased their varied play to four applications per session and demonstrated independent and accurate activity schedule usage. The activity schedule was removed, and responding decreased to baseline levels, demonstrating the activity schedule's control over varied responding. The activity schedule was reintroduced and participant responding maintained when engaging with novel applications.

We compared the results of a brief electronic pictorial multiple-stimulus without replacement (EP-MSWO) preference assessment to a brief tangible MSWO preference assessment in five children with autism. Results of both assessments yielded a match between high preferred (HP) toys for four participants and low preferred toys for three participants. The overall correlation between assessments across participants was strong and statistically significant (? = 0.67, p < 0.01). A reinforcer assessment conducted with three participants confirmed HP toys identified in the EP-MSWO functioned as reinforcers.

We investigated the effects of a script-fading and discrimination-training procedure on mand variability in preschoolers with autism. Participants were taught to vary their vocal mands in the presence of written scripts, a green placemat, and a lag schedule of reinforcement. They were also taught to engage in repetitive mands in the presence of the same written scripts and a red placemat. When the scripts were removed, all 3 participants continued to engage in varied manding in the presence of the green placemat and lag schedule, and they continued to engage in repetitive manding in the presence of the red placemat. When the lag schedule was also removed, 2 of the 3 participants continued to engage in varied responding in the presence of the green placemat and repetitive responding in the presence of the red placemat. Finally, all 3 participants demonstrated generalization and maintenance of mand variability during snack sessions with their peers.

Linked activity schedules were used to establish appropriate game play in children with autism during a game of hide-and-seek. All 6 participants demonstrated acquisition of appropriate play skills in the presence of the activity schedules and maintained responding during subsequent phases. When the schedules were removed, responding decreased to baseline levels, demonstrating that the schedules controlled responding. Implications for future research on the use of activity schedules to teach social behavior are discussed.

Over the past decade, a newer class of interventions has emerged specifically designed for young children with or at high likelihood of autism, which are called Naturalistic Developmental Behavioral Interventions (NDBIs). NDBIs are particularly well-suited as a discipline agnostic, primary intervention for young children with autism and other social communication challenges; however, community providers from multiple disciplinary backgrounds who serve these children typically do not develop competencies in areas crucial for effectively implementing NDBI. The goal of this commentary is to: (a) describe the interdisciplinary competencies needed to deliver NDBIs effectively and (b) provide recommendations for moving the field of early intervention for autism and social communication delays forward. Resources for building these competencies for providers at the pre- and in-service level are also provided. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Previous research has commonly evaluated preference stability over time and across multiple preference assessment administrations. No studies have evaluated shifts in preference across consecutive rounds of a single preference assessment, where rounds refer to each time the experimenter resets the stimulus‐presentation array. The purpose of the present study was to examine the stability of stimulus selections across successive rounds of a multiple‐stimulus‐without‐replacement (MSWO) preference assessment with different classes of stimuli for children with autism. The study involved a secondary data analysis and calculation of preference stability across consecutive rounds using Spearman rank‐order correlation coefficients (Spearman's ρ) for 17 participants across 40 MSWO preference assessments. Patterns of preference stability were observed in 24 out of the 40 assessments (60%) indicating that children's preferences in this study were slightly more likely to be classified as stable than other observed patterns of responding. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Positional bias is a pattern of responding to a specific location that can be influenced by response effort and/or prior learning history. Prior research on positional bias within stimulus preference assessments have focused primarily on its use in paired stimulus assessments due to the complex nature of the multiple stimulus without replacement (MSWO) preference assessment. The present study is a secondary data analysis that utilized four different methods to measure side and center bias in a MSWO preference assessment for 19 young children with autism spectrum disorder. Participants displayed varying degrees of biased responding but collectively engaged in minimal biased responding. This study includes an analysis of the four methodologies, discussion of general patterns of responding, and general recommendations for the application of these methodologies in future research. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

One antecedent-based intervention – choice-making opportunities – is an easy and effective way to motivate students with autism to stay on task, complete academic tasks, and engage in appropriate behavior during academic instruction. The purpose of this article is to discuss three main methods for incorporating choice-making opportunities and describe how educators of students with autism can incorporate choice-making opportunities during academic instruction. Seven steps for implementing choice-making opportunities and examples of how to implement choice-making opportunities during instruction are provided. We intend for readers to: (1) read and comprehend the three methods for implementing choice-making opportunities during instruction, (2) apply the seven steps when implementing choice-making, and (3) use the tables as guide when implementing choice-making during instruction. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Impairments in empathic responding are related to decreased social interactions and fewer friendships for adolescents with autism spectrum disorder (ASD). Teaching adolescents to respond empathetically during conversation may promote the development of healthy social relationships. The current study examined the effectiveness of an affective empathy video feedback intervention package to teach empathic communication to four adolescents with ASD (11–14 years old) using a multiple baseline across participants design. Two out of the four participants met mastery criterion, maintained empathy skills up to 4 weeks after intervention, and generalized empathy to a different conversational partner. Effects and implications of the intervention and results are discussed as well as future directions for research. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The purpose of this paper was to replicate previous research on preference displacement with edible and leisure stimuli. In the present study, the experimenters evaluated preference displacement in 25 children with autism spectrum disorder using combined multiple stimulus without replacement preference assessments that consisted of highly preferred edible and leisure stimuli. In addition, the experimenters used a block randomization procedure to evaluate if assessment order influenced displacement outcomes. The experimenters observed patterns of complete displacement by edible stimuli for four participants and complete displacement by leisure stimuli for two participants; assessment order did not influence outcomes. The results and implications are discussed. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This review included a systematic search and analysis of studies targeting teaching mand frames to individuals with autism. Articles were selected through a search of databases limited to English language peer-reviewed articles. Using predetermined inclusion criteria, six studies were identified. Findings were summarized in terms of (a) participant, setting and publishing journals; (b) mand frame training procedures; (c) contriving establishing and abolishing operations; (d) generalization; and (e) varied responding. All six studies demonstrated that participants acquired targeted mand frame responses. Additional intervention outcomes, such as generalization and varied responding, also occurred in some cases. The need for future research and implications for practice are discussed. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The first purpose of this study was to attempt to replicate previous findings that video‐based preference assessments without access to selected stimuli may accurately predict relative reinforcing efficacy of stimuli. To do this, we conducted a concurrent operant reinforcer assessment in which we evaluated the relative reinforcing value of highly preferred and less preferred items identified in a video‐based preference assessment. The second purpose of this study was to begin to evaluate the potential behavioral mechanisms responsible for the validity of this assessment. To conduct this analysis, we evaluated the relative reinforcing value of those same stimuli depicted in video format and then compared results to results obtained during the reinforcer assessment for tangible stimuli. For all five participants, stimuli identified as highly preferred functioned as reinforcers, and four of five participants, responding during the reinforcer assessment was similar in the presence of tangible stimuli and videos depicting those stimuli. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

We evaluated the effects of an activity schedule embedded within an iPad on varied play across applications. After establishing a pattern of repetitive gameplay, we taught three children with autism to follow the activity schedule using physical guidance. All participants increased their varied play to four applications per session and demonstrated independent and accurate activity schedule usage. The activity schedule was removed, and responding decreased to baseline levels, demonstrating the activity schedule's control over varied responding. The activity schedule was reintroduced and participant responding maintained when engaging with novel applications. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

A primary effort of preference assessment research has been to develop strategies to identify potential reinforcers for educational, social, and behavioral programming for individuals with disabilities, including children with autism. However, little attention has been paid to the identification of preferred stimuli children with autism may not have previous experience with. The purpose of this study was to evaluate the extent to which a video-based preference assessment may accurately identify preference for novel stimuli. We compared the results of the video-based preference assessment with no access to novel stimuli to the results of a preference assessment conducted in a tangible format with access. We then conducted the same video-based preference assessment a second time to evaluate the extent to which exposure to stimuli affected assessment results. The results provide preliminary support that a video-based preference assessment may accurately identify preference for novel stimuli. Implications and future directions are discussed. [ABSTRACT FROM PUBLISHER]

We compared the results of a brief video-based multiple-stimulus without replacement preference assessment with no access to chosen activities ( MSWO-NO) to the results of the same assessment with access ( MSWO-WA) with four children with autism. We also compared instructor rankings of activities to MSWO-WA results. Strong to moderate correlations between MSWO-NO and MSWO-WA assessment results were found across all participants. The correlation between MSWO-WA and instructor rankings ranged from strong to low across all participants. Implications and directions for future research are discussed. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

We investigated the effects of a script-fading and discrimination-training procedure on mand variability in preschoolers with autism. Participants were taught to vary their vocal mands in the presence of written scripts, a green placemat, and a lag schedule of reinforcement. They were also taught to engage in repetitive mands in the presence of the same written scripts and a red placemat. When the scripts were removed, all 3 participants continued to engage in varied manding in the presence of the green placemat and lag schedule, and they continued to engage in repetitive manding in the presence of the red placemat. When the lag schedule was also removed, 2 of the 3 participants continued to engage in varied responding in the presence of the green placemat and repetitive responding in the presence of the red placemat. Finally, all 3 participants demonstrated generalization and maintenance of mand variability during snack sessions with their peers. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This review provides a summary and appraisal commentary on the treatment review by Gengoux, G. W. (2015). Priming for social activities: Effects on interactions between children with autism and typically developing peers.Journal of Positive Behavior Interventions,17, 181–192. doi: 10.1177/1098300714561862. Source of funding and declaration of interest:The author reported this study was based on a doctoral dissertation and was supported by the Hosford Research Fellowship and the University of California, Santa Barbara, Regents Special Fellowship. The author reported that there were no conflicts on interest. [ABSTRACT FROM PUBLISHER]

Discrete-trial instruction (DTI) is a teaching strategy that is often incorporated into early intensive behavioral interventions for children with autism. Researchers have investigated time- and cost-effective methods to train staff to implement DTI, including self-instruction manuals, video modeling, and interactive computer training (ICT). ICT combines the best components of self-instruction manuals and video models, and have the same benefits; however, there is limited research on this training method. Therefore, the purpose of this study was to investigate ICT to teach university students to implement DTI with children with autism. All participants' teaching fidelity increased during both role-plays with an adult and instructional sessions with a child with autism. In addition, participants demonstrated an increase in teaching fidelity with untrained instructional programs. All participants were able to complete training in an average of 2 hr, and social validity ratings were high. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Linked activity schedules were used to establish appropriate game play in children with autism during a game of hide-and-seek. All 6 participants demonstrated acquisition of appropriate play skills in the presence of the activity schedules and maintained responding during subsequent phases. When the schedules were removed, responding decreased to baseline levels, demonstrating that the schedules controlled responding. Implications for future research on the use of activity schedules to teach social behavior are discussed. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]