Children with autism spectrum disorder (ASD) have particular difficulty with behavioral flexibility, but the knowledge base on behavioral flexibility in children with a diagnosis of ASD plus intellectual disability (ID) compared to children with ID only is still scarce. The aim of the present study was to assess behavioral flexibility in 111…

Chelation treatment is used to eliminate specific metals from the body, such as mercury. It has been hypothesized that mercury poisoning may be a factor in autism and data suggest that perhaps 7% of individuals with autism spectrum disorder (ASD) have received chelation treatment. It would therefore seem timely to review studies investigating the…

Intervention studies involving the use of sensory integration therapy (SIT) were systematically identified and analyzed. Twenty-five studies were described in terms of: (a) participant characteristics, (b) assessments used to identify sensory deficits or behavioral functions, (c) dependent variables, (d) intervention procedures, (e) intervention…

We evaluated an intervention aimed at teaching two adolescents with autism spectrum disorders (ASDs) to name pictures using speech-generating devices (SGDs). The effects of intervention were evaluated in two studies using multiple-probe across participants designs. Intervention--consisting of time delay, least-to-most prompting, and differential…

This study aimed to teach two students with autism spectrum disorders (ASD) to check the spelling of words using the spell-check function on common word processor programs. A multiple-baseline across participants design with baseline, video modeling, and follow-up phases was implemented. During baseline, the participants performed less than 40% of…

We compared acquisition of, and preference for, manual signing (MS), picture exchange (PE), and speech-generating devices (SGDs) in four children with autism spectrum disorders (ASD). Intervention was introduced across participants in a non-concurrent multiple-baseline design and acquisition of the three communication modes was compared in an…

We evaluated a program for teaching two adolescents with autism spectrum disorders (ASD) to perform more advanced operations on an iPod-based speech-generating device (SGD). The effects of the teaching program were evaluated in a multiprobe multiple baseline across participants design that included two intervention phases. The first intervention…

Joint attention is the act of sharing an experience of an object or event with another person. Individuals with autism often have deficits in this area. This review synthesizes 27 articles, involving interventions for individuals with autism, that measured joint attention as an outcome variable. Studies were analyzed and summarized in terms of:…

The purpose of this review is to provide a systematic analysis of studies investigating computer-based interventions (CBI) to improve literacy skills (e.g., reading, writing, and vocabulary) in students with autism spectrum disorders (ASD). This review synthesizes intervention outcomes, appraises the certainty of evidence, and describes software…

We reviewed studies that aimed to determine whether behaviors, such as body movements, vocalizations, eye gaze, and facial expressions, served a communicative function for individuals with Rett syndrome. A systematic search identified eight studies, which were summarized in terms of (a) participants, (b) assessment targets, (c) assessment…

Two children with autism who engaged in aggression and stereotypy were assessed using common analogue functional analysis procedures. Aggression was maintained by access to specific preferred items. Data on the rates of stereotypy and appropriate play were collected during an extended functional analysis tangible condition. These data reveal that…

Shortly after the publication of our literature review on gluten-free and casein-free (GFCF) diets in the treatment of autism spectrum disorders (ASD; Mulloy et al., 2010), Whiteley et al. (2010) published the results of experimental evaluation of a GFCF diet. To update our previous literature review, we herein provide an analysis of the Whiteley…

We designed an Internet survey to identify the educational priorities that parents have for their children with autism spectrum disorders and to examine the relation between these priorities and the children's level of adaptive behavior functioning. The survey listed 54 skills/behaviors (e.g., toileting, expressing wants and needs, and tantrums)…

This paper systematically reviews research on the effects of gluten-free and/or casein-free (GFCF) diets in the treatment of ASD. Database, hand, and ancestry searches identified 15 articles for review. Each study was analyzed and summarized in terms of (a) participants, (b) specifics of the intervention, (c) dependent variables, (d) results, and…

We used widely available videoconferencing equipment to support teachers to conduct preference assessments for three students with autism and developmental disabilities. Supervisors located at a university used videoconferencing equipment to collect data on students' choice of items, the fidelity of teacher implementation of the assessment…