ERIC Number: EJ1234365
Record Type: Journal
Publication Date: 2015-Jul
Pages: 19
Abstractor: As Provided
ISBN: N/A
ISSN: ISSN-0161-1461
EISSN: N/A
Teaching a Child with Autism to Request Breaks While Concurrently Increasing Task Engagement
Kreibich, Shelley R.; Chen, Mo; Reichle, Joe
Language, Speech, and Hearing Services in Schools, v46 n3 p256-265 Jul 2015
Purpose: An intervention package, including teaching break requests and tolerance for delay in reinforcement delivery to increase task engagement, was implemented with a 4-year-old child with an autism spectrum disorder who did not engage for a duration commensurate with individual education program team expectations. Method: A multiple-probe design across tasks was implemented. Dependent measures taken included engagement duration and the production of spoken break requests after work completion. Intervention was implemented with tasks involving short periods of engagement prior to the learner's disengagement. The possibility of the learner's overgeneralized production of break requests with tasks originally associated with longer engagement was also examined. Results: The participant learned to request breaks in short engagement tasks. In addition, engagement increased dramatically without off-task behavior. Overgeneralized use of break requests with long engagement tasks did not occur. Generalization of break requests to untrained short engagement tasks that were not the focus of intervention (but were associated with escape and short engagement) did not occur until the intervention package was implemented. Conclusions: The combination of teaching break requests and tolerance for delay in reinforcement delivery was effective in addressing problem behavior. Implications for enhancing properly generalized and moderated use of break requests across different tasks or contexts are discussed.
Descriptors: Preschool Children, Autism, Pervasive Developmental Disorders, Individualized Education Programs, Intervention, Teaching Methods, Educational Strategies, Learner Engagement, Student Motivation, Reinforcement
American Speech-Language-Hearing Association. 2200 Research Blvd #250, Rockville, MD 20850. Tel: 301-296-5700; Fax: 301-296-8580; e-mail: lshss@asha.org; Web site: http://lshss.pubs.asha.org
Publication Type: Journal Articles; Reports - Research
Education Level: N/A
Audience: N/A
Language: English
Sponsor: N/A
Authoring Institution: N/A
Grant or Contract Numbers: N/A