The study examined the unsupervised responding of 20-year-old male with profound handicaps and a lifelong history of dependency. Two objectives were pursued: establishment of independent unsupervised task responding with a stimulus and reinforcer fading procedure; and generalization of unsupervised performance across tasks and settings. (Author/DB)

This study, with a young autistic child and a young adult with profound mental retardation, demonstrated the effectiveness of a gradual, changing criterion process of stimulus shaping in training subjects to independently perform tasks with relatively high task requirements. (DB)

This article discusses the contributions of applied behavior analysis (ABA) in effective instruction of students with autism spectrum disorders. Emphasis is on the use of antecedent interventions and curriculum-based assessment. It also notes that the principles and methods of ABA are being integrated into routine educational procedures, including…