Members (behaviors) of a response class are equivalent in that they produce the same functional reinforcer. Oftentimes, some members of a response class occur at higher rates than others. This can be problematic when the members that occur at high rates are socially inappropriate (e.g., self-injury, aggression, or disruption). The participant in…

Access to early intensive behavioral intervention for children with autism spectrum disorder is commonly recommended. Intervention programs may include high rates of instructional trials, which may evoke escape-maintained problem behavior. Recent research on "pairing" or "rapport-building" interventions have sought to reduce…

More is known about how to reduce challenging behavior with functional communication training (FCT) than how to mitigate its resurgence during or following a course of treatment. Research suggests reinforcing mand variability during FCT may mitigate the resurgence of challenging behavior, but validated procedures for reinforcing mand variability…

Most verbal behavior curricula for children with autism spectrum disorder (ASD) focus on teaching multiple mands during the early stages of training (e.g., picture exchange communication system; Bondy & Frost, 1994). However, few, if any, of those curricula train children with ASD to differentially mand only for reinforcers that are reasonable…

Manding for preferred items and activities is a critical skill for young children with autism spectrum disorder (ASD). However, little research has evaluated procedures to teach children with ASD to mand with their peers. This study evaluated the effects of a teaching package involving least-to-most prompting to increase peer-directed vocal…

Effective strategies to address communication and behavior challenges are critical in early intervention programs. The purpose of this study was to investigate the effects of the Picture Exchange Communication System (PECS) on vocal mands and aggressive behavior displayed by a child with autism in China. One 4-year-old boy with autism participated…

Response interruption and redirection (RIRD) is an intervention that involves presenting demands or other types of distracters to interrupt an interfering behavior and redirect it to a more appropriate response. It targets the decrease of repetitive, stereotypic, and self-injurious behaviors. Research indicates that stereotypy is commonly…

Individuals with autism spectrum disorder (ASD) have qualitative impairments in social interaction and often prefer food or tangible reinforcement to social reinforcement. Thus, therapists who work with children with ASD often use food or tangible items as reinforcers to increase appropriate behaviors or decrease problem behaviors. The goal of the…

Over the past few years an increasing number of schools and community organizations have developed transformative learning spaces referred to as "MakerSpaces" for research and training purposes. MakerSpaces are organizations in which members sharing similar interests in science, technology, engineering, and math (STEM) gather to work on…

Adults with autism spectrum disorder (ASD), who were interested in working as behavior technicians for young children with autism, participated in 2 experiments. Participants included 5 adults with Asperger syndrome or pervasive developmental disorder not otherwise specified, 19 to 23 years old, and 11 children with autism, 3 to 7 years old. In…

With the number of students with autism and related developmental disabilities increasing and a lack of trained professionals, solutions are needed to provide training on a large scale. Alternative training approaches need to be developed so that paraprofessionals can access training in an efficient and effective way. One such possibility is…

Recent mandates related to the implementation of evidence-based practices for individuals with autism spectrum disorder (ASD) require that autism professionals both understand and are able to implement practices based on the science of applied behavior analysis (ABA). The use of the term "applied behavior analysis" and its related concepts…

This literature review examines the present level of evidence in support of communication-based treatments for children with autism spectrum disorders. Reviews to date have reported on research published through 2002. The current article included 36 studies published between 2002 and 2007. Best available evidence is presented for seven treatment…

Children with autism and related disabilities frequently fail to develop echoic repertoires. Among the ways in which treatment approaches vary is the extent to which automatic reinforcement is utilized. The present experiment was designed to test the efficacy of a procedure that incorporates automatic reinforcement and socially mediated…

Skinner's conceptual analysis of language has influenced one model of early and intensive behavioral intervention with children, which incorporates verbal operants including mands, tacts, intraverbals, etc. Many studies have examined the mand and tact relations, with little focus on teaching intraverbal behavior. In the present experiment,…