Purpose: This study was conducted to investigate the effectiveness of a social intervention that integrates peer-mediated approaches and the Picture Exchange Communication System (PECS). Method: Effects were evaluated using a series of A-B designs replicated across 4 children with severe autism and limited verbal skills. Seven peers without…

A randomized control trial comparing two social-communication interventions in young children with autism examined far-transfer of the use of picture exchange to communicate. Thirty-six children were randomly assigned to one of two treatment conditions, one of which was the Picture Exchange Communication System (PECS). All children had access to…

Background: The aim of this study was to assess the effectiveness of two communication interventions for preschool-aged children with autism. Method: Six typically developing peers were taught to implement peer-mediated naturalistic teaching, with and without a speech generating device (SGD), during play sessions with 3 classmates with autism in…

This paper reports on how two instructors implemented a unit in their introductory communications courses at a midsized Midwestern university about communication between disabled and ablebodied persons. The goals of the instructors are delineated in the paper, and the effectiveness of the unit is evaluated on several dimensions. The course…