The specific neuropsychological and sensory profile found in persons with autism spectrum disorders complicate dental procedures and as a result of this, most are treated under general anesthesia or unnecessary sedation. The main goal of the present study was to evaluate the effectiveness of a short treatment and education of autistic and related…

Results are reported for 3 years of in-service training provided to managers and direct care personnel employed in community, residential, and vocational programs for developmentally disabled adults. The data demonstrate the efficacy of the training model in that 1015 (97%) of 1080 training objectives attempted were completed by the trainees at…

Six adult women with mental retardation were trained in sexual abuse prevention, and performance was assessed using four separate measures: pretest and posttests of knowledge, verbal report, role play, and naturalistic probes. All learned the skills but failed to exhibit them to criterion during the probes. (Author/CR)

Three years of experience with a program using labor union volunteers to work with young adult offenders are described. The project's relative success is attributed to the volunteers' union background, staff-volunteer interaction, thorough training of the volunteers, and their range. (Author/HLM)

Examined the effects of communication skills training on adjustment to divorce and separation among women. Results indicated that the experimental group significantly increased in overall divorce adjustment and in empathy skills. No significant differences were found in perceived social support or self-disclosure skill. (Author)

Hypothesis generation and testing is outlined as an additional domain for program evaluators. Program evaluation involves a thorough analysis of the processes that contribute to change (or a lack of change) among program recipients. This process of change is analyzed in two ways: (1) treating programs as naturally occurring field studies; and (2)…

Twenty-four underassertive adults were randomly assigned to two treatment orders that included covert modeling and behavior rehearsal. No measurable difference in treatments was found, but participants preferred and had greater expectations of behavior rehearsal. Skill generalization to untrained situations occurred on 8 of 11 behavioral measures.…

This report provides guidelines and a process for people with disabilities living in Massachusetts to follow to evaluate employment service options that will allow them to receive services best meeting their individual needs. Strategies for finding out information about the different programs and a checklist are given by which to evaluate…

Examined the effect of empathy training on empathy, self-exploration, and key attitudes in older people. Older people (N=28) were assigned to empathy training, discussion, or control groups. The training group improved significantly on three measures of empathy. The training group also showed significant gains in self-exploration but not in…

A study of 74 undergraduates examined whether creativity training and interpersonal problem-solving training are equivalent or complementary. Results showed the training programs were complementary. Each training program specifically affected performance only on related measures of performance. A combination of the training programs affected both…

The project developed a computer-based auditory training program for adult hearing-aid users and cochlear implant recipients, to evaluate three types of training stimuli: syllables with a reduced number of features, syllables with amplified features, and natural speech. Described are the training stimuli, training station, and training activities.…

Describes a career development project that addresses the special needs of disabled adults by: (1) developing a multimedia-based, self-directed career planning program; (2) providing a training program for 15 disabled adults working as paraprofessional career guidance technicians; and (3) establishing linkages with educational institutions and…

This report summarizes the evaluation of civilian training in six Federal government agencies. A representative sample of executive, managerial, technical, clerical and scientific training programs were selected. The project's purposes were: (1) to produce useful examples of systematic training evaluation; and (2) to generate recommendations for…

This report describes Phase II of a project which developed a system for delivering fire safety training to board and care providers who serve adults with developmental disabilities. Phase II focused on developing and pilot testing a "train the trainers" workshop for instructors and field testing the provider's workshop. Evaluation of…