Number and controllability of reinforcers as predictors of individual outcome for children with autism receiving early and intensive behavioral intervention: a preliminary study

Although Early and Intensive Behavioral Intervention (EIBI) is an effective treatment for many children with autism, there is a substantial individual difference in outcome. This study was designed to investigate whether treatment gains were associated with the number and type of stimuli that function as reinforcers for 21 preschool-aged children with autism. Children with a large repertoire of socially mediated reinforcers benefited more from treatment. Children with many stereotypic behaviors, assumed to be an effect of a larger repertoire of automatic reinforcers, exhibited less benefit from treatment. These two dimensions taken together explained 49.9% of the variation in treatment gains for children after one year of EIBI. Due to the retrospective and indirect design of the study, results are to be interpreted with cautio

Ogräs, åkertistlar och taggiga växter

Psykiatriska diagnoser är kontroversiella. Vissa, ofta psykiatriker, menar att psykiska tillstånd går att dela upp i distinkta klasser medan andra, ofta psykologer, menar att all sådan uppdelning gör våld på verkligheten. Dessutom har psykiatrin anklagats för att vara moraliserande: vem kan avgöra vad som är sjukt och friskt? Är autism en sjukdom? Utifrån en pragmatisk begreppsanalys är uppdelningen mellan sjukt och friskt nödvändigtvis godtycklig. Precis som när en trädgårdsmästare avgör vad som är ogräs så beror det på situationen och ens syften. Och precis som växterarter ibland är distinkta arter så kan vissa psykiatriska diagnoser vara distinkta klasser, och andra inte. Kanske är autism en avgränsad diagnos, kanske inte. Men ibland är inte artsuppdelning det mest användbara för en trädgårdsmästare, precis som det inte behöver vara det för psykiatrin. Istället kan man formulera nya kategoriseringar helt baserade på pragmatiska hänsyn. Ibland räcker det med taggiga växter och socialt indifferenta barn

Manglende generalisering av trenerferdigheter på tvers av situasjoner etter Workshop om Incidental Teaching

Incidental Teaching er en prosedyre som benyttes for å øke spontant språk, og har vist seg effektiv i opplæring og generalisering av språkferdigheter hos personer med ulike diagnoser i ulike situasjoner. Det er behov for kostnadseffektive intervensjoner for å sette lærere og andre trenere i stand til å bruke Incidental Teaching; forskning på personalopplæring innen Incidental Teaching er begrenset. Selv om flere studier har konkludert med at Incidental Teaching kan læres gjennom workshops, er det ukjent om trenere generaliserer ferdighetene til situasjoner hvor de ikke har mottatt eksplisitt opplæring. Vi undersøkte effekten av to workshops på antall episoder med Incidental Teaching lærerne lykkes i å implementere. Resultatene viser en signifikant økning hos begge deltakerne i forhold til bruk av Incidental Teaching i de situasjonene hvor de hadde mottatt eksplisitt opplæring gjennom workshop, men ingen av deltagerne generaliserte ferdighetene i Incidental Teaching til en situasjon som ikke ble omhandlet i workshops.Incidental Teaching is a procedure that is used to increase the use of spontaneous language. IT has been shown to be effective in teaching and promoting generalization of language skills in a variety of persons and settings. However, cost-effective interventions to enable teachers and paraprofessionals to implement Incidental Teaching are needed: research on how to do staff training to increase use of Incidental Teaching is limited. Although several studies have concluded that Incidental Teaching can be successfully taught using workshops, the extent to which therapists generalize teaching skills to settings not explicitly taught is unknown. We investigated the effect of two workshops on the number of Incidental Teaching episodes achieved by two teachers. Although results showed that both participating teachers significantly increased their use of Incidental Teaching in the settings that were explicitly taught in the workshops, neither of them generalized these new skills to a setting that was not explicitly discussed in the workshops

"Jeg ønsker å lese bedre!" : intensiv leseopplæring for en elev med ADHD

Studien redegjør for et 10 ukers individuelt tilpasset leseopplæringsprogram, med bruk av positiv miljøtilrettelegging og systematisk lydering som metode for en 8 år gammel elev med Attention Deficit/Hyperactivity Disorder (ADHD). Prosedyren innebærer en trinnvis tilnærming fra visuell og auditiv gjenkjenning av bokstaver til selvstendig lesing under optimale motivasjonsbetingelser. Målet var leseferdigheter tilnærmet nivået som forventes på 3. klassetrinn. Resultatene er oppmuntrende og tiltaket illustrerer hvordan det kan jobbes intensivt og systematisk over en kort periode for å gi et ekstra løft i ferdigheter

Reinforcers as Predictors of Outcome in Behavioral Interventions for Autism

There is ample support for interventions based on Applied Behavior Analysis as effective in teaching children with autism skills that they lack. However, studies consistently report large variations in outcomes. Given the central role of positive reinforcement in behavior analytic treatments, a series of studies were conducted to test the hypothesis that children whose behavior is reinforced by a large range of stimuli will benefit more in treatment. Using a new outcome metric, learn rates, this hypothesis was confirmed in two studies. One study employed adult reports on child reinforcers, and a second study utilized a novel scoring system for direct evaluation of child behavior in an already existing, and widely used, structured assessment. Building on these findings, we go on to suggest that the concept of reinforcement can be used to construct a behavior analytic theory for the etiology of autism, compatible with what is known about genetics, early signs and plasticity of autistic symptoms

Reinforcers as Predictors of Outcome in Behavioral Interventions for Autism

There is ample support for interventions based on Applied Behavior Analysis as effective in teaching children with autism skills that they lack. However, studies consistently report large variations in outcomes. Given the central role of positive reinforcement in behavior analytic treatments, a series of studies were conducted to test the hypothesis that children whose behavior is reinforced by a large range of stimuli will benefit more in treatment. Using a new outcome metric, learn rates, this hypothesis was confirmed in two studies. One study employed adult reports on child reinforcers, and a second study utilized a novel scoring system for direct evaluation of child behavior in an already existing, and widely used, structured assessment. Building on these findings, we go on to suggest that the concept of reinforcement can be used to construct a behavior analytic theory for the etiology of autism, compatible with what is known about genetics, early signs and plasticity of autistic symptoms

Reinforcers as Predictors of Outcome in Behavioral Interventions for Autism

Dissertation for the degree of philosophiae doctor (PhD) Department of Behavioral Science Faculty of Health Sciences Oslo and Akershus University College of Applied Sciences. Utgivelsesdata Tittel:Reinforcers as Predictors of Outcome in Behavioral Interventions for AutismForfatter(e):Lars KlintwallSerie:HiOA avhandlingerIssn:1893-0476Nr:2015 nr 1Utgiver:HiOAAvdeling/fakultet:HFSider:110Pris:235,– ISBN-print:978-82-93208-80-

Kindergarten moderators for intensive behavioral therapy for children with autism

Flera olika behandlingsmetoder för autism finns utvecklade, även om bäst stöd finns för intensiv beteendeterapi (IBT). Variationen i behandlingseffekt inom IBT är dock stor. I Sverige används IBT på förskolor, sannolikt med varierande framgång. 22 förskolor med 24 barn som fått IBT i två år undersöktes retrospektivt med telefonenkäter, och flera faktorer undersöktes för samband med barnens förbättring i adaptiv förmåga under samma period. Integration av träningen i förskolans verksamhet samt tränarens tilltro till metoden samvarierade med behandlingsutfall. Många av tränarna var skeptiska till IBT och metoden i Sverige skiljer sig markant från de publicerade studier från vilka evidensen för IBT kommer. Studiens retrospektiva design innebär att de funna sambanden inte går att tolka kausalt.Several methods of treatment for autism has been developed and there is good evidence for the use of intensive behavioral therapy (also called applied behavior analysis, ABA). However, the variation in treatment gains are consistently large. Behavioral therapy for children with autism is used in swedish kindergartens, likely with variation in both fidelity and level of success. In this study, 22 kindergartens with 24 children with autism who had received behavioral therapy was investigated retrospectively using a telephone survey. Several factors was analysed for hypothesised covariation with treatment gains measured with an adaptive behavior scale. Level of integration of the treatment in the kindergarten and therapist's allegiance to the treatment was positively correlated to treatment gains. The retrospective design of the study makes causal conclusions of findings impossible. Additional findings was a generally low allegiance to the treatment and a large discrepancy between swedish behavioral therapy and the efficacy studies for ABA for children with autism