The present investigation examined observational learning during equivalence-based instruction using the PEAK Equivalence curriculum, across five children with disabilities. A multiple baseline across skills was used to evaluate observational learning across the participants, including directly observed relations, as well as derived symmetrical and transitive relations. Each skill contained 5 stimulus classes, where a subset of relations for a single class was trained for each participant. The remaining 4 class subsets were observed by each of the participants. For the derived relations, participants never observed peers contact reinforcement for correct responding nor did they themselves contact reinforcement for correct responding. After multiple sessions, results indicated increases in both observed directly trained relations, as well as emergent derived relations. Over the course of the sessions, the participants average correct answers increased from an average of 12% during baseline to100% at the end of the training phase and during a follow-up test probe. The results have implications for equivalence-based ABA instruction in schools and other settings where group-based instruction is common in application with individuals with disabilities.

Individuals with disabilities often have a limited tact repertoire. This study compared the acquisition and generalization of tacts taught using different stimulus modes within discrete trial training (DTT) with children who have a limited tacting repertoire. The three stimulus modes that were compared were videos, pictures, and 3D objects. This research replicated Gómez’s (2015) methodology with a participant pool with lower tacting skills. In addition, this study assessed for generalization of the acquired tacts to a novel exemplar. In this study, tact training required fewer sessions when the picture and 3D object were used as stimulus modes. These results were then replicated across stimulus sets with Abraham and Alex. Finally, in this study greater generalization was observed for the tacts trained with a 3D object.

The current study evaluated the effects of discrete trial training versus the effects of relational training on the acquisition and retention of skills in four children with autism. Using a multiple baseline design across subjects, participants were trained on the skills sequencing from longest to shortest, discriminating full versus empty versus half empty, tacting “you” versus “I,” and responding to reasons why people cry. One of the four participants acquired and retained the skill. Many factors effected the results for the other three participants. Participant 2 never met mastery criteria with relational training procedures. Participant 3 learned PEAK programming four times faster than DTT, however, when using PEAK with the original target, 10 days were required to score all points opposed to the four days DTT required. Participant 4 displayed similar performance results using DTT and PEAK. Implications and limitations will be discussed.

The purpose of the current study was to determine the efficiency of an electronic data collection method compared to a traditional paper-based method in the educational field, in terms of the accuracy of data collected and the time required to do it. In addition, data were collected to assess users' preference and system usability. The study included a sample of 20 preschool special educators from the Mailman Segal Center's Baudhuin Preschool and Autism Institute located in Davie County, Florida, who conduct daily data collection and analysis. The study used both quantitative and qualitative methods to determine answers to five research questions. These were, (1) to what extent is electronic data collection faster than traditional paper-based data collection, (2) to what extent does electronic data collection aid special education teachers and paraprofessionals to collect more accurate data than traditional paper-based data collection, (3) to what extent is the use of electronic data collection result in significant time savings relative to traditional paper-based data collection during data graphing, (4) to what extent do specialists prefer either data collection method and for what reasons, and (5) to what extent do specialists rate the usability of the handheld device used for electronic data collection. Results suggested that both formats are comparable in terms of data collection time F(1, 18) = 3.53, p = .077 and accuracy, F(1, 18) = .928, p = .348 but that electronic data graphing is faster (M = 40.4, SD = 2.17) than paper-based graphing (M = 80.4, SD = 52.61). A higher percentage of participants (60%) preferred the electronic-based data collection method due to its graphing capability and better organization of data. The electronic data collection system used in this study was found to be more usable than 86.8% of all products tested using the System Usability Scale (SUS) and, therefore, could be considered a "C" or at an "acceptable" level or "good" relative to the other 200+ systems tested using the SUS by Bangor, Kortum, and Miller (2009). The electronic-based data collection system could also be considered an "A-" based on Sauro and Lewis' (2012) scale.

The current set of experiments sought to evaluate and address current, empirically based assessments and treatment protocols for children who have autism and/or other developmental disabilities. The past few decades of research have been successful in developing effective behavioral treatments, however, the dissemination of these strategies has not been maximized in applied settings. Furthermore, many existing treatments are outdated or not widely used in school or social settings. The current experiments evaluate existing effective assessments and treatments and extend them with the implementation of a novel package based off of commonly utilized discrete trial training behavioral techniques in behavior analysis. This treatment protocol was shown to have high inter observer reliability scores throughout the use of this assessment, as well as a high correlation with a commonly used language assessment in Experiment 1. Experiment 2 examined the positive effects of this treatment curriculum guide following skills training. Experiment 3 evaluated the validity of the programs that examined higher order learning from Skinner's (1957) analysis of verbal behavior. The results suggest that this assessment and training protocol has significant potential in efficiently training students with and without disabilities. Implications of these finding are discussed in terms of future progress of translational research in applied settings. Furthermore, the present set of experiments contributes largely to the dissemination of emerging research and practice in behavior analysis.

Children with autism have deficits in social interactions and verbal and nonverbal communication and engagement in rigid and repetitive activities and/or interests (ASA, 2008). A joint attention (JA) repertoire has been identified as a behavioral cusp for later social development and thus, JA deficits serve as an early indicator for diagnosis of autism spectrum disorder (Vismara & Lyons, 2007; Whalen & Schbreibman, 2003). A JA repertoire consists of both responses to- and initiations for-bids for coordinated attention. Previous research has shown teaching strategies such as pivotal response and discrete trial training for joint attention skills to be effective (Vismara & Lyons, 2007; Whalen & Schreibman, 2003). The purpose of the current study was to evaluate a mixture of pivotal response and discrete trial training as an intervention method for training joint attention behaviors with children diagnosed with autism spectrum disorder in a home setting. In addition, this study evaluated the effects of interspersing targets during training and incorporated generalization probes to assess JA initiations in the form of shifting eye gaze and pointing. Lastly this study examined a parent training procedure to determine if it would promote maintenance after skill acquisition. Results show that all targets were acquired when taught simultaneously. The results show that 2 of the 3 participants made JA initiations during probes throughout intervention. Lastly, the results indicated that parent training did not help maintain JA responding for participant one.

This study was conducted to examine professional development techniques for training special education teachers to implement discrete trial training with in the classroom environment. The purpose of this study was to determine if professional development regarding discrete trail training increases the fidelity with which teachers implement discrete trail training when providing instruction to students with autism spectrum disorder. Specifically, the study noted if professional development that included coaching in the classroom increased the fidelity with which teachers were able to implement discrete trail training. Further, this study examined the correlation between an improvement in the fidelity with which teachers implemented discrete trail training and positive student outcomes. Six studies were included in the present study. These studies found that following an initial presentation of information regarding discrete trail training with in the classroom coaching leads to an increase in teachers’ ability to implement discrete trail training with fidelity. An increase in teacher fidelity was found to correlate positively to an increase in positive student outcomes such as increased student learning and decreased negative student behaviors. The impact these improvements in teacher and student outcomes stand to have on issues such as teacher burnout, attrition, and self-efficacy are also discussed.

Abstract Behavior Skills Training (BST) typically consists of an initial informational component presented to the learners either vocally, through a handout, presentation, or both. Results from the active student responding literature indicates these methods as the least effective means of conveying important information to learners. This study sought to utilize an alternative instructional component, fluency training, and to evaluate if any effects are observed on implementation of the behavior chain of Discrete Trial Training (DTT). Teacher's had previous training and experience on implementing DTT prior to this study--however, all teachers implemented strategies with low integrity. Teachers were trained to fluent levels on verbally stating the component steps of DTT and were then observed during probe sessions to evaluate percentage of steps implemented correctly. The probes indicate an initial improvement, but decreases over time that are consistent with results on other passive in-service trainings. Teachers then took part in a single session of Modeling, Role-Play, and Feedback. Results suggest that while fluency training had an impact on participants' verbal performance on discrete trial information, and affected overt performance during subsequent probes, the effects were small and transient. Performance improved only after training on the components of BST and additional training had been completed in-situ.

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Behavior skills training is a didactic training format used to increase skill in an effective and efficient way. Video self-monitoring refers to the process of recording oneself for the purpose of self-review in order to observe and change one's behavior. The purpose of the following study was to determine if an intervention package that included Behavioral Skills Training (BST) and Video Self-Monitoring (VSM) would increase, generalize and, maintain high levels of treatment integrity of paraprofessional staff members while teaching a discrete trial training program to a student with autism. Additionally, student behavior was observed to determine if increased staff effectiveness would affect learner responding. The study found that the intervention package was effective in changing staff behavior by improving their treatment integrity. An observed change in student behavior emerged towards the end of the study when treatment integrity was high across staff members. Staff behavior generalized when the DTT program was implemented with a novel student. Additionally, maintenance of treatment integrity remained high after the intervention was withdrawn. Overall, these findings suggest that BST, followed by VSM, is an effective intervention for changing staff behavior. / Applied Behavioral Analysis