Training paraprofessionals who work with children with Autism Spectrum Disorder and other related developmental disabilities can be a challenge due to limited resources, time, and money. Alternative ways to train paraprofessionals on a larger scale is needed. Interactive computerized training—a self-paced program that incorporates audio narration, video models, interactive activities, and competency checks—is one potential training method. Interactive computerized training has been successful at training college students and special education teachers to implement discrete trial instruction but their effectiveness in training paraprofessionals is unknown. The purpose of this study was to extend the literature on interactive computerized trainings to evaluate its utility to teach six paraprofessionals to implement discrete trial instruction. Errorless learning procedures are recommended during discrete trial instruction to minimize student errors and promote quicker skill acquisition. A secondary purpose was to evaluate the effectiveness of the interactive computerized training to teach paraprofessionals to implement an errorless learning procedure. Following the training, all participants increased their fidelity of implementation of discrete trial instruction, at varying levels, with a student in their classroom. One participant reached the performance criterion of 90% or higher fidelity following ICT alone and two participants required performance feedback. Three participants required live coaching to increase their fidelity of DTI components to 80%. All feedback was delivered from a distance. Fidelity remained high to untrained instructional programs and at 2-week follow up. Potential limitations and future research related to training paraprofessionals are discussed.

The present study evaluated preference for choice and its effect on motivation during response acquisition of receptive identification targets in children diagnosed with autism. Prior to the study a multiple stimulus without replacement preference assessment was conducted in order to determine the highly preferred stimulus. Choice was evaluated during a high-preferred, free-choice, and control condition for each participant. During the high-preferred condition, participants were only able to work for the high-preferred stimulus identified during the MSWO. During free choice, participants could choose among the five items presented in the MSWO, and during control each participant was unable to exchange his or her tokens for reinforcement. Choice was also evaluated during a concurrent-chain arrangement, where each participant was able to choose the condition he or she wanted to work under. The results showed that two out of the three participants did not show differentiation during the acquisition phase; however, during the concurrent-chain phase, all three participants demonstrated a stronger preference for free choice.

Measuring procedural fidelity helps behavior analysts assess staff performance and make decisions about a treatment's effectiveness. However, there is limited research comparing different methods of measuring procedural fidelity. Therefore, we systematically replicated a study that examined how procedural fidelity of discrete-trial-instruction sessions varies depending on the measurement system and calculation. We scored videos depicting behavior technicians conducting discrete-trial instruction with a child with autism and did not permit data collectors to pause, rewind, or fast-forward to simulate a live session. Specifically, we compared individual-component and global fidelity from the occurrence/nonoccurrence method and all-or-nothing by component method. Like previous research has demonstrated, our findings indicated that global values were likely to mask component errors, whereas the all-or-nothing by component method was less likely to do so. When data collected in the current study was compared to those in previous research, interobserver agreement was high for both occurrence/nonoccurrence and all-or-nothing by component methods. Overall, the procedural-fidelity values obtained from each study differed minimally. These results suggest that both measurement methods yield consistent results whether derived from recorded sessions with the ability to pause, rewind, and fast-forward or simulated live sessions. Differences that were obtained are discussed in detail with particular emphasis on connecting our findings to the utility of procedural-fidelity assessment in practice.

Discrete trial instruction (DTI) and naturalistic developmental behavioral interventions (NDBIs) are often incorporated into early intensive behavioral interventions for young children with autism. Recent advances in staff training methods have demonstrated that self-instructional manuals, video models, and computer-based training are effective and efficient ways to improve staff implementation of these teaching strategies however research in this area is limited. The current evaluation assessed the effects of a computer-based training package including self-instructional manuals with embedded video models on direct-care staff’s implementation of DTI and an NDBI. All participants’ DTI teaching fidelity increased during role-plays with an adult and with a child with autism and all participants increased teaching fidelity across untrained instructional programs. In addition, moderate improvement was demonstrated following NDBI training on the use of correct prompts, environmental arrangements, and response interaction. Together, these results indicate that therapists are able to acquire a large number of skills using two teaching techniques, DTI and NDBI, following brief computer-based training.

Feedback is discussed in many disciplines. In behavior analysis, it has been discussed in terms of its functions, many coming to different conclusions. The present study evaluated whether therapists' preferred temporal and format of feedback shifted or changed during acquisition or maintenance of skills implementing a tact program using a token economy system after a brief exposure to all possible feedback combinations. Three participants completed a questionnaire before they were exposed to a feedback sampling phase and preferred feedback phase. Preferred way of recieving feedback was asked at the beginning of each session. Two out of three participants switched preferences after achieving mastery of task. Task mastery may make feedback delivered at the end of a session more desirable while task acquisition may make feedback delivered at the end of a trial more valuable. Limitations and future research were discussed.

Effective and efficient training strategies are needed to provide training to novel therapists whom provide early intensive behavioral intervention (EIBI) services to young children with autism. We evaluated the effects of interactive computer-based training (ICT) on novice therapists' implementation of two, common EIBI instructional techniques: discrete-trial instruction (DTI) and naturalistic instruction. Results demonstrated that ICT improved trainees' instructional fidelity during role-plays with a confederate for DTI instruction and also with a child with autism for both DTI and naturalistic instruction. As a result, the requirement for supervisor feedback on performance was minimized. In addition, results suggest that child language improved as a result of improved therapist performance.