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AbstractReading comprehension requires phonics skills, described as “blending phonemes in a word”. Adolescents diagnosed with Autism Spectrum Disorder (ASD) often experience poor reading comprehension. The aim of the present study was to explore if it is possible for an adolescent with ASD and intellectual disability to learn reading comprehension skills even without direct teaching, when the focus of the intervention is on teaching phonics skills. An adolescent with ASD, profound intellectual disability and limited behavioral repertoire participated in the study. The participant received intensive ABA‐based interventions according to University of California at Los Angeles‐Young Autism Project (UCLA‐YAP) model and intensive phonics training. Intervention data show emergence of early reading comprehension skills in terms of words/pictures matching and responding to written instructions. It is suggested that implementation of similar interventions could change the opportunities for people with autism who have limited behavioral repertoire and who did not begin an ABA‐based interventions until their adolescence.

AbstractBasic research suggests that reinforcer immediacy is important; even short delays to reinforcement may impair learning. Further, a previous applied study showed that most participants with autism spectrum disorder (ASD) acquired tacts more quickly with immediate reinforcement, compared to delays of 6 and 12 s. However, no research has examined variable delays to reinforcement, which may be more common than fixed delays in applied settings. In this study, we examined the effect of variable delays to reinforcement on the acquisition of tacts. Specifically, we evaluated three conditions: a 0 s delay, a 4–8 s delay, and a 10–14 s delay to reinforcement among three children with ASD. The results show that two of the three participants achieved the mastery criterion most quickly in the 0 s delay condition. We discuss the results and implications of this finding.

AbstractAutistics/individuals with autism spectrum disorder (ASD) commonly display deficits in executive functioning. These deficits negatively impact social success and the autistic's/individual with ASD's ability to form meaningful friendships. Yet, there is limited research provided for the effective teaching of executive functioning skills to autistics/individuals with ASD. The current study provides an evidence‐based behavior analytic approach for developing executive functioning skills for autistics/individuals diagnosed with ASD. The study also provides the preliminary steps to creating a curriculum that is easy to implement and uses minimal resources. Finally, the study extends current literature on the Teaching Interaction Procedure (TIP) and evaluates the effectiveness of the TIP for developing executive functioning skills for older children diagnosed with ASD. The executive function program resulted in acquisition of all six targeted executive functioning skills for all the participants. While generalization and maintenance data were slightly variable across participants, all three participants displayed improvement in executive functioning skills following the implementation of the executive function program and a social validity assessment indicated that the participants were satisfied with the skills taught, the treatment, and the outcomes.

AbstractEffective note taking may enhance learning outcomes for students and serve as a directly observable form of mediation within a test context. Frampton et al. (2023) used stimulus fading to teach note taking in the form of a graphic organizer (GO) during matching‐to‐sample baseline relations training (MTS‐BRT). Moderately high yields were observed with young adults despite the use of linear series training, abstract stimuli, and five‐member classes. The present study taught the same note taking strategy using an intervention package including video illustration, voice‐over instructions, and feedback to eight college students. Participants were taught to construct the GO during MTS‐BRT with three three‐member classes of familiar stimuli. Then the effects of MTS‐BRT alone with three five‐member classes of abstract stimuli was evaluated. Participants efficiently completed training with familiar stimuli and passed the posttest on the first attempt. With the abstract stimuli, participants engaged in GO construction during MTS‐BRT and the six participants that demonstrated high levels of fidelity to the trained note taking strategy passed the posttest on the first attempt. These results replicate findings from Frampton et al. while using a more efficient intervention package. Benefits of teaching overt mediation responses are discussed as well as future directions for translation to applied contexts.

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AbstractSmartphones are highly complex machines serving multiple purposes. Although access to different applications may be a source of inspiration and may lead to increased well‐being, excessive screen time usage can lead to increased stress, reduced physical activity, and neck and shoulder discomfort. The purpose of the present study was to evaluate the effects of (a) goal setting, (b) turning off notifications, and (c) sharing information about screen time with peers on smartphone usage in a sample of young adults who reported interest in reducing their smartphone usage. Goal setting and turning off notifications for social media applications effectively reduced smartphone usage for five out of seven participants. Sharing information with peers did not lead to decreased smartphone usage. Follow‐up measures showed an increase in smartphone usage compared to the intervention phases. With only a few studies on strategies to reduce smartphone usage within behavior analysis, the current study expands the literature and provides directions for future studies.

AbstractThe purpose of the current study was to systematically replicate the independent variable used in Moore et al.'s (2015) experiment using sensory integration therapy (SIT) as a treatment for automatically maintained stereotypy. According to sensory integration theory, providing certain sensory experiences to individuals with autism can change their repetitive behavior. Despite the lack of research supporting SIT as a valid treatment to reduce episodes of stereotypy in individuals with autism spectrum disorder (ASD), it remains a common treatment in most schools and centers designed for these individuals. The study was conducted with three preschool students with ASD using a multiple baseline design across participants to test for a functional relation between the independent variable, the participants' individualized, prescribed sensory diets and the dependent variable, their episodes of stereotypy in morning and afternoon sessions. The results do not support the use of a sensory diet as a treatment for stereotypy.

Abstract Four experiments assessed the effects of simultaneous point gains and losses on human responding on a moving response button. Experiments 1 and 2 examined the effects of point loss arranged in variable‐time (VT) and variable‐interval (VI) schedules on persistence. For that purpose, a multiple schedule was in force. One component had point gains only, and the other had point gains and losses. The net reinforcement rate was equated across components by arranging greater point gains in the gains‐plus‐losses component. Increases in the speed of the moving response button disrupted responding during test sessions. No differential persistence between point‐gains and point‐gains‐and‐loss conditions was observed during Experiments 1 and 2. To ensure that point losses could function as punishers, Experiments 3 and 4 compared the effects of point loss arranged in fixed‐ratio (FR) or VI schedules on response rate and persistence. The FR and VI point loss decreased the response rate during Experiment 3 but did not produce differential persistence in Experiment 4. These results suggest that point loss decreases response rate but does not weaken persistence more than gains strengthen persistence.

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