Research summaries for autism therapy: pivotal response training

definition of pivotal response training: Type of training in which certain behaviors are assumed to be crucial for other behaviors. These pivotal behaviors are then targeted so that the behaviors that depend upon them can change as well.
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Brief Report: Toward Refinement of a Predictive Behavioral Profile for Treatment Outcome in Children with Autism, Summarized Mar 27, 2009

Future research may allow therapists to know in advance which type of applied behavior analysis (ABA therapy) is most likely to work for any given child with autism.... The authors were able to predict which children would respond to pivotal response training, but not which ones would respond to discrete trial training. The authors note that all children were first exposed to pivotal response training and then to discrete trial training and this may have influenced the results.... Read more...

Social Validity of Behavioral Practices in the Treatment of Autism – A Review of the Super Nanny, Summarized Mar 12, 2009

Applied behavior analysis (ABA) therapy may be viewed by society as a good treatment for children with autism.

Very little research has been done to see if society thinks that ABA therapy is a good therapy for children with autism (social validity). Therapies that are socially valid are more likely to be started, adhered to, and then used by others. The purpose of this study was to see if a type of ABA therapy (pivotal response training) would be viewed by a group of college students as a good therapy for a child with autism. The students watched the television show Super Nanny to see ABA therapy used on a child with autism. The students were given questions to answer both before watching the show and after watching the show. Read more...

Recess is Time-In: Using Peers to Improve Social Skills of Children with Autism, Summarized Jul 29, 2008

Peers and teachers can join together to teach social skills to children with autism during recess.

This study looked at whether or not a type of applied behavior analysis (pivotal response training) could be used to teach play skills to children with autism. The therapy plan used peers to teach social skills during recess play time. The program involved peers (two peers per child with autism) who were trained to give responses. The training of peers and teachers took two weeks. Both children in the study improved their social skills during recess time. Read more...

Using Naturalistic Procedures to Enhance Learning in Individuals with Autism: A Focus on Generalized Teaching within the School Setting, Summarized Nov 16, 2007

Naturalistic settings (as opposed to tightly controlled settings) can help children with autism learn to generalize (apply new skills to new situations).

Teaching children with autism can be hard. Teachers have to find the balance between teaching new skills and teaching children to apply the learned skills to new situations. This review article describes when it is best to focus on the new skill and when it is best to focus on applying the new skill. The authors also describe tools for school psychologists, teachers and others looking to learn more about naturalistic settings. The authors list books that describe in more detail the three most popular naturalistic therapy techniques: incidental teaching, pivotal response training, and script fading. Read more...

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