Functional Communication Training Using Assistive Devices: Recruiting Natural Communities of Reinforcement

Abstract

We evaluated the effectiveness of functional communication training (FCT) as an intervention for the problem behavior exhibited by 5 students with severe disabilities both in school and in the community. Following an assessment of the function of their problem behavior, the students were taught to use assistive communication devices in school to request the objects and activities that presumably were maintaining their behavior. Multiple baseline data collected across the students indicated that not only did the students use their devices successfully, but the intervention also reduced their problem behavior. In addition, data from community settings showed generalization to untrained community members. These results replicate other successful efforts to use FCT with individuals having limited communication skills, and demonstrate the value of teaching skills to recruit natural communities of reinforcement in order to generalize intervention effects to meaningful nontraining environments.

Parent-Implemented Behavioral Interventions for Challenging Behavior of Young Children with Developmental Disabilities: A Review of Effective Approaches

“…In addition to the improvements in children's challenging behavior, a few studies (i.e., Moes & Frea, 2000Symon, 2005) reported concomitant positive outcomes that showed that children's communicative skills increased during or after parent-implemented intervention phases. This supported assumptions on the communicative function of challenging behavior of children with disabilities (Durand, 1999). In other words, the acquisition of appropriate communication skills by children seemed to help reduce challenging behavior.…”

Reinforcement Schedule Thinning Following Functional Communication Training: Review and Recommendations

“…Our review of 76 studies on FCT published between 1985 and 2009 revealed that only 19 studies (29%) included a description of a schedule thinning phase. In some studies, schedule thinning was not necessary because participants did not use the alternative communication response excessively or inappropriately (e.g., Durand, 1999); however, most studies that did not include schedule thinning did not comment on this issue. Of the 19 studies that included schedule thinning, a total of 52 applications 1 of FCT with schedule thinning were described.…”

Assistive Technology for People with Autism Spectrum Disorders

“…This finding was most likely related to the fact that the community-based listeners were not sign literate, but they were able to interpret the persons' picture-based communications. In a later study, Durand (1999) found that unfamiliar listeners responded appropriately (without training) to the SGD-based communication initiations of five students with developmental disabilities. While these findings suggest that both low-and high-tech assistive communication technologies may be effective in community setting with unfamiliar listeners, there are relatively few studies into this important clinical issue, especially regarding the use of CBI and the newer generation of iPad-based SGDs.…”