The Effects of Tact Training on Stereotypic Vocalizations in Children With Autism

Abstract

This study was a systematic extension of Karmali, Greer, Nuzzulo-Gomez, Ross, and Rivera-Valdes (2005) and Ahearn, Clark, MacDonald, and Chung (2007). We investigated the effects of a tact correction procedure on stereotypic vocalizations in 4 children diagnosed with autism who ranged in age from 6 to 16 years. Participants had limited vocal verbal repertoires and were primarily dependent on prompts for the emission of appropriate vocalizations. A multiple-baseline design across participants was used. Data were collected on instances of stereotypic vocalizations and independent tacts during baseline conditions and on instances of stereotypic vocalizations, independent tacts, and echoic-tacts during intervention. Procedural integrity and social validity data were also obtained. The results indicated a decrease in stereotypic vocalizations for 3 of the 4 participants and a slight increase in appropriate vocal verbal behavior (i.e., tacting) for all participants. The study provides support for the use of tact correction procedures to decrease stereotypic vocalizations and increase appropriate vocalizations in children with autism.

Effects of Noncontingent Social Interaction on Immediate and Subsequent Engagement in Vocal and Motor Stereotypy in Children With Autism

“…Anecdotally, we noted multiple instances of such behavior with Jessie and Buddy. Nevertheless, future research should evaluate how appropriate language is affected by this intervention (e.g., see Guzinski, Cihon, & Eshleman, 2012).…”

To What Extent Do Practitioners Need to Treat Stereotypy During Academic Tasks?

“…In this phase, we evaluated the extent to which providing consequences for engaging in stereotypy decreased Sam’s motor and vocal stereotypy. We opted to evaluate PPOC with Sam because prior studies have shown that error-correction with multiple repetitions of correct or appropriate responding can decrease stereotypy and increase appropriate toy play (e.g., Foxx & Azrin, 1973; Harris & Wolchik, 1979; Peters & Thompson, 2013) as well as increase correct responding during discrete-trial teaching (e.g., Guzinski, Cihon, & Eshleman, 2012).…”

Comparison of most-to-least to error correction to teach tacting to two children diagnosed with autism

“…Tacting is a commonly taught skill to individuals diagnosed with autism (e.g., Fentress & Lerman, 2012;Guzinski, Cihon, & Eshleman, 2012;May, Hawkins, & Dymond, 2013). Teaching tacting is important, as it can lead to better communication as well as better socialization between children with autism and their peers.…”