Teaching Preschoolers with Autism to Self-Monitor Their Social Interactions: An Analysis of Results in Home and School Settings

Abstract

This study examined the effects of a self-monitoring intervention on the social interactions of 3 preschool boys with autism. A multiple baseline across both school and home settings was used to examine several experimental conditions. First, each child with autism participated in daily 5-minute play activities with one nondisabled peer or sibling during an initial baseline period. Following their conduct of social skills training, teachers and parents implemented an intervention that encompassed adult prompting, edible reinforcement contingent on children's positive exchanges, and target children's self-monitoring of their own social behaviors. Three primary results were obtained. First, the self-monitoring package increased each target child's interactions with his peers and/or siblings. Second, the school and home procedures produced comparable impacts on some dimensions of children's social behaviors, but other outcomes were affected differentially. Finally, both adult prompts and reinforcement were successfully reduced or faded within the school and home intervention settings.

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