Descriptive Analysis of the Use of Punishment-Based Techniques with Children Diagnosed with Autism Spectrum Disorder

Abstract

Punishment is any stimulus change following a response that decreases the probability of that response occurring in similar situations in the future. Punishment-based techniques (i.e., techniques developed based upon the functional definition of punishment) are effective at decreasing undesired behavior. Despite the documented effectiveness, there have been several concerns about the use of punishment techniques (e.g., potential negative side effects such as aggression and problems of generalization). As a result, the use of punishment techniques (e.g., saying “no”) have been avoided within clinical settings for children diagnosed with autism spectrum disorder (ASD). The purpose of this descriptive analysis was to evaluate how punishment techniques were used within a clinical setting for 15 students diagnosed with ASD. The results showed that although punishment techniques (e.g., saying “no” or removal of a token) occurred frequently, the students rarely demonstrated negative reactions commonly ascribed to the use of punishment.