Effects of Differential Reinforcement of Short Latencies on Response Latency, Task Completion, and Accuracy of an Adolescent With Autism

• In Event: Roundtable Session 73
  In Roundtable Session: Improving Outcomes for Students With Autism

Abstract

Children with Autism Spectrum Disorder (ASD) are faced with many challenging behaviors that impede their learning. One commonly reported problem behavior is noncompliance, defined as a delay in response (latency), decrease in rate of responding (fluency), or failure to complete a task. This failure to comply in an appropriate amount of time is a primary factor for a child’s exclusion from the community, poor social interactions, as well as limited instructional opportunities. This study examined the response latency, task completion, and accuracy in responding of an adolescent with ASD utilizing a changing criterion design. Results indicated that response latency decreased from an average of 4.6 seconds to an average of 2.4 seconds.

Authors

• Melanie Donohue, The University of Memphis

• Laura Baylot Casey, The University of Memphis