Social Play
Contents
- Teaching with Acoustical Guidance During Structured Play Activities
- Using Reinforcement to Increase Appropriate Vocalization During Independent Play
Teaching with Acoustical Guidance During Structured Play Activities
Steve Sparks (2012)
Abstract
I will be using Teaching with Acoustical Guidance (TAG) to reinforce correct chains of behavior during structured play activities. For my project a click will be paired with a child’s preferred reinforcers thus establishing the click as a learned reinforcer. The click will then be used to reinforce components of behaviors necessary for the child to complete different play activities. Baseline data was measured on the percentage of play behaviors the child completed independently.. During the intervention data were collected on the number of independent behaviors emitted after the introduction of the click as a reinforcer. The results show that independent play skills increased across n structured play activities.
Using Reinforcement to Increase Appropriate Vocalization During Independent Play
Katie Bardsley (2015)
Abstract
Language is important during play, which is an essential time for developing social relationships as well as other life skills (Baker, 2000). Behavior analysis has limited applied research using unlearned reinforcers like food for appropriate vocal responses. Lovaas, Koegel, Simmons, & Long (1973) looked at the effects of using of edible reinforcers for appropriate speech and appropriate play and found that both behaviors increased as a result. The current study used a changing criterion single-subject research design to assess the effects of giving a combination of highly-preferred edible reinforcers and praise to a five-year-old girl with autism spectrum disorder (ASD) directly following every appropriate vocalization she made during independent play. We found that the child’s use of appropriate vocalizations during play increased with the use of edible and social reinforcement and maintained as we thinned the Lag schedule of reinforcement of edibles. This research is beneficial to the field of behavior analysis as it sheds light on how effective unlearned reinforcers can be used to increase the frequency of appropriate vocalizations in children with ASD.
Keywords
social play, vocalization, pairing, autism