Effects of Language of Instruction on Response Accuracy and Challenging Behavior in a Child with Autism

Discrete trial training was delivered using English and Spanish languages to a student with autism from a Spanish-speaking family. An alternating treatments design was used to examine the effects of language of instruction on the child’s response accuracy and challenging behavior. More correct responses and fewer challenging behaviors occurred when instruction was delivered in Spanish compared to English. Results suggest that the language of instruction may be an important variable even when a student initially presents with very little spoken language and comparable scores on English and Spanish standardized language assessments.     

Use of Computer-Based Interventions to Teach Communication Skills to Children with Autism Spectrum Disorders: A Systematic Review

The purpose of this review is to provide a systematic analysis of studies involving the use of computer-based interventions (CBI) to teach communication skills to children with autism spectrum disorders (ASD). This review evaluates intervention outcomes, appraises the certainty of evidence, and describes software and system requirements for each included study. This review has three main aims: (a) to evaluate the evidence-base regarding CBI, (b) to inform and guide practitioners interested in using CBI, and (c) to stimulate and guide future research aimed at improving the efficiency and effectiveness of CBI in communication for individuals with ASD. Results suggest that CBI should not yet be considered a researched-based approach to teaching communication skills to individuals with ASD. However, CBI does seem a promising practice that warrants future research.     

Transient beneficial effects of excitatory theta burst stimulation in a patient with phonological agraphia after left supramarginal gyrus infarction

We report a patient showing isolated phonological agraphia after an ischemic stroke involving the left supramarginal gyrus (SMG). In this patient, we investigated the effects of focal repetitive transcranial magnetic stimulation (rTMS) given as theta burst stimulation (TBS) over the left SMG, corresponding to the Brodmann area (BA) 40. The patient and ten control subjects performed a dictational words and nonwords writing task before, and 5 and 30 min after they received excitatory intermittent TBS (iTBS) over the left BA 40, the right hemisphere homologous to BA 40, the Wernicke’s area, or the primary visual cortex.ITBS over the left SMG lead to a brief facilitation of phonological non-words writing to dictation. This case study report illustrates that rTMS is able to influence, among other language functions, the phonological loading processes during the written language production in stroke patients.     

Complexity and coherency: integrating information in the brain

The brains of higher mammals are extraordinary integrative devices. Signals from large numbers of functionally specialized groups of neurons distributed over many brain regions are integrated to generate a coherent, multimodal scene. Signals from the environment are integrated with ongoing, patterned neural activity that provides them with a meaningful context. We review recent advances in neurophysiology and neuroimaging that are beginning to reveal the neural mechanisms of integration. In addition, we discuss concepts and measures derived from information theory that lend a theoretical basis to the notion of complexity as integration of information and suggest new experimental tests of these concepts.     

Promoting fluency of performance of self‐help tasks with a person with multiple disabilities

A combination of favorite songs and verbal prompts (automatically delivered through portable technology) was used to promote fluency of performance of self‐help tasks in a young man with multiple disabilities. Data indicated that the intervention was effective in reducing the time required by the man to complete the self‐help tasks (dressing and washing). A momentary withdrawal of the prompts after about 6 months from the beginning of the study was accompanied by performance deterioration. Implications of the findings are discussed. Copyright © 2002 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

Short-term limb immobilization affects motor performance

C. Ghez, J. Gordon, and M. R Ghilardi (1995; J. Gordon, M. R Ghilardi, & C. Ghez, 1995; R. L. Sainburg, M. R Ghilardi, H. Poizner, & C. Ghez, 1995) have found that proprio-ceptive deafferentation impairs feedforward and feedback mechanisms that control reaching movements. In the present study, the authors found immobilization-induced changes in limb kinematics, including joint motion, in 32 healthy participants who performed out-and-back movements before and after 0, 6, or 12 hr of immobilization of the left arm. Control participants did not undergo the arm immobilization procedure. Immobilization for 12 hr, but not 6 hr, caused trajectories with increased hand-path areas and altered interjoint coordination. The abnormalities were smaller in amplitude but similar in quality to those reported in deafferented patients (R. L. Sainburg et al.). In addition, movement onset point significantly drifted after immobilization. Thus, short-term limb disuse can affect interjoint coordination by acting on feedforward mechanisms. These behavioral alterations are potentially related to cortical plastic changes.     

A man with multiple disabilities using a head‐turning response to reduce the effects of his drooling

A man with multiple disabilities was taught to perform a head‐turning response to activate optic sensors embedded in a small spongy structure at his shoulder and produce preferred stimuli. By touching the spongy structure with chin and mouth (i.e., to activate the sensors), the man would clean these areas thus curbing the effects of his drooling. Data showed that the man increased the frequency of his head‐turning responses and reduced drooling effects (chin wetness) through the intervention and a 3‐month follow‐up. Forty university students, who were involved in a social validation assessment, indicated that the intervention was suitable and enjoyable to the man, had a social/educational function, and represented an approach that they supported. Copyright © 2008 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

DISCREPANCY IN FUNCTIONAL ANALYSIS RESULTS ACROSS TWO SETTINGS: IMPLICATIONS FOR INTERVENTION DESIGN

Functional analyses that were conducted in two settings (playground and classroom) indicated that problem behavior was sensitive to adult attention on the playground and tangible items in the classroom. Attention‐ and tangible‐based interventions were designed based on the results from each of the assessment environments and were compared. The attention‐based intervention was more effective on the playground, and the tangible‐based intervention was more effective in the classroom. Findings are discussed in regards to the generality of functional analysis results across environments.     

Evaluation of a Video Prompting and Fading Procedure for Teaching Dish Washing Skills to Adults with Developmental Disabilities

We evaluated a video prompting and fading procedure for teaching three adults with developmental disabilities to wash dishes. Video prompting involved showing video clips depicting each step of the task. All three adults reached 90–100% correct when video prompting was implemented. Following acquisition, video prompting was withdrawn, but performance deteriorated. Subsequently, a 3-step fading procedure was implemented in which the separate video clips were merged to form larger, multi-step segments of video. Performance reached 80–100% correct as the video prompts were re-applied and then faded. Performance decreased at the 3-month follow-up when prompting was removed, but stabilized at 80–90% correct when the third step in the fading sequence was reinstated. These data suggest a promising approach for fading video prompts.