EFFECTS OF NONCONTINGENT MUSIC ON VOCAL STEREOTYPY AND TOY MANIPULATION IN CHILDREN WITH AUTISM SPECTRUM DISORDERS |
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| Authors: | Ingrid E. Sladeczek John T. Rapp |
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| Affiliation: | 1. Department of Educational and Counselling Psychology, McGill University, , Montreal, QC, H3A 1Y2 Canada;2. Department of Community Psychology and Educational Leadership, St. Cloud State University, , MN, 56301‐4498 USA |
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| Abstract: | Noncontingent music has been shown to reduce engagement in vocal stereotypy in children with autism spectrum disorders, but its effects on appropriate collateral behavior remain unknown. Given that noncontingent music is typically implemented during periods of free play, clinicians may be concerned with the effects of the intervention on toy manipulation. Thus, we examined the immediate and subsequent effects of noncontingent music on engagement in vocal stereotypy and toy manipulation in four children with autism spectrum disorders by using a three‐component multiple schedule combined with a multi‐element design. The results suggest that noncontingent music (i) reduced immediate engagement in vocal stereotypy for three of four participants, (ii) never increased subsequent engagement in vocal stereotypy, and (iii) produced idiosyncratic effects on immediate and subsequent engagement in toy manipulation for two participants. The clinical implications of the results are discussed in terms of improving the treatment of vocal stereotypy using noncontingent music. Copyright © 2012 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd. |
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