Evaluating the function of social interaction for children with autism

On the Identification and Use of Social versus Nonsocial Reinforcers: A Review of Research Practices

Recent research has developed efficacious methods for identifying individualized social reinforcers and utilizing social reinforcers may be beneficial for several reasons. However, the relative likelihood of utilizing social versus nonsocial reinforcers in behavior-analytic research remains unclear. The aim of this study was to evaluate how likely behavior analysts are to employ social versus nonsocial reinforcers in the context of research. We pursued this aim by evaluating the types of reinforcers utilized in research published during the past 9 years in five applied behavior-analytic journals. Results suggest that researchers in applied behavior analysis have been more likely to use individualized nonsocial reinforcers than individualized social reinforcers. Moreover, when social reinforcers were employed, they were much more likely to be generic and not individualized. These data suggest there is room for improvement in the types of programmed reinforcement contingencies we use in research and ways of facilitating such improvement are discussed. Implications and directions for future research evaluating current practices, demonstrating the utility of social reinforcers, and comparing the utility of social versus nonsocial reinforcers are also discussed.

Supplementary Information

The online version contains supplementary material available at 10.1007/s40614-024-00426-0.

Optimizing Learning Outcomes when Teaching Sight Words using Fruits and Vegetables as Reinforcers

Reinforcers frequently chosen may not offer the same nutritional value as fruits and vegetables. Prior researchers have explored preferences and the effectiveness of salty and sweet foods compared to fruits and vegetables, but the criteria for demonstrating effectiveness have often been arbitrary rather than academic. In addition, it remains unclear how the integration of these potentially nutritious reinforcers might affect learning or hinder learning efficiency. Therefore, the objective of this study was to investigate whether introducing fruits or vegetables as potential reinforcers could sustain responding achieved with salty or sweet reinforcers. The implications of this model for incorporating a variety of reinforcers while maintaining responding are also discussed.

Evaluation of a discrimination training procedure for establishing praise as a reinforcer

We evaluated the effects of a discrimination training procedure for establishing praise as a reinforcer for three children with autism spectrum disorder. After establishing two praise words as discriminative stimuli and two nonsense words as S-deltas, we evaluated whether the stimuli then functioned as reinforcers by presenting each stimulus as a consequence for a new response. The results demonstrated that previously neutral praise words functioned as reinforcers and nonsense words did not. As in previous studies on establishing reinforcers, the effects were transitory, and praise words did not continue to function as reinforcers after repeated exposure without discrimination training. Recommendations are provided for future research and maintaining reinforcement effects.

Using Risk Ratios to Quantify Potential Behavior-Environment Relations

Behavior-environment functional relations are the units of explanation in applied behavior analysis (ABA). Whether hypothesized experimentally or descriptively, quantification of putative functional relations improves our ability to predict and influence behavior. Risk ratios are an accessible, straightforward quantitative analysis that can serve this purpose. They have been employed to great effect in other fields (e.g., medicine, public health), but are rarely used within ABA. In this tutorial, we describe risk ratios and how they are calculated, discuss why risk ratios are well suited for quantifying behavior-environment relations, and illustrate their utility and applicability across five demonstrations from real clinical cases. Recommendations for the use of risk ratios in research and practice are discussed.

A Continuum of Methods for Assessing Preference for Conversation Topics

Among individuals with a diagnosis of autism spectrum disorders (ASD), conversation topic preference could influence social skills in many ways. For example, an individual with advanced vocal-verbal skills, but just learning to join a conversation, might be less inclined to participate if the topic chosen is not preferred. However, commonly used preference assessment procedures have not been applied to evaluating conversation-topic preferences. Therefore, the purpose of the current experiment was to conduct three different types of assessments that varied in efficiency, the degree of certainty they allow, and clients with whom they are likely to be applicable and acceptable. In particular, we conducted a self-report preference assessment, a multiple-stimulus-without-replacement (MSWO) preference assessment, and a response restriction conversation assessment (RRCA). Each assessment identified a preferred topic of conversation, but the RRCA was the only assessment that was able to differentiate which topics would maintain a conversation. Implications for assessment and intervention procedures related to complex social skills are discussed and directions for future research are proposed.

Secondary and within-session analyses to improve the feasibility and precision of assessments of sociability

Previous research has improved the feasibility and precision of assessments of sociability, but further progress is warranted. The purpose of this study was to evaluate secondary measures and within-session analyses to further improve the feasibility and precision of assessments of sociability. We reanalyzed previously published assessment results to evaluate whether initial and conditional (i.e., on therapist movement) approach and avoidance may approximate established continuous measures. Results indicated that both measures were strongly correlated with the percentage of session on the social side and may provide a more feasible approximation for use in clinical practice. We also conducted within-session analyses of these assessment results to evaluate whether they may improve precision or clarity. Correlational and matching-based analyses of the within-session data suggest that clear conclusions may be drawn from the results of a single session and facilitate a richer understanding of sociability. Implications for clinical practice and future research are discussed.

A review of methods of assessing preference for social stimuli

Research on preference and reinforcer assessments has historically focused on the evaluation of edible and leisure reinforcers, but the identification and use of individualized social reinforcers may be beneficial for several reasons. Recently, many studies have evaluated methods of assessing preference for social stimuli. The procedures and outcomes across these studies have varied greatly, and the current state of evidence for methods of assessing preference for social stimuli remains unclear. Thus, we conducted a review to synthesize all previous research in this area, evaluate the evidence for the utility of this general methodology, and identify factors that may influence its utility. Our results suggest that social preference assessments are likely to produce results that correspond with reinforcer assessment hierarchies. Preference assessment modality was one factor that influenced utility; video-based preference assessments had greater correspondence with reinforcer assessments than did other modalities. Directions for future research and implications for the use of social preference assessments in research and practices are discussed.

The matching law provides a quantitative description of social time allocation in children with autism

Recent research has developed and evaluated assessments of sociability in which time allocation near or away from an adult who initiates social interactions is used to characterize the participant as social, indifferent, or avoidant of social interaction. Though these qualitative outcomes have been useful, no studies have evaluated methods of obtaining more quantitative measures of sociability. The matching law has been demonstrated to describe a wide range of human behavior and may also be useful in describing social time allocation. We adapted the matching law and assessment of sociability procedures with the aim of providing a more precise, quantitative measure of sociability. We fitted the matching equation to the social time allocation data of 8 children with autism spectrum disorder. The equation was effective in quantifying sociability, accounted for a large proportion of variance in participants' behavior, did so equally well for participants who were social and avoidant, and provided a more sensitive measure relative to those used in previous research. The implications of this methodology, its potential utility, and directions for future research are discussed.

Increasing social time allocation and concomitant effects on mands, item engagement, and rigid or repetitive behavior

Recent research has developed methods of assessing the function of generic, nonindividualized social interactions. The purpose of this type of assessment is to provide a measure of how an individual may respond to the types of interactions readily available in the natural environment. To date, no research has evaluated how the social time allocation of individuals for whom generic interactions are neutral or aversive could be improved. Moreover, no research has included additional dependent variables that may be functionally related to social time allocation. In the current study, we evaluated the effects of initiating preferred, individualized social interactions on the social time allocation of 3 participants for whom generic interactions functioned as neutral or aversive stimuli. The intervention increased social time allocation for all 3 participants. Next, we evaluated the relation between social time allocation and the occurrence of mands, item engagement, and rigid or repetitive behavior using the intervention data as well as secondary analyses of previously published datasets. The occurrence of mands and rigid or repetitive behaviors changed with improvements in social time allocation and were strongly correlated with social time allocation across participants. Implications for future research on, and the clinical use of, this type of assessment and intervention are discussed.

Evaluating the effects of social interaction on the results of preference assessments for leisure items

A variable that may influence the outcomes of stimulus preference assessments (SPAs) is whether social interaction is provided during the stimulus access period. In Experiment 1, we compared the outcomes of a Solitary paired stimulus preference assessment (PSPA) (toys only), Social PSPA (toys plus social interaction), and Combined PSPA (toys alone and toys plus social interaction) to determine whether the addition of social interaction influenced preference for toys in preschool children. In Experiment 2, we conducted a concurrent-operant reinforcer assessment to compare the reinforcing efficacy of stimuli with and without social interaction. Experiment 1 showed preference for toys was stable across assessments (Solitary and Social PSPAs) and most participants preferred toys plus social interaction when compared in a single assessment (Combined PSPA). Experiment 2 showed that results of the Combined PSPA in Experiment 1 predicted the outcome of most participants' reinforcer assessments.