A comparison of leisure skills training procedures for the mentally retarded

Teaching students with developmental disabilities to operate an iPod Touch(®) to listen to music

We evaluated an intervention procedure for teaching three students with developmental disabilities to independently operate a portable multimedia device (i.e., an iPod Touch(®)) to listen to music. The intervention procedure included the use of video modeling, which was presented on the same iPod Touch(®) that the students were taught to operate to listen to music. Four phases (i.e., baseline, intervention, fading, and follow-up) were arranged in accordance with a delayed multiple-probe across participants design. During baseline, the students performed from 25 to 62.5% of the task analyzed steps correctly. With intervention, all three students correctly performed 80-100% of the steps and maintained this level of performance when video modeling was removed and during follow-up. The findings suggest that the video modeling procedure was effective for teaching the students to independently operate a portable multimedia device to access age-appropriate leisure content.

"Say Cheese": teaching photography skills to adults with developmental disabilities

We evaluated a video prompting procedure to teach adults with developmental disabilities to take a digital photograph and print it using a laptop computer and a printer. Participants were four men with developmental disabilities. Training was conducted at the participants' residential facility. During baseline, participants were told to take a photograph, but were given no other instruction. During intervention, participants received instruction using a video prompting procedure. Video prompting consisted of watching a clip of each step of the task analysis and then having the opportunity to imitate that step. Video prompting was evaluated using a multiple-probe across participants design. Following acquisition, video prompting was removed to assess maintenance at 2, 4 and 8 weeks and at 6 months. During naturalistic probes, participants had the opportunity to take a picture of their choice of flora, surroundings or persons. All four participants learned to take and print a digital photograph with the video prompting procedures. The skills generalized to novel situations and were maintained at each follow-up probe. These data suggest that video prompting may be an effective instructional strategy for teaching digital photography skills to adults with developmental disabilities.

Using independence training to teach independent living skills to children and young men with visual impairments

Two groups of students with visual impairments were taught various independent living skills. Of the 7 students, 5 also had a diagnosis of mental retardation. One group (3 first graders) was taught the tasks of folding a shirt, making an emergency telephone call, and spreading soft foods with a knife. The other group (4 young men) was taught to increase leisure skills through three different leather-work tasks. Independence training was conducted in a group format and included social learning components (e.g., self-evaluation, peer evaluation and reinforcement) in addition to traditional operant procedures (e.g., modeling, prompting). However, because of the presence of visual impairments, a physical and verbal modification of modeling was used, whereby the subject was physically guided through the steps and simultaneously provided with a narration of the steps. A multiple baseline design across behaviors demonstrated the efficacy of the comprehensive training package in training various independent living skills to the two groups of visually impaired and mentally retarded students. Social validity measures demonstrated the clinical significance of the subsequent changes in behavioral skills. Follow-up data collected 10 months after the completion of training indicated a good degree of maintenance. The current positive results show that training procedures used exclusively with persons with mental retardation can be modified and be effective with a different and younger population, while targeting different independent living skills.

Teaching a functional leisure skill cluster to rehabilitation clients: the art of macrame

Disabled people often do not use leisure time productively. Past research has focused on teaching specific recreational activities isolated from related skills that would provide subjects a functional independent living repertoire. In the present study disabled subjects were taught the art of macrame. Additionally, they role-played related shopping skills such as buying materials, engaging in appropriate social-interpersonal skills, making monetary transactions, and securing their own transportation to and from the store. Subjects were taught six basic macrame knots using an instructional manual, series of error-correction procedures, and social reinforcement. After mastering those basic knots they independently used the instructional materials to make three complete macrame projects without direct instruction on the projects themselves. Subjects also demonstrated skill maintenance and generalization by making a novel project after independently engaging in all relevant shopping behavior. Two varieties of the multiple baseline design were employed. The importance of teaching a leisure skill cluster and adapting instructional materials were emphasized.

Research on imitation in mentally retarded persons: theory-bound or ecological validity run amuck?

Research on imitation in mentally retarded persons was examined to assess whether the bulk of the research had been aimed at theory confirmation and/or was ecologically valid. Sixty-seven studies, mostly published between 1975 and 1980, were reviewed within the framework of the Yando, Seitz, and Zigler (1978) two-factor developmental theory of imitation. It was concluded that most of the research on imitation in mentally retarded persons was not theoretical, but was ecologically valid. The failure of a dominant theoretical framework has led to a lack of systematic and programmatic effort, thus hampering the applied potential of modeling and imitation in the education and training of mentally retarded individuals.