An Algorithm to Evaluate Methodological Rigor and Risk of Bias in Single-Case Studies

Critical appraisal scales play an important role in evaluating methodological rigor (MR) of between-groups and single-case designs (SCDs). For intervention research this forms an essential basis for ascertaining the strength of evidence. Yet, few such scales provide classifications that take into account the differential weighting of items contributing to internal validity. This study aimed to develop an algorithm derived from the Risk of Bias in N-of-1 Trials (RoBiNT) Scale to classify MR and risk of bias magnitude in SCDs. The algorithm was applied to 46 SCD experiments. Two experiments (4%) were classified as Very High MR, 14 (30%) as High, 5 (11%) as Moderate, 2 (4%) as Fair, 2 (4%) as Low, and 21 (46%) as Very Low. These proportions were comparable to the What Works Clearinghouse classifications: 13 (28%) met standards, 8 (17%) met standards with reservations, and 25 (54%) did not meet standards. There was strong association between the two classification systems.

Guidelines for Facilitating Direct Instruction of Generalized Social Behavior: Teaching the General Case

Social deficits are a common feature in individuals with low incidence disabilities. Current solutions used to teach social skills are not always effective, especially when it comes to generalizing these skills to novel contexts. General case programming (GCP) is an instructional methodology founded on the science-based tenets of Direct Instruction, designed to clearly communicate the multiple contexts and response variations a learner is likely to encounter in their complex social environments. The purpose of this article is to describe how GCP can be utilized to help program for generalization of social skills.

A Systematic Review of Interventions to Promote Varied Social-Communication Behavior in Individuals With Autism Spectrum Disorder

Individuals with autism spectrum disorder (ASD) may engage in repetitive social-communication behaviors that can limit their skill acquisition, access to reinforcement, and access to less restrictive settings. Basic and applied research indicates that variability, or the extent to which responses are topographically different from one another, is influenced by antecedent and consequence interventions. Our purpose in this study is to systematically review the literature on interventions to increase variable social-communication behaviors in individuals with ASD. We identified 32 studies through a database search and screened them using the What Works Clearinghouse (WWC) Single-Case Design Standards. Eighteen studies containing 55 cases met WWC Design Standards. We coded the descriptive characteristics and strength of evidence based on visual analysis from each of these 18 studies and calculated effect sizes using Tau-U. Our results indicate that most cases (65%) provide strong evidence of a functional relation between the interventions and varied social-communication behaviors, and the median Tau-U was .82. We discuss the implications of our results for practice and for future research on interventions designed to increase variability with this population.

An evaluation of the additive effects of lag schedules of reinforcement

Lag schedules of reinforcement represent an increasingly researched strategy for addressing restricted and repetitive social communication of individuals with autism spectrum disorder (ASD). Although the body of literature suggests that lag schedules of reinforcement are generally effective for this purpose, studies have varied in their utilization of verbal rules describing the contingency. Furthermore, research has yet to evaluate generalized effects of lag schedules of reinforcement to social communication with peers. This study evaluated the implementation of a social skills curriculum, modified to incorporate lag schedules of reinforcement, on novel responding of participants with ASD. Participants attended training twice per week, with probes of novel responding collected with both researchers and non-participating peers. Results indicate that social skills training that incorporated lag schedules of reinforcement generally resulted in larger increases in novel responding than social skills training alone. Furthermore, effects of training generalized to novel responding to non-participant peers.

Enhancing appropriate and variable responding in young children with autism spectrum disorder

OBJECTIVE

The present study utilized lag schedules of reinforcement, in conjunction with training multiple exemplars and provision of prompts, to promote appropriate variability of social skills.

METHODS

Participants included in three children between the ages of 5 and 7 with ASD. Participants attended a social skills training program twice per week for eight weeks. A multiple probe design across target social skills was used to assess the effects of intervention.

RESULTS

Findings indicate that training multiple exemplars alone did not appreciably increase appropriate and variable responding, whereas the addition of lag schedules of reinforcement and prompting to training multiple exemplars resulted in appropriate and variable responding that exceeded baseline levels.

CONCLUSION

Use of lag schedule of reinforcement in conjunction with prompts was more effective than multiple exemplar training in isolation for increasing appropriate variability of social skills.