Assessing the Differential Effects of Known and Mystery Rewards in a Preschool-Based Group Contingency

2019 ◽  
Vol 41 (3) ◽  
pp. 256-275
Author(s):  
Elizabeth A. Pokorski ◽  
Erin E. Barton ◽  
Jennifer R. Ledford
Keyword(s):  
Social Interactions ◽  
Severe Disabilities ◽  
Classroom Teachers ◽  
Group Contingency ◽  
Typically Developing ◽  
Typically Developing Children ◽  
Differential Effects ◽  
Differential Outcomes ◽  
Independent Group Contingency ◽  
Previous Group

Group contingencies have been used successfully to modify a variety of behaviors for children with diverse characteristics across multiple settings. However, these interventions have not been applied to increase social interactions (SI) between typically developing children and those with multiple or severe disabilities (MSD). Furthermore, little research has been conducted to examine whether differential outcomes are associated with the type of reward used (known or mystery). The purpose of this study was to examine the differential effects of known versus mystery rewards on the SI of preschool children with and without MSD within an independent group contingency. The findings indicated that although there were no differences in levels of SI between reward types, both were superior to the baseline condition and were viewed as socially valid by classroom teachers and naive raters. In addition, this study was conducted with high methodological quality exceeding that of previous group contingency research conducted in preschool settings and of other studies examining the differential effects of known and mystery rewards. The results provide meaningful information regarding practices that support children with MSD and add to the group contingency literature.

scholarly journals Typically Developing Preschoolers’ Behavior Toward Peers With Disabilities in Inclusive Classroom Contexts

2019 ◽  
Vol 42 (1) ◽  
pp. 49-68
Author(s):  
Soo-Young Hong ◽  
Jungwon Eum ◽  
Yanjie Long ◽  
Chaorong Wu ◽  
Greg Welch
Keyword(s):  
Social Interactions ◽  
Free Play ◽  
Inclusive Classroom ◽  
Typically Developing ◽  
Typically Developing Children ◽  
Outdoor Classroom ◽  
Group Activities ◽  
And Training ◽  
Indoor And Outdoor ◽  
Small Group Activities

This study aimed to investigate typically developing preschoolers’ behavior toward peers with disabilities in inclusive classrooms, focusing on the co-occurrence of the interactions between children with and without disabilities with various classroom contexts. Behaviors of 22 typically developing preschoolers were observed and coded on two different days in both indoor and outdoor classrooms during free play, small group activities, transitions, and meals/snack. Typically developing children interacted with peers with disabilities for a small amount of time; the interactions were significantly more likely in the outdoor classroom, in either child- or teacher-directed activities, and in play activities. There was a lack of adults’ intentional scaffolding for social interactions between children with and without disabilities even when they were near the children. Activity contexts contribute to children’s social behavior, and teachers need more support and training with inclusive and collaborative practices.

Theory of mind in naturalistic conversations between autistic and typically developing children and adolescents

2021 ◽  
Author(s):  
Diana Alkire ◽  
Kathryn A. McNaughton ◽  
Heather Yarger ◽  
Deena Shariq ◽  
Elizabeth Redcay
Keyword(s):  
Theory Of Mind ◽  
Social Interactions ◽  
Rating Scale ◽  
Mental States ◽  
Typically Developing ◽  
Typically Developing Children ◽  
Crucial Component ◽  
Mental State Language ◽  
Strengths And Difficulties ◽  
And Gender

Successful social interactions are assumed to depend on theory of mind (ToM)—the ability to represent others’ mental states—yet most studies of the relation between ToM and social-interactive success rely on non-interactive tasks that do not adequately capture the spontaneous engagement of ToM, a crucial component of everyday social interactions. We addressed this gap by establishing a novel observational rating scale to measure the spontaneous use of ToM (or lack thereof) within naturalistic conversations (conversational ToM, or cToM). In 50 age- and gender-matched dyads of autistic and typically developing children aged 8–16, we assessed cToM during 5-minute, unstructured conversations. We found that ratings on the cToM Negative scale, reflecting ToM-related violations of conversational norms, were negatively associated with two forms of non-interactive ToM: visual-affective and spontaneous. In contrast, the cToM Positive scale, reflecting explicit mental state language and perspective-taking, was not associated with these non-interactive ToM abilities. Furthermore, autistic participants were rated higher than typically developing participants on cToM Negative, but the two groups were rated similarly on cToM Positive. Together, these findings provide insight into multiple aspects of ToM in conversation and reveal a nuanced picture of the relative strengths and difficulties among autistic individuals.

Strategies That Promote Social Relations among Elementary Students with and without Severe Disabilities in Inclusive Schools

1995 ◽  
Vol 62 (2) ◽  
pp. 125-137 ◽  
Author(s):  
Christine L. Salisbury ◽  
Chrysan Gallucci ◽  
Mary M. Palombaro ◽  
Charles A. Peck
Keyword(s):  
General Education ◽  
Social Interactions ◽  
Social Relations ◽  
Severe Disabilities ◽  
Classroom Teachers ◽  
Organizational Supports ◽  
Inclusive Schools ◽  
General Education Classroom ◽  
Moderate To Severe Disabilities ◽  
K 12

Using qualitative research methods, we studied the strategies that general education classroom teachers use to promote the development of positive relationships between children with and without moderate to severe disabilities in inclusive classrooms. We used observations and interviews with teachers, specialists, and administrators in two inclusive schools as bases for identifying five strategies used by classroom teachers: active facilitation of social interactions, empowering children, building a sense of community in the classroom, modeling acceptance, and developing school organizational supports. These practices are discussed in terms of their congruence with broader goals and best practices within K-12 education.

scholarly journals Video-feedback Interventions for Improving Interactions with Individuals with Congenital Deaf blindness: a Systematic Review

2020 ◽  
Vol 6 (1) ◽  
Author(s):  
Saskia Damen ◽  
Meredith Prain ◽  
Marga Martens
Keyword(s):  
Systematic Review ◽  
Social Interactions ◽  
Age Groups ◽  
Video Feedback ◽  
Positive Outcomes ◽  
Typically Developing ◽  
Typically Developing Children ◽  
Communication Partners ◽  
Feedback Interventions ◽  
Future Practice

Video-feedback interventions have been demonstrated to improve communication between typically developing children and their communication partners. Video-feedback approaches are also applied in interventions that aim to improve interactions and communication of people with congenital deafblindness. However, an analysis of the various applications and effectiveness of video-feedback approaches for this target group is required to guide future practice and research. This study reports on a systematic review of studies on video-feedback interventions aimed at improving social interactions with people with congenital deafblindness. The literature was analysed in terms of intervention landscape and procedure, research methodology and outcome. Results show that a variety of video-feedback interventions are being used with all age groups of people with congenital deafblindness in varied settings and with varied communication partners. The data reveal positive outcomes including increased affective involvement, more sustained interaction and shared understanding. Issues including sustainability of approaches and their effects were identified, as well as lack of detail on the video-feedback sessions. While the review revealed positive outcomes, the lack of explicit information on the video-feedback sessions and the co-occurrence of video-feedback with other interventions make it difficult to determine what factors contributed to the positive outcomes. Recommendations are made for future practice and research.

scholarly journals Children with autism observe social interactions in an idiosyncratic manner

2019 ◽  
Author(s):  
Inbar Avni ◽  
Gal Meiri ◽  
Asif Bar-Sinai ◽  
Doron Reboh ◽  
Liora Manelis ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Social Interactions ◽  
Children With Autism ◽  
Autism Spectrum ◽  
Typically Developing ◽  
Body Movements ◽  
Typically Developing Children ◽  
Clinical Sensitivity ◽  
Children With Asd ◽  
Gaze Patterns ◽  
The Mean

AbstractPrevious eye tracking studies have reported that children with autism spectrum disorders (ASD) fixate less on faces in comparison to controls. To properly understand social interactions, however, children must gaze not only at faces, but also at actions, gestures, body movements, contextual details, and objects, thereby creating specific gaze patterns when observing specific interactions. We presented three different movies of social interactions to 111 children (71 with ASD) who watched each of the movies twice. Typically developing children viewed the movies in a remarkably predictable and reproducible manner, exhibiting gaze patterns that were similar to the mean gaze pattern of other controls, with strong correlations across individuals (inter-subject correlations) and across movie presentations (intra-subject correlations). In contrast, children with ASD exhibited significantly more variable/idiosyncratic gaze patterns that differed from the mean gaze pattern of controls and were weakly correlated across individuals and presentations. Most importantly, quantification of gaze idiosyncrasy in individual children, enabled separation of ASD and control children with higher sensitivity and specificity than traditional measures such as time gazing at faces. Individual magnitudes of gaze idiosyncrasy were also significantly correlated with ASD severity and significantly correlated across movies and movie presentations, demonstrating their clinical sensitivity and reliability. These results suggest that gaze idiosyncrasy is a potent behavioral abnormality that characterizes many children with ASD and may contribute to their impaired social development. Quantification of gaze idiosyncrasy in individual children may aid in assessing their ASD severity over time and in response to treatments.Lay SummaryTypically developing children watch movies of social interactions in a reliable and predictable manner, attending faces, gestures, body movements, and objects that are relevant to the social interaction and its narrative. Here, we demonstrate that children with ASD watch such movies with significantly more variable/idiosyncratic gaze patterns that differ across individuals and across movie presentations. We demonstrate that quantifying this variability is a very potent way of identifying children with ASD and determining the severity of their social ASD symptoms.

Age Norms for Auditory-Perceptual Neurophonetic Parameters: A Prerequisite for the Assessment of Childhood Dysarthria

2020 ◽  
Vol 63 (4) ◽  
pp. 1071-1082
Author(s):  
Theresa Schölderle ◽  
Elisabet Haas ◽  
Wolfram Ziegler
Keyword(s):  
Assessment Tool ◽  
Developmental Trajectories ◽  
Voice Quality ◽  
Typically Developing ◽  
Typically Developing Children ◽  
Age Norms ◽  
Elementary School Age ◽  
Speech Characteristics ◽  
Substantial Progress ◽  
Computer Based

Purpose The aim of this study was to collect auditory-perceptual data on established symptom categories of dysarthria from typically developing children between 3 and 9 years of age, for the purpose of creating age norms for dysarthria assessment. Method One hundred forty-four typically developing children (3;0–9;11 [years;months], 72 girls and 72 boys) participated. We used a computer-based game specifically designed for this study to elicit sentence repetitions and spontaneous speech samples. Speech recordings were analyzed using the auditory-perceptual criteria of the Bogenhausen Dysarthria Scales, a standardized German assessment tool for dysarthria in adults. The Bogenhausen Dysarthria Scales (scales and features) cover clinically relevant dimensions of speech and allow for an evaluation of well-established symptom categories of dysarthria. Results The typically developing children exhibited a number of speech characteristics overlapping with established symptom categories of dysarthria (e.g., breathy voice, frequent inspirations, reduced articulatory precision, decreased articulation rate). Substantial progress was observed between 3 and 9 years of age, but with different developmental trajectories across different dimensions. In several areas (e.g., respiration, voice quality), 9-year-olds still presented with salient developmental speech characteristics, while in other dimensions (e.g., prosodic modulation), features typically associated with dysarthria occurred only exceptionally, even in the 3-year-olds. Conclusions The acquisition of speech motor functions is a prolonged process not yet completed with 9 years. Various developmental influences (e.g., anatomic–physiological changes) shape children's speech specifically. Our findings are a first step toward establishing auditory-perceptual norms for dysarthria in children of kindergarten and elementary school age. Supplemental Material https://doi.org/10.23641/asha.12133380

“Shhhh! Alex Has Something To Say”: AAC-SGD Use in the Classroom Setting

2010 ◽  
Vol 19 (4) ◽  
pp. 108-114 ◽  
Author(s):  
Lisa M. Mellman ◽  
Laura S. DeThorne ◽  
Julie A. Hengst
Keyword(s):  
Social Interaction ◽  
Social Interactions ◽  
Augmentative And Alternative Communication ◽  
Classroom Community ◽  
Classroom Observations ◽  
Classroom Teachers ◽  
Classroom Setting ◽  
Alternative Communication ◽  
Structured Interviews ◽  
Missed Opportunities

Abstract The present qualitative study was designed to examine augmentative and alternative communication (AAC) practices, particularly surrounding speech-generating devices (SGDs), in the classroom setting. We focused on three key child participants, their classroom teachers, and associated speech-language pathologists across three different schools. In addition to semi-structured interviews of all participants, six classroom observations per child were completed. Data were coded according to both pre-established and emergent themes. Four broad themes emerged: message-focused AAC use, social interactions within the classroom community, barriers to successful AAC-SGD use, and missed opportunities. Findings revealed a lack of SGD use in the classroom for two children as well as limited social interaction across all cases. We conclude by highlighting the pervasive sense of missed opportunities across these classroom observations and yet, at the same time, the striking resiliency of communicative effort in these cases.

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