Facemask Wearing and Social Distancing: A Test of Risk Compensation Theory

Studies suggest facemask wearing and social distancing are convenient ways to prevent the spread of the coronavirus. However, people might feel an unwarranted sense of safety when engaging in these COVID-prevention behaviors, as predicted by risk compensation theory. Our field research evaluated whether risk compensation influences facemask wearing and social distancing. The evidence-based theory of risk homeostasis presumes individuals will take more risks when they feel more protected. Therefore, someone wearing a facemask should feel safer and subsequently stand closer to others. Research students tested this theory by observing facemask wearing and social distancing in various locations. These students recorded three different observations in a Qualtrics survey: 1) an individual’s gender, 2) mask-wearing behavior (wearing a facemask, wearing a facemask incorrectly, or not wearing a facemask), and 3) the estimated distance between the individual and the nearest person within a six-foot radius. Our field observations of 2,068 individuals revealed that people wearing a facemask maintained greater social/interpersonal distances than did people not wearing a facemask or wearing a facemask incorrectly. This finding supports response generalization or a positive spillover effect rather than risk compensation.

To perceive or not to perceive? Individual differences in perception predict rule induction and response generalization

When novel stimuli trigger a previously learned response, this can be due to failure to perceive the novel stimulus as different from the trained stimulus (perception), or active extrapolation of learned properties from the trained stimulus (induction). To date, there has been little investigation of how individual differences in perceptual ability relate to differences in induction. In this paper, we perform cluster analysis in six datasets (four published datasets and two unpublished datasets, N = 992 total) to examine the relationship between individual differences in perception and induction, as well as the utility of perception in predicting generalization gradients. The datasets were obtained from predictive learning tasks where participants learned associations between different colored cues and the presence or absence of a hypothetical outcome. In these datasets, stimulus perception and response generalization (expectancy ratings) were assessed in separate phases. Using cluster analyses, we identified similar subgroups of good and bad perceivers in all six datasets, with distinct patterns of response generalization between these subgroups. Based on the differences in stimulus perception, we could predict where across the stimulus range generalized responses would differ between subgroups as well as the direction of the difference. Furthermore, participants classified as good perceivers were more likely to report a similarity generalization rule than a relational or linear rule, providing evidence that individual differences in perception predict differences in induction. These findings suggest that greater consideration should be given to inter-individual variability in perception and induction and their relationship in explaining response generalization.

Teaching Preschoolers With Down Syndrome Using Augmentative and Alternative Communication Modeling During Small Group Dialogic Reading

Purpose This study evaluated the effect of aided augmentative and alternative communication modeling (AAC-MOD) on the communication skills of children with Down syndrome (DS) during small group dialogic reading. Method Four children with DS between 3;1 and 5;3 (years;months; M = 4;5) and 5 typically developing peers between 3;5 and 5;9 ( M = 4;3) participated. Effects were examined using a multiple probe across behaviors design with 4 children with DS. To simulate typical dialogic reading routines in inclusive classrooms, a strategy called Read, Ask, Answer, Prompt ( Binger, Kent-Walsh, Ewing, & Taylor, 2010 ) was applied during the baseline and intervention sessions. Results A functional relation was demonstrated between (a) AAC-MOD and percentage of correctly identified symbols for 3 participants, (b) AAC-MOD and rate of symbolic communication for 2 participants, and (c) AAC-MOD and number of different words for 2 participants. Increases in number of multiple word combinations occurred for 2 participants. All 4 children maintained their percentage of correctly identified symbols. Increases in rate of symbolic communication did not generalize to thematic play contexts, a distal measure of response generalization. Conclusion AAC-MOD is an effective strategy for teaching target vocabulary and increasing rate of symbolic communication in young children with DS. Supplemental Material https://doi.org/10.23641/asha.10093538

Further Study of the Effects of Treatment Intensity on Outcomes of Sound Production Treatment for Acquired Apraxia of Speech: Does Dose Frequency Matter?

Purpose The aim of this study was to examine the effects of dose frequency, an aspect of treatment intensity, on articulation outcomes of sound production treatment (SPT). Method Twelve speakers with apraxia of speech and aphasia received SPT administered with an intense dose frequency and a nonintense/traditional dose frequency (SPT-T). Each participant received both treatment intensities in the context of multiple baseline designs across behaviors. SPT-Intense was provided for 3 hourly sessions per day/3 days per week; and SPT-T for 1 hour-long session per day/3 days per week. Twenty-seven treatment sessions were completed with each phase of treatment. Articulation accuracy was measured in probes of production of treated and untreated words. Results All participants achieved improved articulation of treated words with both intensities; there were no notable differences in magnitude of improvement associated with dose frequency. Positive response generalization to untrained words was found in 21 of 24 treatment applications; the cases of negligible response generalization occurred with SPT-T words. Conclusions Dose frequency (and corresponding total intervention duration) did not appear to impact treatment response for treated items. Disparate response generalization findings for 3 participants in the current study may relate to participant characteristics such as apraxia of speech severity and/or stimuli factors.

Establishing a Generalized Repertoire of Initiating Bids for Joint Attention in Children with Autism

The current study evaluated whether multiple-exemplar training, auditory scripts, and script-fading procedures could establish a generalized repertoire of initiating bids for joint attention in four young children with autism. Stimuli drawn from each of three experimenter-defined categories were used during teaching to program for generalization of initiations of bids for joint attention from trained stimuli to novel stimuli. A fourth category was reserved for assessment of across-category generalization of bids for joint attention. The four categories were (a) visually enticing toys, (b) unusually placed items, (c) environmental sounds, and (d) pictures. Assignment of categories for teaching and assessment of generalization was counterbalanced across the participants. Three different auditory scripts were used during intervention for each of the training stimuli to program for response generalization. All four children learned to initiate bids for joint attention. After scripts were subsequently faded and reinforcement was thinned, bids for joint attention were maintained and also generalized to novel stimuli and settings.

Using Video Modeling to Teach Social Skills for Employment to Youth With Intellectual Disability

Video modeling is an effective teaching method for supporting individuals with disabilities to learn various skills. Yet, limited research explores the use of video modeling to teach social skills for employment. The purpose of this study was to examine the effect of video modeling, alone and in conjunction with the system of least prompts, to teach three young adults with intellectual disability to perform three social skills: offering assistance, responding appropriately to feedback, and asking clarification for unclear instruction. A multiple probe design across behaviors was used to evaluate participants’ accuracy in verbally responding to the scenario. All participants demonstrated an improvement in acquisition of targeted skills from baseline to intervention, yet all struggled with the response generalization.

Increasing “Object-Substitution” Symbolic Play in Young Children With Autism Spectrum Disorders

Children with autism spectrum disorders (ASD) may not develop symbolic play skills, so such skills need to be taught specifically. We report an experiment regarding a procedure targeting “object-substitution” symbolic play skills. The “object-substitution” symbolic play behavior occurred when the child labeled a common object with the name of a substitute and used the object to perform a play action (e.g., As she put a bowl on her head, she called it a hat). A multiple probe across behaviors design was employed with five children (four boys and one girl, aged 3 to 6 years) with ASD. All children had verbal communication and demonstrated functional play and generalized imitation, but no symbolic play skills prior to the study. The instruction consisted of intraverbal training, picture prompts, and modeling of play actions. All children demonstrated object-substitution symbolic play skills after the instruction. The occurrences of response generalization were also discussed.