Abstract
This study investigated the use of computer-based intervention for enhancing communication functions of children with autism. The software program was developed based on daily life activities in the areas of play, food, and hygiene. The following variables were investigated: delayed echolalia, immediate echolalia, irrelevant speech, relevant speech, and communicative initiations. Multiple-baseline design across settings was used to examine the effects of the exposure of five children with autism to activities in a structured and controlled simulated environment on the communication manifested in their natural environment. Results indicated that after exposure to the simulations, all children produced fewer sentences with delayed and irrelevant speech. Most of the children engaged in fewer sentences involving immediate echolalia and increased the number of communication intentions and the amount of relevant speech they produced. Results indicated that after practicing in a controlled and structured setting that provided the children with opportunities to interact in play, food, and hygiene activities, the children were able to transfer their knowledge to the natural classroom environment. Implications and future research directions are discussed.
Similar content being viewed by others
Reference
Alcantara, P. R. (1994). Effects of videotape instructional package on purchasing skills of children with autism. Exceptional Children, 61, 40-55.
Baltaxe, C. A. M., & Simmons, J. Q. (1977). Bedtime soliloquies and linguistic competence in autism. Journal of Speech and Hearing Disorders, 42, 376-393.
Barlow, D., & Hersen, M. (1984). Single case experimental designs (2nd ed.). Elmsford, NY: Pergamon.
Baron-Cohen, S. (1988). Social and pragmatic deficits in autism: Cognitive or affective? Journal of Autism and Developmental Disorders, 18, 379-402.
Baron-Cohen, S., Leslie, A., & Frith, U. (1985). Does the autistic child have “theory of mind”? Cognition, 21, 37-46.
Bates, E. (1976). Language in context. New York: Academic Press.
Bernard-Opitz, V., Ross, K., & Tuttas, M. L. (1990). Computer assisted instruction for autistic children. Annals Academy of Medicine, 19, 611-616.
Bernard-Opitz, V. (1989). Computer assisted instruction for autistic children. Journal of Child and Adolescent Psychiatry, 17, 125-130.
Beukelman, D., & Mirenda, P. (1998). Augmentative and alternative communication: Management of severe communication disorders in children and adults (2nd ed.). Baltimore: Paul H. Brooks.
Bloom, L., & Lahey, M. (1978). Language development and language disorders. New York: Wiley.
Chen, S. H., & Bernard-Opitz, V. (1993). Comparison of personal and computer-assisted instruction for children with autism. Mental Retardation, 31, 368-376.
Colby, K. (1973). The rationale for computer-based treatment of language difficulties in non-speaking autistic children. Journal of Autism and Childhood Schizophrenia, 3, 254-260.
Coleman, S., & Stedman, J. (1974). Use of a peer model in language training in an echolalic child. Journal of Behavioral Therapy and Experimental Psychiatry, 5, 275-279.
Doss, S., & Reichle, J. (1991). Replacing excessive behavior with an initial communicative reprtoire. In J. Reichle, J. York, & J. Sigafoos (Eds.), Implementing augmentative and alternative communication: Strategies for learners with severe disabilities (pp. 215-237). Baltimore, MD: Paul Brooks.
Frith, U. (1989). Autism: Explaining the enigma. Cambridge, MA: Blackwell.
Glennen, S. L., & DeCoste, D. C. (1997). The handbook of augmentative and alternative communication. San Diego, CA: Singular.
Goosens, C., Crain, S., & Elder, P. (1992). Engineering the preschool environment for interactive, symbolic communication. Birmingham, AL: Southeast Augmentative Communication Conference.
Heimann, M., Nelson, K. E., Tjus, T., & Gillberg, C. (1995). Increasing reading and communication skills in children with autism through an interactive multimedia computer program. Journal of Autism and Developmental Disorders, 25, 459-480.
Higgins, K., & Boone, R. (1996). Creating individualized computerassisted instruction for students with autism using multimediaauthoring software. Focus on Autism and Other Developmental Disabilities, 11, 69-78.
Kazdin, A. (1982). Single case research designs. New York: Oxford University Press.
Koegel, R. L., & Koegel, L. K. (1995). Teaching children with autism. Baltimore, MD: Paul Brooks.
Koegel, R. L., & Rincover, A. (1977). Research on the difference between generalization and maintenance in extra-therapy responding. Journal of Applied Behavior Analysis, 10, 1-12.
Lloyd, L. L., Fuller, D. R., & Arvidson, H. H. (1997). Augmentative and alternative communication: A handbook of principles and practices. Boston: Allyn & Bacon.
Mesibov, G. B., Schopler, E., & Hearsey, K. A. (1994). Structured teaching. In E. Schopler & G. B. Mesibov (Eds.), Behavioral issues in autism (pp. 193-205). New York: Plenum.
Mirenda, P. (1997). Supporting individuals with challenging behavior through functional communication training and AAC: Research review. Augmentative and Alternative Communication, 13, 207-225.
Panyan, M. V. (1984). Computer technology for autistic students. Journal of Autism and Developmental Disorders, 14, 375-382.
Prizant, B. M. (1983). Language and communication in autism: Toward an understanding of the “whole” of it. Journal of Speech and Hearing Disorders, 48, 296-307.
Prizant, B., & Duchan, J. (1981). The functions of immediate echolalia in autistic children. Journal of Speech and Hearing Disorders, 46, 241-249.
Prizant, B., & Rydell, P. (1984). Analysis of the functions of delayed echolalia in autistic children. Journal of Speech and Hearing Research, 27, 183-192.
Rydell, P. J., & Prizant, B. M. (1995). Assessment and intervantion strategies for children who use echolalia. In: Quill, K. A. (Ed.), Teaching children with autism: Strategies to enhance communication and socialization. New York: Delmar.
Schriebman, L., & Carr, E. (1978). Elimination of echolalic responding to questions through the training of generalized verbal response. Journal of Applied Behavior Analysis, 11, 453-464.
Tager-Flusberg, H. (1997). Language acquisition and theory of mind: Contributions from the study of autism. In L. B. Adamson & M. A. Romski (Eds.), Communication and language acquisition: Discoveries from atypical development (pp. 135-160). Baltimore, MD: Paul H. Brooks.
Tager-Flusberg, H. (1992). Autistic children's talk about psychological states: Deficits in the early acquisition of a theory of mind. Child Development, 63, 161-172.
Tager-Flusberg, H. (1993). What language reveals about the understanding of minds in children with autism. In: S. Baron-Cohen, H. Tager Flusberg, & D. J. Cohen (Eds.), Understanding other minds: Perspectives from autism (pp. 138-157). Oxford: Oxford University Press.
Wetherby, A. M., & Prizant, B. M. (2000). Autism spectrum disorders: A transactional developmental perspective. Baltimore, MD: Paul H. Brooks.
Yamamoto, J., & Miya, T. (1999). Acquisition and transfer of sentence construction in autistic students: Analysis by computerbased teaching. Research in Developmental Disabilities, 20, 355-377.
Author information
Authors and Affiliations
Rights and permissions
About this article
Cite this article
Hetzroni, O.E., Tannous, J. Effects of a Computer-Based Intervention Program on the Communicative Functions of Children with Autism. J Autism Dev Disord 34, 95–113 (2004). https://doi.org/10.1023/B:JADD.0000022602.40506.bf
Issue Date:
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1023/B:JADD.0000022602.40506.bf