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An analysis of the generalization and maintenance of eye contact taught during play

Jennifer Ninci1, Russell Lang, Katy Davenport

  • 1Clinic for Autism Research, Evaluation and Support, Texas State University , San Marcos, TX 78666 , USA.

Developmental Neurorehabilitation
|September 12, 2013
PubMed

Insights

This study shows that behavioral interventions effectively improved eye contact in a child with pervasive developmental disorder-not otherwise specified (PDD-NOS). However, these improvements did not generalize to new communication partners.

Area of Science:

  • Developmental Psychology
  • Behavioral Therapy
  • Autism Spectrum Disorders

Background:

  • Pervasive Developmental Disorder-Not Otherwise Specified (PDD-NOS) often involves social communication deficits.
  • Improving eye contact is crucial for social interaction in children with PDD-NOS.

Observation:

  • A 4-year-old boy diagnosed with PDD-NOS participated in the study.
  • Interventions were delivered during play-based therapy sessions with three therapists.

Findings:

  • Differential reinforcement and most-to-least prompting significantly improved the child's eye contact.
  • Improvements were maintained for at least three months post-intervention.
  • Eye contact did not generalize to untrained communication partners.

Implications:

  • Practitioners should consider generalization strategies for communication partners not directly involved in therapy.
  • Further research is needed to explore methods for enhancing generalization of social skills in PDD-NOS.
Abstract

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