Long-term effectiveness and generality of practical functional assessment and skill-based treatment

Area of Science:

• Behavioral science
• Developmental psychology
• Special education

Background:

• Challenging behavior in children with autism often requires specialized interventions.
• Functional communication training (FCT) is a promising approach but requires effective implementation strategies.
• Long-term maintenance and generalization of FCT effects in natural settings remain a challenge.

Purpose of the Study:

• To implement and evaluate a functional assessment and skill-based treatment process using FCT.
• To achieve significant and lasting reductions in challenging behavior for children with autism.
• To assess the long-term maintenance of treatment effects and the elimination of crisis procedures.

Main Methods:

• A functional assessment and skill-based treatment approach was applied to six children with autism.
• Intervention focused on reducing challenging behavior through functional communication training.
• Treatment was extended to ensure near-zero levels of challenging behavior across staff and settings.

Main Results:

• Challenging behavior was reduced to near-zero levels across multiple staff and settings for all participants.
• Follow-up data confirmed that treatment effects were maintained one year post-intervention.
• The use of crisis procedures, including physical restraint, was eliminated for all participants.

Conclusions:

• Functional communication training, when implemented systematically with functional assessment and skill-building, is highly effective.
• This approach demonstrates long-term maintenance of effects and significant reduction in challenging behaviors in school settings.
• The findings support the widespread adoption of FCT for children with autism exhibiting challenging behaviors.