A preliminary investigation of fixed and repetitive models during object imitation training

Abstract

Empirically based guidelines for imitation training for children with Autism Spectrum Disorder (ASD) are limited and there is no existing evidence about what types of imitative models foster faster acquisition of imitation in children with ASD. We compared rates of acquisition for two different methods for presenting the imitative model (i.e., repetitive, fixed) in simple (Experiment 1) and conditional (Experiment 2) discrimination arrangements. The results suggest that some children with ASD may acquire imitation more rapidly when repetitive models, rather than fixed models are used to present the target skill. In Experiment 3, we investigated the features of object imitation models that might influence acquisition. The results of Experiment 3 suggest that the dynamic nature of repetitive models might be responsible for the differential acquisition we observed in the earlier two Experiments. Additionally, the presence of an outcome (e.g., stacked blocks) during training does not enhance acquisition.

A comparison of nested and unnested stimuli to teach visual-visual identity matching skills to children with an autism spectrum disorder.

“…Interestingly, the acquisition of nested and unnested targets was not observed for the last set of assigned targets until participants received direct training with their first and second set of targets, which was replicated across all three participants. These findings parallel the results of a recent study that conducted comparisons of stimulus manipulations to facilitate the acquisition of object imitation skills and demonstrated the acquisition of untrained targets after mastery of one or more sets of trained targets (Deshais & Vollmer, 2020).…”

“…Second, researchers may consider evaluating the effects of different stimulus features (i.e., visual, auditory, and tactile) that result in the acquisition of matching skills. Recent studies evaluating the effects of visual and auditory antecedent manipulations demonstrate improved responding for other verbal behavior skills, such as motor imitation and auditory-visual conditional discrimination (Deshais & Vollmer, 2020; Halbur et al, 2021). Finally, researchers should extend the use of tactile prompting to other skill acquisition programs for children who may exhibit difficulty with attending to or tolerating response prompts.…”

A comparison of fixed and repetitive models to teach object imitation to children with autism

“…Few studies have evaluated the effectiveness of different types of models in teaching imitation within a comprehensive behavioral treatment. The present study was a systematic replication of Deshais and Vollmer (2020) designed to further investigate the effectiveness of fixed and repetitive models during object imitation training for young children with ASD. Deshais and Vollmer found that children with ASD acquired imitation more quickly with repetitive models.…”

“…Few studies have evaluated the types of models responsible for acquisition when teaching imitation to children with autism. A preliminary evaluation with fixed and repetitive model targets suggested that children with autism may acquire imitation more rapidly when taught with repetitive models (Deshais & Vollmer, 2020). The purpose of the current study was to compare the rates of acquisition when teaching with repetitive and fixed models for six children with autism.…”

“…Evidence shows that interspersing targets within a session during acquisition helps promote appropriate stimulus control and decreases the likelihood of error patterns commonly found when teaching in a simplediscrimination format first (Grow et al, 2011). Thus, the purpose of this study was to systematically replicate and extend Deshais and Vollmer (2020) by comparing acquisition rates of imitative behavior with fixed and repetitive models in a conditional-discrimination arrangement.…”