Research Symposium Program - Individual Details

Further Evaluation of a Vocal Mand Assessment and Vocal Mand Training Procedures

Abstract

As individuals diagnosed with autism and related developmental disorders often have deficits in communicative speech, the ability to mand for items or request different things is imperative for each individual to live a more fulfilling life. Many effective mand training procedures have been established; however, the best practice for determining the method for increasing mands has not yet been identified, as the selection of treatment interventions is generally arbitrary. Bourret et al. (2004) created and tested a vocal mand assessment to systematically determine an effective mand training procedure in an effort to reduce the likelihood of implementing ineffective treatments. However, without a direct comparison, the possibility arises that unsupported treatments may yield similar results or produce higher proportions of targeted vocalizations. The purpose of this current study was to replicate and extend Bourret et al. (2004) by incorporating a direct comparison between treatments, as indicated by the vocal mand assessment results, to another mand training procedure not indicated. Study 1 replicated the full mand assessment as described by Bourret et al. Study 2 compared those results using a multi-element design with an arbitrarily selected mand training procedure.

Keywords: Vocal Mand Assessment