Abstract:

In the present study, the effectiveness and efficiency of the use of video modeling (VM) alone and VM procedure with the picture exchange communication system (PECS) procedures were compared in order to increase independent communicative initiations in preschool-age students will be evaluated in this study. An alternating treatments design was used in the study. The three participants were diagnosed with autism and they are preschool children. All participants were attending to the Unit for Children with Developmental Disabilities in the Research Institute for the Handicapped. The dependent variable is the number of independent initiations made by the student. Independent variables are using the first phase of PECS alone and using the first phase of PECS together with video modeling. The period of experiment consist of baseline, training, post training, and maintenance, sessions. Generalization data was collected during training sessions. In each session, two trainers were take place; one is communicative partner and the other is physical prompter. Besides, in order to collect generalization data, once in every three sessions mothers of participants will attend sessions as the communicative partner or physical prompter. For preparing the video model recordings, a preschool child without special needs was used. An Ipad was used for providing the video model recordings to the participant children.

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