Abstract
Video-modeling (VM) is a widely used instructional technique that
has been applied to the education of children with developmental
disabilities. One form of VM that lacks in-depth analysis is
point-of-view video modeling (POVM). The current study investigated the
use of POVM to teach three children diagnosed with autism to initiate
and maintain a conversation with a conversant. Using a multiple baseline
across scripts design, the participants were taught to engage in both
eye contact and vocal behavior without the presentation of a vocal
discriminative stimulus from the conversant. The treatment package
included both the presentation of the target video and reinforcement of
target behavior. Although this combination proved successful for
increasing the social behavior of two participants, prompts were
necessary to achieve acquisition for a third. These data suggest that
while POVM may be a successful technique for teaching some social
skills, limitations exist that should be further investigated.
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The effective use of video modeling to help remediate the
behavioral excesses and deficits of children with autism is well
documented (Bellini & Akullian, 2007). This strategy has been shown
to help establish a variety of skills, including those related to joint
attention (e.g., LeBlanc et al., 2003), play (e.g., D'Ateno,
Mangiapanello, & Taylor, 2003), self help (e.g., Shipley-Benamou,
Lutzker & Taubman, 2002), academic instruction (e.g., Kinney,
Vedora, & Stromer, 2003), communication (Wert & Neisworth,
2003), and community survival (e.g., Haring, Kennedy, Adams &
Pitts-Conway, 1987). Additionally, video modeling is potentially more
effective than teaching through in vivo modeling (Charlop-Christy, Le
& Freeman, 2000), and can improve the effectiveness of instructional
prompts (Murzynski & Bourret, 2007).
The use of videos to teach social skills has been examined in a
recently expanding body of literature. The majority of studies
investigating social skills instruction via video models, however,
focused on relatively simple behaviors. For example, Bidwell and
Rehfeldt (2004) used video models and contingent praise to teach adults
with severe disabilities to initiate an interaction by bringing a cup of
coffee to an adult peer. Nikopoulos and Keenan (2004) demonstrated that
video models alone were sufficient for teaching three children with
autism to initiate an interaction by gesturing or vocally requesting an
adult to join the child in play.
A few studies investigated video-based training for more complex
social skills. Using video models alone, Maione and Mirenda (2006)
obtained increases in the frequency of social initiations and responses
of a young boy with autism during two different play contexts. The
participant watched videos of two adults engaging in appropriate
verbalizations and playing with the target activities. With the
implementation of video modeling, the frequency of the
participant's use of both scripted and unscripted verbalizations
(including initiations and responses) increased during these play
sessions. However, reinforcement, video feedback, and prompting were
needed to increase behavior in a third play context. The authors
reported that some of the modeled statements were novel, while others
already existed in the child's repertoire. Charlop and Milstein
(1989) showed that video models and reinforcement increased
conversational responding for three children with autism. Prior to the
intervention, each child exhibited utterances of three to four words in
length. The children were taught scripted exchanges consisting of
statements with up to eight words per utterance. Each scripted exchange
involved an appropriate response to the conversant's question,
followed by a reciprocal question to the conversant. While this target
represents the most complex set of social behavior taught through video
models to date, all of the exchanges were initiated by the conversant.
Thus, further investigation of the utility of video models for teaching
complex social skills, including those involving initiation of
conversation in the appropriate context, is warranted.
Several authors suggest that video modeling is effective because it
reduces the amount of irrelevant stimuli in the learning environment,
increasing the likelihood that the participant will focus on the most
relevant cues (Charlop-Christy et al, 2000; Krantz, MacDuff, Wadstrom,
& McClannahan, 1991). If so, video formats that further reduce
irrelevant stimuli may help promote learning. One format that may serve
to reduce additional irrelevant stimuli in the learning environment is
point-of-view modeling (POVM). In this type of modeling, the camera
angle is presented at the participant's eye level and shows only
what the participant might see within the context of the targeted
activity, skill, or context (i.e., from his or her own viewpoint).
Depending on the target skill, the participant might view a specific
setting or a pair of hands completing a task.
One potential advantage of POVM over the typical, or scene view,
video model is that it further restricts the stimuli to those that are
directly related to the target behavior, eliminating the necessity of
identifying optimal characteristics of the model (Hine & Wolery,
2006). The extent to which POVM has been utilized is unclear, however,
because many prior studies did not include detailed descriptions of the
video modeling procedures. To date, only four studies have explicitly
evaluated the POVM technique (Alberto, Cihak, & Gama, 2005; Hine
& Wolery, 2006; Schreibman, Whalen, & Stahmer, 2000;
Shipley-Bena-mou et al., 2002) and these studies included a few specific
procedural features in common while other features varied. For example,
participants received prompts and praise for watching the video model in
each case and some degree of generalization and maintenance of
behavioral gains was observed in each study. However, many aspects of
POVM differed across studies. For example, only Alberto et al. (2005)
prompted rehearsal during video viewing and incorporated least-to-most
prompts during post-viewing practice sessions. The delay between video
viewing and practice opportunities was not specified in this study and
in Schreibman et al. (2000), whereas practice occurred immediately after
the presentation of the video in Shipley-Benamou et al. (2002) and Hine
and Wolery (2006). Finally, participants received reinforcement for
correct responding during practice sessions in some studies (e.g.,
Shipley-Benamou et al., 2002; Hine & Wolery, 2006) with no explicit
mention in others.
The above investigations demonstrated the effectiveness of POVM for
teaching self-help skills, play skills, and compliance with transitions.
However, additional research is needed to determine the ease with which
social and communication skills - two primary core deficit areas for
children diagnosed with autism--may be acquired through this teaching
approach. The purpose of the current study was to investigate the
efficacy of POVM for teaching children with autism to initiate and
maintain social interactions with others. The extent to which these
skills generalized across materials and maintained over time also was
evaluated.
Method
Participants
Participants were three children diagnosed with mild-moderate to
severe autism by an independent psychologist. During the course of the
study, all participants received behavior analytic services at a private
center for 6 hours each day, 5 days per week. They lived at home with
their parents and received various other therapies outside of the
private center (e.g., occupational therapy, auditory integration
training, dietary supplementation). Each child's language abilities
and autism severity were assessed prior to the study using the Preschool
Language Scale, Fourth Edition (PLS-4; Zimmerman, Steiner, & Pond,
2002) and the Childhood Autism Rating Scale (CARS; Schopler, Reichler,
& Renner, 1988), respectively. Zhane was 5 years, 5 months at the
time of the study and had attended the center for 2.5 years. His
receptive language abilities were assessed to be the age-equivalent of 2
years, 3 months, and his expressive language abilities were 2 years, 9
months. Zhane's autism severity score was 39, which falls in the
severe range of symptomatology. Randall was 8 years, 2 months and had
attended the center for 2 years, 3 months. His receptive language
abilities were assessed to be the age-equivalent of 3 years, 4 months,
and his expressive language abilities were 3 years, 1 month.
Randall's autism severity score was 35.5, which falls in the
mild-moderate range of symptomatology. Janet was 4 years, 4 months and
had attended the center for 10 months. Her receptive and expressive
language abilities both were assessed to be the age-equivalent of 3
years, 10 months. Janet's autism severity score was 32.5, which
falls in the mild-moderate range of symptomatology. The children were
selected for the study because they did not engage in spontaneous social
initiations but could imitate three- to four-word sentences. None of the
participants had exposure to video models as an instructional strategy
prior to the study.
Setting and Stimulus Materials
All sessions were conducted in a small (2.4 m by 4.6 m) room at the
day treatment center. The room contained a child-sized table and chairs,
a filing cabinet, a bookcase, and a tripod-mounted video camera, as well
as any materials relevant to the session (described below). During
training sessions, a portable DVD player played the video of the
designated script.
Three scripted sequences of social initiations were prepared (see
sample script in Table 1). Each script focused on a different situation
that would set the occasion for a social initiation by the participant.
These activities were selected in consultation with the day treatment
center supervisor and incorporated free-play items available during
breaks from instructional time. Each script modeled on the video was
associated with specific materials. The "Get Attention" script
involved getting a conversant's attention for the purpose of
displaying a creation made with a marker and a dry erase board. The
"Request Assistance" script was designed to teach a request
for a conversant's assistance in attaining and opening a clasped
plastic box that contained a bottle of bubble solution. The "Share
a Toy" script involved offering a Mr. Potatohead[R] doll to a
conversant and then requesting it back again. In addition, two sets of
generalization materials were selected for each script. The scripted
statements were designed to allow for different materials to be
presented in the situation. For example, the conversation created for
"Share a Toy" could be used to offer and request any toy, not
just the Mr. Potatohead[R] doll used in the video and practice sessions
(see Table 1). The materials shown in each video clip and the materials
used to evaluate generalization are listed in Table 2. Relevant
materials were present in the baseline and post-viewing practice
sessions for each target script.
Each video model began with a brief visual introduction (separate
slides which showed "1", "2", "3",
"GO!") followed by three repetitions of the target script.
Subsequent to the first presentation, a brief visual transition
("READY!", "GO!") preceded the two consecutive
presentations. The total durations for the "Get Attention",
"Request Assistance", and "Share a Toy" videos were
2:21, 2:33, and 2:31, respectively. All camera angles on the video were
shot from the first person perspective (i.e., POVMs) as illustrated in
the Figure 1 screen shots that correspond with the script in Table 1.
During filming, the camera was swiveled on the tripod to mimic natural
head movements and brief (e.g., 2 s to 3 s) eye contact with the
conversant, who was an unfamiliar graduate student. A female adult who
was not in view (the first author) spoke the target verbalizations.
Because of this person's proximity to the camera, the
participant's lines were spoken more loudly than the
conversant's lines in the final videos. All videos were recorded in
a location unfamiliar to the children.
Response Measurement and Reliability
All post-viewing practice sessions were videotaped for data
collection purposes. During these sessions, the tripod and camera were
placed in an unobtrusive position over the left shoulder of the
conversant (i.e., the adult with whom the participant practiced the
target skills) to adequately capture eye contact. Data were collected on
the behavior in the target script, as well as on all of the
children's novel vocal behavior. All scripts were composed of five
specific exchanges (see example in Table 1). For the purpose of this
study, an exchange was defined as eye contact and vocal behavior from
the child that occurred prior to the vocal behavior of the conversant.
Each script began with a social initiation from the child in the form of
a greeting ("Get Attention": "Hi there!";
"Request Assistance": "I'm glad to see you!";
"Share a Toy": "Hey there!"). Correct and incorrect
vocal behavior and eye contact were scored for each exchange. A correct
vocal behavior was scored if the child said the exact sentence from the
video or a sentence that differed by no more than two words (added or
deleted) from the target script (e.g., "Circle" instead of
"It's a circle."). For the initial social exchange, any
appropriate greeting (e.g., "Hi", "Hello", and the
script examples above) said by the child was scored as correct
regardless of the modeled greeting for that script. Correct eye contact
was scored if the child looked at the conversant for any amount of time
immediately prior to, during, or following (within 2 s) the target vocal
behavior. These data were collected using pen-and-paper data sheets that
listed the target vocal behavior for each exchange. Each sheet also
included space to transcribe novel vocal behavior; however, no increases
in appropriate novel language occurred for any of the children during
treatment and therefore no data are presented for this measure. The
number of exchanges consisting of both correct eye contact and vocal
behavior was totaled for each post-viewing practice session. Data were
collected during sessions by the experimenter and were verified by
videotape at the end of each day.
A secondary observer collected data from video independently during
38%, 42%, and 43% of post-viewing practice sessions for Zhane, Randall,
and Janet, respectively. These data were compared for each instance of
eye contact and vocal behavior during a session. An agreement was scored
if both the primary and secondary observer mutually recorded the
occurrence or nonoccurrence of a specific vocal or play target behavior.
Interobserver agreement was calculated by dividing agreements by
agreements plus disagreements and multiplying by 100. Across all
subjects, scripts, and conditions, interobserver agreement averaged 93%
(range, 70% to 100%). Observers also collected data on the
conversant's presentation of scripted statements to ensure
integrity. Across all subjects, scripts, and conditions, accuracy of
scripted conversant behavior averaged 99% (range, 80% to 100%). Data
were not collected on other forms of conversant or experimenter behavior
(e.g., reinforcer and prompt delivery).
[FIGURE 1 OMITTED]
Experimental Design and Procedure
The study employed a multiple baseline across behaviors (scripts)
design. Initial script assignment was counterbalanced across
participants. Each participant began treatment on one of the three
scripts while baseline data were collected for the remaining two
scripts. Probes for generalization to novel sets of materials were
conducted throughout all baseline and treatment phases. Once a
participant attained mastery on the first intervened-upon script (see
below), treatment began on a subsequent script. Therapists from the
treatment center acted as conversants and were randomly rotated
throughout all conditions and across all participants. The adult
presented in the video model was not employed by the day treatment
center and was never present.
Baseline. During baseline sessions, the child sat at a table with
the relevant stimulus materials for the target script. One adult
conversant was present. The child was instructed that the conversant
would return shortly and that he or she should play nicely at the table
until then. No video was presented. Within 20 s of exiting the treatment
room, the conversant re-entered the room by knocking lightly on the
door, stepping into the room, and closing the door behind her. The
conversant performed each action and stated each assigned line within 10
s of the beginning of an exchange in the script (see Table 1),
regardless of participant behavior. For example, if the participant did
not respond within 10 s of the conversant entering the room, the
conversant stated the scripted line of Exchange 1 and waited another 10
s for the participant to initiate the next exchange. This procedure
ensured that each participant behavior could occur with equal
opportunity in every session. No contingencies were programmed for eye
contact or vocal behavior.
Video plus food. This treatment phase was conducted by one adult
acting as the conversant and a second acting as the trainer (the first
author) during video viewing and practice sessions. The trainer was
responsible for setting up session materials, delivering reinforcers,
and cueing the conversant (as described below). The trainer was constant
across all treatment conditions for all participants.
The participant was seated at the table with the DVD player and the
video model for the target script. The trainer sat behind the
participant for the duration of the video viewing and the post-viewing
practice session. Prior to beginning the video, the trainer stated,
"Let's watch a movie!" During viewing, reinforcement was
periodically provided contingent on attention to the video model (i.e.,
every 10 to 15 s for eye contact with the television screen) using food
items identified via a multiple-stimulus-without-replacement preference
assessment (DeLeon & Iwata, 1996) conducted immediately before each
training session. Immediately following the video viewing, the trainer
initiated a post-training practice session by placing the relevant
materials on the table and stating, "Let's practice."
These sessions were identical to baseline with the following exceptions.
Food items were delivered by the trainer contingent on scripted
exchanges with the conversant (see Table 1). Immediately following the
child's scripted behavior, the conversant engaged in the scripted
vocal response. If the child did not engage in any part of an exchange,
the trainer cued the conversant when 10 s had elapsed by holding up the
next written statement on an index card behind the participant and out
of the participant's view. A participant attained mastery if any 8
(out of 10) scripted eye contact and vocal behaviors occurred per
session across three consecutive sessions. Under this criterion, a given
trial might have included the vocal behavior without the eye contact,
for example, and have been counted as one correct behavior (i.e.,
mastery was not based on the occurrence of both correct behaviors on
every exchange).
Video only. During this condition (Janet only), the video model was
shown as described above and the adult roles were the same as described
above, but no additional components of the treatment package were in
effect. That is, no food reinforcers were delivered during video viewing
or during the post-viewing practice session. During the video-plus-food
condition, Janet began to orient towards the trainer instead of the
conversant each time the conversant spoke suggesting that conversant
statements became discriminative for the delivery of food reinforcers
although they were only delivered contingent on correct participant
behavior. Previous research using video models indicated that it was
possible for some participants to acquire skills through video modeling
without the inclusion of programmed reinforcer delivery (e.g.,
Charlop-Christy et al., 2000, see Krantz et al, 1991, for a review).
Therefore, this condition was implemented to test for acquisition in the
absence of arbitrary reinforcers, as well as to eliminate the
strengthening of inappropriate stimulus control (i.e., looking for a
food item each time the conversant spoke). Sessions were otherwise
identical to those in the video-plus-food condition.
Least-to-most prompts. This phase was introduced to facilitation
acquisition of the target behaviors for Janet after she did not meet the
mastery criteria during prior conditions. These sessions were identical
to video-plus-food sessions with the following alteration. If a correct
vocal response did not occur within 10 s of an opportunity during
post-viewing practice sessions, the trainer instituted a three-step
least-to-most prompting procedure (Horner & Keilitz, 1975). First,
the trainer provided a gesture prompt by pointing to the conversant. If
the child did not engage in the vocal response within 2 s to 3 s, the
trainer continued to provide a gesture prompt along with a partial
verbal model of the beginning of the child's scripted line (e.g.,
"I'm glad ..."). If the child did not engage in the
target behavior within 2 s to 3 s, the trainer combined the gesture
prompt with a full vocal model of the child's scripted line (e.g.,
"I'm glad to see you"). In this phase, food items were
delivered if behavior occurred independently or with only a partial
model; edibles were not delivered if a full model was used. In a later
repetition of this phase, the trainer was eliminated from the
post-viewing practice session and the conversant delivered prompts and
food items. This alteration was made because, as mentioned above, Janet
began to attend to and engage with the trainer instead of the
conversant. The mastery criteria were identical to those in the
video-plus-food condition.
Generalization. Probes with the generalization materials were
conducted throughout all conditions of the study using the procedures
described in the baseline condition.
Maintenance. The procedures were identical to those in the baseline
condition with a modification introduced for Randall and Janet after a
decrement in responding was observed. Contingent food items were
reintroduced to determine if this decrease in behavior was due to
extinction effects (labeled "Food Only" on graphs). Sessions
were identical to those in the video-plus-food condition except that the
children did not watch the video prior to the practice session, and the
trainer was not present during these sessions. Instead, the conversant
delivered food items contingent on correct behavior.
Follow-Up. Procedures were identical to those in baseline.
Follow-up data were collected 10 days after the last maintenance session
for Zhane only, as his rapid performance during treatment allowed for
follow-up assessment during the study timeline.
Results
For each participant, two figures are presented with the first
illustrating the number of correct (i.e., both eye contact and vocal
behavior) exchanges in each session while the second depicts data on the
occurrence of eye contact and scripted vocal behavior separately.
Because either behavior could occur in the absence of the other on each
exchange, the information presented in the second figure provides a more
sensitive analysis of behavior over the course of intervention.
Furthermore, the mastery criterion was based on the independent
occurrence of eye contact and vocal behavior, regardless of whether they
occurred together during the same exchange (i.e., any 8 of 10 behaviors
across three consecutive sessions). However, data in the first figure
also are important to evaluate because reinforcement was delivered
contingent upon a fully correct exchange (i.e., both aspects correct for
a given exchange).
Zhane's performance is depicted in Figures 2 and 3. During the
"Request Assistance" script (top graph of each figure), Zhane
did not engage in any correct exchanges (Figure 2) during baseline with
a gradual increase during the video-plus-food condition and mastery in
14 sessions. A return to the baseline condition during maintenance
produced a brief decrease in exchanges with subsequent maintenance at or
above the mastery criterion and skill maintenance at follow-up. No
correct exchanges were observed during the generalization probes until
the maintenance condition, and generalization sessions for both sets of
stimuli met mastery levels during the follow-up condition. Figure 3
shows that eye contact occurred more frequently than vocal behavior in
baseline. With the implementation of the video-plus-food condition, eye
contact increased more rapidly than vocal behavior, and eye contact
continued to occur at a higher frequency than vocal responses during
maintenance. For the "Share a Toy" script (middle graphs), no
correct exchanges (Figure 2) occurred during baseline but increases
occurred once treatment was implemented with mastery in 9 sessions.
Correct exchanges continued during the maintenance and follow-up
sessions. In the generalization probes, no correct responding occurred
until treatment and the increases were not maintained during the
maintenance and follow-up phases. Figure 3 illustrates that no correct
vocal responses occurred during baseline, though eye contact did
increase during baseline. The video-plus-food condition resulted in
increases in both eye contact and vocal responses that maintained at
approximately the same frequency during maintenance and follow-up.
Similar results were obtained for the third script, "Get
Attention" (bottom graphs), with the mastery criterion for
exchanges (Figure 2) obtained in 6 sessions of intervention and
maintained during maintenance and in follow-up. Eye contact and vocal
behavior (Figure 3) increased simultaneously during intervention;
however, little generalization to the novel materials was observed.
Randall's performance is depicted in Figures 4 and 5. During
the "Share a Toy" script (top graphs), Randall did not engage
in any correct exchanges (Figure 4) during baseline, and there was no
increase during the video-plus-food condition. Figure 5 shows that both
eye contact and vocal responses occurred at baseline levels. However,
Randall's therapists at the day treatment center reported that he
was using the scripted vocal behavior appropriately during his
extra-experimental teaching sessions. It was hypothesized that the
presentation of the video immediately before practice sessions may have
created an abolishing operation for responding. Therefore, a baseline
probe was conducted, during which Randall responded with all 10 of the
modeled behaviors. Subsequent baseline sessions were conducted (labeled
"Maintenance" on the figures), but there was a drastic
decrease in correct exchanges after 4 sessions. Figure 5 shows that a
decrease occurred for both eye contact and vocal behavior. Because a
change from treatment to baseline conditions included the removal of
both the video viewing component and the delivery of response-contingent
food items, a food-only condition was initiated and correct exchanges
met mastery in 4 sessions and responding continued in maintenance (only
2 sessions were conducted due to study timeline). Across all phases,
Randall's exchanges during generalization probes did not increase
above baseline levels.
With the implementation of treatment for the "Request
Assistance" script (middle graphs), correct exchanges gradually
increased to mastery in 15 sessions and continued in maintenance, though
generalization was limited (Figure 4). Eye contact increased during
baseline for this script when intervention began with the first script
(Figure 5) and maintained with the introduction of video-plus-food
condition, although both eye contact and vocal behavior continued at
approximately the same frequency during maintenance. During baseline for
the "Get Attention" script, correct exchanges never exceeded
one (the initial greeting; Figure 4, bottom graph). With initiation of
the video-plus-food condition, Randall's responding reached mastery
in 14 sessions and continued in maintenance, though little
generalization occurred. Although eye contact increased during baseline
with this script as well, the behavior decreased prior to the
intervention. Similar increases in eye contact and vocal behavior
occurred during the video-plus-food condition (Figure 5).
Data for Janet are displayed in Figure 6 and Figure 7. Janet's
baseline responding during the "Get Attention" script (top
graphs) was at zero levels with little increase after 12 sessions in the
video-plus-food condition. Both eye contact and scripted vocal behavior
remained infrequent (Figure 7). Anecdotally, it was noted that Janet was
attending more to the experimenter seated behind her (who provided the
food reinforcers) than to the target conversant, although no eye contact
or other forms of attention were delivered by the experimenter. To
control for this behavior, the video-only phase was initiated after a
return to baseline; however, correct exchanges did not increase (Figure
6) and both eye contact and vocal behavior decreased (Figure 7). The
least-to-most-prompts condition was then implemented correct exchanges
quickly increased with mastery in 10 sessions. Figure 7 shows that there
was a more rapid increase in vocal responses than eye contact. However,
an immediate decrease in exchanges occurred during a return to baseline.
Because the video, prompts, and response-contingent food items had been
removed, a food-only condition was introduced based on the assumption
that the removal of reinforcement had extinguished correct responding.
Nonetheless, correct exchanges did not increase under this condition. It
was hypothesized that the decrease in exchanges during maintenance could
instead have been due to the absence of the experimenter (who had
previously delivered prompts). To establish stimulus control in the
presence of the conversant alone, the conversant began to provide
prompts in the next phase (labeled "Conversant Prompts" on the
graph) and correct exchanges met mastery in 2 sessions with maintenance
across 3 additional sessions. Figure 7 shows that both eye contact and
scripted vocal responses increased concurrently. In the next phase, the
prompts were removed while the delivery of response-contingent food
items continued and Janet's performance maintained. Across all
phases, generalization to new stimuli did not occur.
Similar results were obtained for the "Request
Assistance" script (middle graphs). Treatment began with the
least-to-most-prompts condition, and correct exchanges reached mastery
in 5 sessions. As with the first script, a food-only condition was
introduced briefly, but behavior decreased to only one correct exchange
immediately. Correct exchanges returned to mastery in 2 sessions and
maintained across 3 additional sessions during the conversant-prompts
condition, and maintained when prompts were removed in the following
phase. Figure 7 shows that frequency of eye contact increased during
baseline but decreased during the video-plus-food condition. As with the
first script, vocal behavior increased more rapidly than eye contact
when least-to-most prompts were introduced, but both behaviors occurred
at approximately the same level during the conversant-prompts and
food-only conditions. There was limited generalization across all
conditions. With the implementation of the least-to-most-prompts
condition for the "Share a Toy" script (bottom graphs),
mastery was met in 6 sessions and correct exchanges continued in the
conversant-prompts and food-only conditions, though no generalization
occurred. It can be seen in Figure 7 that both eye contact and vocal
behavior increased simultaneously with the implementation of treatment
for this script.
Discussion
Results of this study are inconclusive regarding the overall
effectiveness of POVM to teach social exchanges to children with autism.
Responding on all three scripts came under the control of the video and
reinforcement contingencies for 1 of the 3 participants (Zhane). For a
second participant (Randall), two scripts were readily taught using the
video modeling package intervention whereas an additional script
required modification. For a third participant (Janet), response prompts
were necessary to increase the frequency of eye contact and social
initiations.
For all participants, eye contact appeared to generalize across
baselines to some extent and was acquired and maintained somewhat more
often than scripted vocal behavior (see Figures 3, 5 and 7). There are
two likely explanations for these findings. First, the eye contact
modeled in each video involved the same topography of shifting gaze from
the materials to the person in all three scripts, while target vocal
behavior was different in each case. Second, the action of eye contact
(e.g., the motion of the camera) was clearly visible in the video model,
whereas the scripted vocal responses were stated by a person not seen on
the video which is a potential drawback of the POVM compared to a scene
model. However, these findings were not robust, so further analysis of
POVM for teaching various forms of social behavior should be
investigated.
Although Zhane's frequency of correct exchanges clearly
increased with the introduction of treatment across all scripts, his
behavior did not generalize to the materials used during probes for two
of the three scripts. Randall's response to treatment was
perplexing. Anecdotal reports indicated that he had acquired the
behavior shown in the video (i.e., saying lines from the script while
engaging in eye contact), but it is not clear why he did not engage in
these behaviors during post-viewing practice sessions for the first
script. His mother reported that he frequently engaged in delayed
echoing of lines from his favorite movies at home. However, it appeared
that he did not generalize from the video model to the in-vivo practice
session. The intervention was nonetheless effective with the other two
scripts. For Janet, the video model and reinforcement alone were
insufficient to increase correct exchanges and response prompts were
necessary to increase her eye contact and vocal behavior. The obtained
results suggested that Janet's responding was at least partly
controlled by the behavior of the experimenter, who during treatment
delivered prompts and reinforcement for Janet's exchanges with the
conversant. However, the treatment components responsible for the
increase in correct exchanges are unclear. Additional analyses comparing
the efficacy of video modeling alone to the prompting procedure alone
would provide more information about Janet's acquisition of social
behavior.
Although the general treatment effects were replicated across three
scripts for each participant, few correct social exchanges occurred in
the presence of materials that did not appear in the videos. For
example, Zhane could talk about and share Mr. Potatohead[R], but he did
not do so with a toy bus or with a toy dragon. These results suggest
that generalization is unlikely to occur if training is restricted to a
single set of materials. However, the scripts were designed to be
maximally different while including components of social referencing and
verbal initiations. The "Get Attention" script involved
showing off an item that the child had created (a drawing, a model built
from Playdoh[R], or a structure built from blocks), the "Request
Assistance" script focused on requesting an out-of-reach item and
assistance to open it (a clasped, screw-top, or locked container with
bubbles visible inside), and the "Share a Toy" script was
about sharing a toy and then requesting it back again (Mr.
Potatohead[R], a bus, or a dragon).
It is unclear why the current study failed to replicate the results
of previous research on POVM. One possibility is our use of an
off-screen modeled response (e.g., the scripted vocal statements), as
mentioned above. When the intended model is not clearly visible on
camera, as in the case of hands manipulating materials, the stimuli that
should signal behavior may be more ambiguous. Another possibility is the
complexity of the social exchanges examined in this study. The current
analysis selected target behaviors that have not been previously studied
using POVM and that have rarely been studied with traditional video
models. Participants not only were required to make brief eye contact
with each social exchange, but they also were required to make a
statement that was not dependent on the previous statement of another
person (i.e., initiation of the interchange). It is possible that these
skills would not have been acquired through traditional scene video
modeling either. Further analysis of the usefulness of the POVM
technique to teach social skills to children with autism is needed. An
intermediary step between simple social skills (e.g., greetings) and
more complex skills like those assessed here is warranted.
It would also be beneficial to determine which components of the
present procedure were necessary to produce the desired results. For
example, while a model and reinforcement were sufficient to change the
behavior of one participant, these components were not entirely
sufficient for another, and prompts were necessary for behavior change
in a third. Also, it may have been unnecessary to include both a trainer
and a conversant. From Janet's results, one person may have
sufficed to implement the intervention. A component analysis may help to
identify the necessary ingredients for an effective video modeling
treatment package. It is unclear to what extent the addition of an
arbitrary reinforcer aided in the acquisition of target behavior. It is
possible that the inclusion of highly preferred activities, assessed for
each participant, may have made the social interaction itself more
reinforcing and reduced the need for arbitrary reinforcers. Although not
included in many other studies of video modeling, reinforcement was
included here because of the unlikelihood that parity of behavior alone
(i.e., similarity to a model) would have acted as a reinforcer (e.g.,
Home & Erjavec, 2007). This assumption should be tested further with
video modeling techniques.
Anecdotally, the intervention was associated with collateral
decreases in self-stimulatory vocalizations in the post-viewing practice
sessions for all children. During baseline sessions prior to treatment,
both Zhane and Randall mumbled statements to themselves that were
difficult for others to hear. Once treatment began, these responses did
not occur in practice sessions, although they were noted in probes for
generalization. Future studies should further analyze the potential
relationship between video-viewing and verbal behavior that appears to
be maintained by automatic reinforcement.
More research needs to be conducted to determine if POVM is limited
in its capacity to teach these or other behaviors (e.g., academic, other
expressive skills, other social behavior). Future investigations should
determine the characteristics of children who would be considered best
responders to the point-of-view procedure or skills best suited to
point-of-view perspective in models. Additionally, a comparative
analysis should test the relative efficacy of traditional video modeling
and POVM.
Note
This research was completed in partial fulfillment of the
requirements for the Master's degree for the first author. The
authors would like to thank Claire St. Peter Pipkin and David P.
Jarmolowicz for reviews of earlier drafts of this paper, as well as
Kathleen Betley and Renee Hogmire for assistance with data collection.
The authors would also like to thank the Texas Young Autism Project for
their assistance with this research. Finally, thanks go out to Maggie
Strobel and Alyson Hovanetz for help with creating the video models for
this study.
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Table 1
An Example Script: "Share a Toy"
Conversant Participant
Exchange Actions Statement Actions Statement
1 enters the looks up from the "Hey there!"
room, looks toy, looks at the
at the conversant
participant
2 maintains "Hi!" looks at the toy, "I'm playing
eye contact, looks at the with Mr.
sits at the conversant Potatohead[R].
table
3 looks at the "That looks at the toy, "Would you like
toy, looks looks like looks at the to play?"
at the fun!" conversant
participant
4 looks at the "Yes! looks at the toy "May I play
toy, looks Thank while the some more?"
at the you!" conversant plays,
participant looks at the
conversant
5 looks at the "Sure. looks at the toy, "Thank you!"
toy, looks Here you plays with the
at the go." toy, looks at
participant conversant
Table 2
Materials for Video-Model and Generalization Scripts
"Get Attention" "Request "Share a Toy"
Assistance"
Video Model Dry erase board Clasped plastic Mr.
box Potatohead[R]
Dry erase marker Bottle of
blowing
bubbles
Screw-top
plastic
container
Generalization Playdoh[R] Key-locked Plastic toy bus
Set A shape sorter
Bottle of
blowing
bubbles
Generalization Interlocking Bottle of Plastic toy
Set B building blocks blowing dragon
bubbles
Note. For "Share a Toy", generalization to a third and fourth toy were
tested for Randall. Generalization Set C included a plastic toy
dinosaur and Set D included a twirling toy.