Daniel B. Shabani & Wayne W. Fisher. (2006)
Stimulus fading and differential reinforcement for the
treatment of needle phobia in a youth with autism.
Journal of Applied Behavior Analysis,
39, 449-452.
Stimulus fading in the form of gradually increased exposure to a
fear-evoking stimulus, often combined with differential reinforcement,
has been used to treat phobias in children who are otherwise normal
and in children with autism. In this investigation, we applied
stimulus fading plus differential reinforcement with an adolescent
with autism and diabetes whose needle phobia had prevented medical
monitoring of his blood glucose levels for over 2 years. Results
showed that the treatment was successful in obtaining daily blood
samples for measuring glucose levels.
DESCRIPTORS: autism, diabetes, fading, medical noncompliance, needle phobia, systematic desensitization