Meagan K. Gregory, Iser G. DeLeon, & David M. Richman. (2009).
The influence of matching and motor–imitation abilities on rapid acquisition of manual signs and exchange-based communicative responses.
Journal of Applied Behavior Analysis,
42, 399-404.
Establishing a relation between existing skills and acquisition of communicative
responses may be useful in guiding selection of alternative communication systems.
Matching and motor-imitation skills were assessed for 6 children with developmental
disabilities, followed by training to request the same set of preferred items using
exchange-based communication and manual signs. Three participants displayed
both skills and rapidly acquired both communicative response forms. Three
others displayed neither skill; 1 mastered exchange-based responses but not
manual signs, and neither of the other 2 easily acquired either response form.
DESCRIPTORS: alternative and augmentative communication, autism, matching to sample, motor imitation