Assessment and Modification of Social Behavior of Children with Limited Behavior Repertoires / Robert A. Gable and Others.

The paper reports three investigations devoted to enhancing the language and/or motor-gestural repertoires of developmentally delayed and severely handicapped young children (n=8). Briefly discussed is research relating to each of the investigations, as well as methodological issues central to modifying social interaction. Noted among study findings are that intervention procedures composed of adult prompting and social reinforcement significantly increased the target behaviors of severely retarded multihandicapped Ss; that a training procedure based on an integration of developmental psycholinguistic, cognitive-semantic, and behavioral research was effective for teaching young developmentally delayed children a three element syntactical structure; and that the intervention procedure of increased social initiations by a peer confederate increased the positive social behavior of behaviorally disordered Ss. Following presentation of the studies, the authors touch on shortcomings of existing research and point out possible directions for future investigation. (SBH)

Microfiche. [Washington D.C.]: ERIC Clearinghouse microfiches : positive.