The Use of Video Modeling With the Picture Exchange Communication System to Increase Independent Communicative Initiations in Preschoolers With Autism and Developmental Delays

Abstract

The use of video modeling (VM) procedures in conjunction with the picture exchange communication system (PECS) to increase independent communicative initiations in preschool-age students was evaluated in this study. The four participants were 3-year-old children with limited communication skills prior to the intervention. Two of the students had been diagnosed with autism and two students exhibited developmental delays. An alternating treatments design was used to examine the effects of using VM as a priming technique to enhance the efficacy of students acquiring PECS and increasing the number of independent communicative initiations. Based on the data, the authors concluded that all students learned to use PECS and increased the number of independent communicative initiations; however, the students’ rate of learning was quicker when using VM. Conclusions are discussed in the context of using empirically based interventions to teach communication skills to students with disabilities and limited verbal skills.