Script fading for children with autism: Generalization of social initiation skills from school to home

Abstract

We used a script-fading package to teach children with autism to initiate social interactions across various activities in the school setting, and we programmed for generalization in the untrained home setting with a sibling. The three participants, ages 8 to 10 years, demonstrated deficits in social initiations with their peers. During baseline, the participants emitted initiations to one another, although this behavior was variable and did not endure over time. With the introduction of the script-fading package, however, social initiations systematically increased. Moreover, the effects of the script-fading package generalized to the untrained home setting with a sibling. This study expands upon previous research by demonstrating the generalization of social initiations from school with peers to the home setting with siblings.