Increasing social interactions in deaf-blind severely handicapped young adults.

Two deaf-blind adults with severe disabilities rarely talked or played with others. Staff wanted more social give-and-take during leisure games like table-top bowling.

The team used a simple ABAB plan. They added brief prompts and praise, then took them away, then put them back again. Sessions happened in a community room while the clients played games.

When prompts and praise were in place, both adults started touching objects together, turning toward staff, and showing fewer hand-flaps or rocking. These gains vanished when the help stopped and returned when it came back.

The same change happened for both people, so the brief cues were likely the cause.

Neuringer et al. (1968) ran a similar ABAB plan with withdrawn mental patients. They also saw new social greetings appear, stay, and spread to new staff. The 1989 study copies that old recipe but shows it still works for clients who cannot see or hear.

Davis et al. (2018) moved the job to peers. Adults with Down syndrome and autism taught each other with short prompts and got the same social lift. The 1989 paper used paid staff, but Cody shows peers can run the same play.

Ewing et al. (2002) swapped manual prompts for a tiny vibrating pager. Deaf-blind adults need touch cues, yet the pager study proves a silent buzz can also spark social talk in autistic preschoolers. Different senses, same prompt logic.

You do not need fancy gear to help deaf-blind clients join the game. A light tap on the elbow plus quick praise is enough. Try it during board games, bowling, or card play. Watch for any small social move—eye contact, shared touch, turn toward you—and tag it fast with a smile or preferred snack. Fade the touch as the client keeps playing. The old ABAB proof still holds: simple prompts plus reinforcement equal more fun and less self-stim.