Using Shaping to Teach Eye Contact to Children with Autism Spectrum Disorder
Pure shaping can build three-second eye contact in preschoolers with autism and keep it after you thin rewards.
01Research in Context
What this study did
Fonger et al. (2019) worked with three preschoolers who had autism. The team wanted to see if pure shaping could create three-second eye contact.
They never used prompts. They only waited and reinforced closer looks. Sessions happened at a table, then in play areas, then with new adults.
What they found
All three children hit the three-second mark. One month later they still gave eye contact with no prompts and no extra rewards.
The skill moved to new teachers and new rooms. Parents reported the kids now looked at them more at home.
How this fits with other research
Jeffries et al. (2016) also raised eye contact in three kids with autism. They used differential reinforcement, not shaping. Both studies show the behavior can grow, but the tool differs.
Miller et al. (2018) used a computer game that paired faces with voices. Their kids also looked longer. The game gives quick feedback like shaping, yet the child works with a screen, not a person.
Rollins et al. (2020) went bigger. They tucked mutual-gaze lessons into a full toddler program. Their RCT shows eye contact training can ride inside daily routines. Fonger proves the single part works before you pack it into a full day.
Why it matters
You can grow eye contact without any prompts. Start by reinforcing brief glances. Lengthen the time requirement in small steps. Fade the edible or toy reward once the child hits three seconds. Check again a month later; you may find the skill sticks with almost no extra work.
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02At a glance
03Original abstract
The current study used a shaping procedure to teach three preschool-aged children diagnosed with autism spectrum disorder to make eye contact with the instructor for a duration of 3 s. Then, eye contact was taught during breaks in instruction. Following the initial intervention, the frequency of reinforcement was decreased while training for generalization across instructors and locations. All three children acquired quick and sustained eye contact, which maintained after 1 month without the need for prompting. This study provides an alternative method for teaching young children diagnosed with autism spectrum disorder to make eye contact without the need for prompting; outlines an approach for teaching eye contact when baseline levels of eye contact are severely low and/or the child is actively avoiding eye contact; describes a successful method for thinning the schedule of reinforcement and introducing instructional demands; and recommends a practical technique for gaining attention before delivering an instructional demand.
Behavior Analysis in Practice, 2019 · doi:10.1007/s40617-018-0245-9