A Review of Studies on Functional Communication Training to Reduce Self-injurious Behavior for Students with Autism Spectrum Disorder
Match the communication tool to the learner and FCT wipes out self-injury in students with autism.
01Research in Context
What this study did
Jongsun et al. (2019) looked at 12 single-case studies. All used functional communication training (FCT) to cut self-injury in students with autism.
They asked one question: does matching the communication mode to the kid matter?
What they found
FCT worked every time. Self-injury dropped when the child used his or her best way to talk—spoken words, PECS, or an AAC device.
Stronger effects showed up when the mode fit the learner’s skills and preferences.
How this fits with other research
Gerow et al. (2018) saw the same success when parents ran FCT at home. Their review of 26 studies also found big drops in problem behavior.
Snyder et al. (2024) stretched the idea further. They gave a blind student tactile and auditory cues during FCT and self-injury still fell.
Duker et al. (1996) seems to clash—it says AAC failed. Look closer: they tested facilitated communication, not FCT. Facilitated communication has no scientific support, while FCT with AAC does.
Why it matters
You already know FCT kills self-injury. This review shouts the next step: pick the communication mode the learner will actually use. Try a quick preference assessment—present a voice output device, a PECS book, and a simple spoken request. Use the one the child picks most. Then run FCT as usual. You should see fewer head-hits or hand-bites within the first week.
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02At a glance
03Original abstract
The purpose of this study was to review recent researches conducted abroad and domestic regarding functional communication training(FCT) to reduce self-injurious behavior for students with autism spectrum disorder(ASD). A total of 12 studies including 11 abroad studies and 1 domestic studies were selected according to inclusion criteria and exclusion criteria. For a more systematic analysis, we divided the FCT into three essential steps to examine the functional analysis of self-injurious behavior, alternative responses of communication, and intervention methods. The analysis revealed that all studies conducted a single subject research method. Self-injurious behaviors of students appeared in various forms, accompanied by aggression, destruction and disruption. In addition, the function of self-injurious behavior was ‘tangible’ with the highest frequency, followed by ‘escape demand’, ‘attention’ and ‘free play’. Alternative forms of communication were spoken, picture cards and AAC. The form was diversified in consideration of the student’s level of communication and preference. Out of a total of 12 studies 9 studies applied the prompts step by step. And nine of the studies confirmed that the schedule thinning was applied. The degree of the FCT effect differed according to the function of problem behavior, the amount of task, the mediator, and the communication response. The extent of the FCT effect was high when the intervention was provided through the student’s preferred communication style. Lastly, we suggested a limitation for the follow-up research along with discussions based on these findings.
Journal of Behavior Analysis and Support, 2019 · doi:10.22874/KABA.2019.6.3.41