Understanding the Influence of Social and Motor Context on the Co-occurring Frequency of Restricted and Repetitive Behaviors in Autism.

Maine et al. (2020) watched children with and without autism during play.

They noted how often each child rocked, flapped, or repeated phrases.

At the same time they tracked two things: how much social contact was happening and how much large-muscle movement was required.

When the child was talking or playing with someone, body and mouth RRBs dropped.

When the task needed running, jumping, or balance, RRBs also changed.

In short, context mattered more than the label autism alone.

Bo et al. (2019) ran a two-week play program and saw the same link: kids who started out more socially withdrawn gained the most new motor skills.

Perez et al. (2015) take the idea further. They say RRBs are just stuck, inflexible responses. Their review lists ABA tricks—lag schedules, many examples, reward for variety—that teach the child to move and speak in new ways.

Nijs et al. (2016) add another layer. They show that anxiety plus low social drive keeps sameness behaviors alive. Together the papers say: boost social engagement first, then teach flexible responses, and you may not need to block each stereotype one by one.

You can turn RRBs down without blocking or withholding. Start the session with a quick social game the child likes. Keep the activity full of partner turns. As social moments rise, stereotypy often falls on its own, giving you clean space to teach new skills.