Increasing social initiations in children with autism: effects of a tactile prompt.

Three preschoolers with autism wore a small vibrating pager on their waist.

During free-play the pager buzzed every few minutes.

That buzz was the cue to walk over and say something to a peer.

Researchers used an ABAB design: baseline, pager on, pager off, pager on again.

All three kids talked to peers more when the pager vibrated.

Two kids also got better at answering peers back.

Staff could fade the buzz for one child, but the other two still needed it.

Lopez et al. (2020) swapped the 2002 pager for an Apple Watch.

The watch sent short text scripts like "Ask a friend to play."

Kids still started more chats, and one kept it up a month later.

So the newer tool adds words to the buzz and shows longer-lasting gains.

Aal Ismail et al. (2022) looked at dozens of social-initiation studies.

They found most prompts work, but they also said we need more follow-up data.

Ewing et al. (2002) is inside that big picture: good first step, thin on maintenance.

If you have a client who stays on the fringe of the play area, try a simple tactile cue.

A cheap pager, a smart-watch buzz, or even a phone vibration can be the "go" signal.

Start with adult timing, then let the device carry the prompt so you can fade yourself out.

Collect data for at least a week to see if the child keeps talking after the buzz stops.