Mand Training: An Examination of Response-Class Structure in Three Children With Autism and Severe Language Delays.
Teach two vocal mands for the same item so the child can switch if the first one fails.
01Research in Context
What this study did
Drasgow et al. (2016) worked with three children with autism who had almost no words. The team taught each child two new ways to ask for things. They used a reversal design: teach, take away, teach again.
Sessions happened at a table. The child could see a toy or snack. If the child used the new mand, they got the item right away.
What they found
All three kids learned both new mands. Two of the three kept asking even when the adult waited five seconds before giving the item. Two kids also used the new words with a new adult who had never trained them.
Having two ways to ask helped. When one mand did not work, the child could try the other one.
How this fits with other research
Valentino et al. (2019) show a quick test can tell you if vocal training will work. If the child cannot copy two-syllable sounds, start with pictures instead of spoken words. Erik’s study adds detail: once vocal imitation is strong, teach at least two vocal mands, not just one.
Van der Molen et al. (2010) started with sign mands plus a 3-second delay. Non-vocal kids began to speak. Erik’s paper skips signs and goes straight to vocal, but both studies agree: give the child more than one way to ask.
Shamlian et al. (2016) taught kids to ask only for items available in that room. Erik’s kids learned two mands for the same item. Together, the papers show you can grow both the number of mands and the places they are used.
Why it matters
If you run mand programs, teach two vocal requests for the same item from day one. When reinforcement is slow, the learner can switch forms instead of melting down. This small change cut problem behavior in two of Erik’s three cases, and it takes no extra time in your session.
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02At a glance
03Original abstract
Our primary purpose in this study was to examine the structure of a response class when new members are acquired through mand training. To do this, we replaced existing mands (e.g., reaching) in three children with autism with two new functionally equivalent mands. Next, we examined their responding under immediate- and delayed-reinforcement conditions. Then, we assessed generalization to novel social partners. We employed a reversal design to examine the effectiveness of mand training and to assess responding under both immediate- and delayed-reinforcement conditions. Our results suggest that all children acquired the new mands and that two of the children emitted these responses as replacements when the social partner did not provide access to the reinforcer contingent on the child's first mand. Generalization data indicate that all three children emitted the new mands and two of the children alternated between the new mands with novel social partners. We discuss the clinical implications and the conceptual significance of teaching multiple replacement mands to children with autism and severe language delays.
Behavior modification, 2016 · doi:10.1177/0145445515613582