Teaching choice making during social interactions to students with profound multiple disabilities.
A single microswitch that delivers chosen stimuli during peer time wakes up students with profound disabilities and sparks social contact.
01Research in Context
What this study did
Four students with profound multiple disabilities got a big button microswitch.
Pressing the button let them pick music, toys, or vibration during peer time.
Sessions happened at school. Peers stayed nearby so choices created real social moments.
What they found
Three of four students quickly learned to hit the switch to get their favorite items.
They spent more time awake and looking at peers.
Choice use carried into later peer games, though one student needed extra help.
How this fits with other research
Lancioni et al. (2011) later repeated the idea with adults. They also picked items and smiled more, showing the method works past school age.
Fine et al. (2005) went further. They used the same button setup to make words come out. Word use jumped high, proving microswitches can build bigger language.
Steege et al. (1989) looked older but seems opposite. They cut self-injury with microswitch toys, not social choice. The goals differ, yet both show one switch can control powerful reinforcers.
Why it matters
You can give a non-verbal client one big button and link it to preferred items during group play. The student shows choice, peers see communication, and alertness rises. Start with two clear options, watch for head turns or smiles, then let the switch open the social door.
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02At a glance
03Original abstract
We taught 4 students with profound multiple disabilities to use a microswitch communication system to request a change in recreational stimuli during social interactions with nondisabled peers. In Study 1, we conducted a preference assessment across a range of stimuli for each student. The most and least preferred stimuli were incorporated into microswitch communication system training in Study 2. During the second study, 3 of the 4 students (a) learned to use the microswitch communication system to control stimulus presentation, (b) more clearly differentiated their time among stimuli, and (c) increased their level of general alertness. Study 3 extended the use of the microswitch communication system to social interactions with nondisabled peers. Two students were more engaged in interactions when they chose when to change stimuli; 1 student was more alert when a peer chose when to change activities; a 4th student showed an undifferentiated pattern. The outcomes of the investigation are discussed in terms of the effects of controlling stimulus presentation on the behavior of students with profound multiple disabilities and the stability of preference hierarchies over time.
Journal of applied behavior analysis, 1993 · doi:10.1901/jaba.1993.26-63