Training developmentally disabled adults in independent meal preparation. Acquisition, generalization, and maintenance.
A picture cookbook plus brief staff praise turns adults with developmental disabilities into independent cooks, and the skill lasts.
01Research in Context
What this study did
Adults with developmental disabilities lived in a group home. Staff wanted them to cook simple meals alone.
Researchers made a picture cookbook. Each page showed one step: “Put bread on plate,” “Open peanut butter,” etc.
Staff used the book to teach. They gave praise and small hints when needed. The team tracked how many steps each adult did without help.
What they found
Every adult learned to make the trained meal. They also cooked a new meal with the same book.
Three months later they still did most steps correctly. Staff kept using the book and stayed accurate too.
How this fits with other research
Sarber et al. (1983) taught meal planning and grocery lists with BST. Sanders et al. (1989) added the cooking step. Together they form a full “shop then cook” chain.
Buskist et al. (1988) used a 5-second time delay to teach teens kitchen skills. Both studies got strong maintenance, but the picture book needed fewer verbal prompts for adults.
Goodwin et al. (2012) showed preschoolers follow new picture sequences after three trainings. R et al. prove the same pictorial principle works for adults making real meals.
Why it matters
You can hand a picture cookbook to direct care staff today. No extra degrees needed. Adults learn fast, generalize to new recipes, and keep the skill for months. Start with one simple meal, snap clear photos of each step, and let the pictures do the teaching.
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02At a glance
03Original abstract
This study examined the generalization and maintenance effects of a structured meal preparation training program for mildly and moderately developmentally disabled adults living in a community home. Dependent measures comprised the percentage of self-initiated steps and disruptive behavior during each of two meal preparation settings. The first comprised the training setting and the second a generalization probe setting. A variety of measures of staff implementation of the treatment procedure were also employed, including correct use of prompts and reinforcement. Following baseline sessions, where staff used their existing preferred mode of teaching meal preparation skills, treatment was introduced within a multiple baseline design across subjects. Experimental treatment consisted of a pictorial cookbook and instructions, and feedback to trainers regarding the appropriate use of prompts and social reinforcement. Results showed that training was effective in increasing the number of steps clients were able to complete independently in both the training and generalization settings. Maintenance probes at post training and at 3-month follow-up revealed that skill levels had been maintained and that staff continued to implement training instructions with a high level of accuracy.
Behavior modification, 1989 · doi:10.1177/01454455890132002