Comparing training methods to improve volunteer skills during therapeutic horseback riding: A randomized control trial
Interactive computer training gives you volunteer skills as good as live coaching while slashing instructor time.
01Research in Context
What this study did
St. Peter et al. (2021) tested three ways to teach volunteers how to help kids during therapeutic horseback riding. They split volunteers into three groups: live coaching, watching a video, or using an interactive computer program.
Each group learned the same safety and prompting skills. The researchers then watched the volunteers work with real riders to see who used the skills best.
What they found
The computer group and the live-coaching group did equally well, and both beat the video-only group. The computer program also needed far less staff time because it ran itself.
In short, the cheap tech option matched the gold-standard live training.
How this fits with other research
Vladescu et al. (2022) ran a similar horse-free test. They also found that interactive computer BST beat video-only when teaching BCBAs firearm-safety drills. Together, the two RCTs show ICT tops passive video across very different skills.
Higbee et al. (2016) and Neef et al. (1986) already showed volunteers and teachers can learn from computer or manual packages. The new study updates their work by proving ICT now equals live BST, not just beats no training.
Wilson et al. (2023) and Piazza et al. (2021) push the idea further: training can be fully remote. St. Peter’s lab-based ICT plus these telehealth studies form a clear line—staff can master skills without an instructor in the room.
Why it matters
If you train volunteers, parents, or staff, you can swap some live workshops for interactive computer modules and still get top-quality performance. You save trainer hours, reduce scheduling headaches, and free yourself to work on other clinical tasks. Try plugging an ICT package into your next orientation and use the reclaimed time for direct client care.
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02At a glance
03Original abstract
Although in-vivo behavioral skills training (BST) is often effective, it may be too resource-intensive for organizations that rely on volunteers. Alternatives to in-vivo BST include video models or interactive computer training (ICT), but the utility of these procedures for training volunteers remains largely unknown. We used a randomized control trial to teach multiple skills to new volunteers at a therapeutic riding center. A total of 60 volunteers were assigned to one of three groups using block randomization. Depending on group assignment, volunteers received instructions and modeling through in-vivo interactions, a video model, or ICT. All volunteers completed in-vivo role plays with feedback. Skills were measured by unblinded observers during role plays. There were no statistically significant differences in accuracy of role-play performance between volunteers in the in-vivo BST and ICT groups, but both outperformed the video-model group. The ICT and video model required statistically significantly less time from a live instructor than did in-vivo training. Thus, although in-vivo BST remains best practice, ICT may be a viable alternative when training resources are limited.
Journal of Applied Behavior Analysis, 2021 · doi:10.1002/jaba.823