Download the Journal (PDF) - Division on Autism and ...

TABLE 3—(Continued)
Study Communication Consequences O<strong>the</strong>r Consequences
Schwartz et al.
(1998)
Tincani (2004)
cative behavior change was documented in all
studies. The most commonly reported communication
consequences of PECS included:
(a) successful use of PECS as a communication
tool (reported in 100% studies); (b) an
increase in overall level of communication
and language (reported in 62% studies); (c)
an increase in spontaneous language/
speech/imitation (reported in 46% studies);
(d) an increase in initiations of communication
(reported in 31% studies); and (e) an
increase in mean length of utterance (re-
Report of Relation to
a Generalization PECSb 14 months on average (range
3-28 months) after <strong>the</strong>
beginning of PECS training,
children were using <strong>the</strong> PECS
system in a functional manner
to communicate with adults and
peers.
The children mastered <strong>the</strong>
fundamental PECS protocol
within 11 months, and learned
to exchange with peers in an
additional 3 months.
Children who learned PECS use
<strong>the</strong> system across settings. Fortyfour
percent of <strong>the</strong> children
acquired unprompted, nonecholalic
spoken
Y M
communication, and all
children demonstrated many
successful communicative
interactions across trained and
untrained functions and
settings.
Children who received training in
one communicative function
demonstrated increased use of
different untrained
communicative functions.
Y M
One child with weak hand-motor
imitation skills learned PECS
more rapidly than sign
language. On <strong>the</strong> o<strong>the</strong>r hand,
ano<strong>the</strong>r child with moderate
imitation skills learned sign
language more rapidly than
PECS. Y H
Sign language training produced
more vocalization for both
children; however, a procedural
modification to <strong>the</strong> PECS
system increased one child’s
vocalization to a level similar to
that in sign language training.
a
Y Yes, N No.
b
H High specificity, M moderate specificity, L Low specificity (see text for a more detailed description
of specificity ratings).
ported in 23% studies). Fur<strong>the</strong>rmore, <strong>the</strong>
studies that included a follow-up assessment indicated
maintenances of <strong>the</strong> gains identified at
<strong>the</strong> time of posttesting (Charlop-Christy et al.,
2002; Heneker & Page, 2003; Jones, 2005; Magiati
& Howlin, 2003; Schwartz et al., 1998).
The studies that compared PECS against
sign language training demonstrated that
(a) rates of acquisition in PECS were faster
than rates of acquisition in sign language,
(b) PECS was <strong>the</strong> preferred method of communication
for most participants compared
Functional Communication Intervention / 73