Procedures to increase social interaction among adolescents with autism: a multiple baseline analysis.

Isolate behavior, impaired social relationships and lack of conversational skills are behaviors which characterize persons described as autistic. These deficits interfere with their effective integration into school and social environments. This study of three subjects investigates the use of imagery procedures, specifically, covert reinforcement, to increase peer verbal initiations in adolescents who are labeled "autistic" and concomitantly looks at the demand characteristics of therapist "request". A multiple baseline analysis was used to assess the effects of individual training sessions on peer verbal initiations. The results demonstrate that verbal initiations can be changed in socially deficient adolescents labeled "autistic".