Date of Conferral

2022

Degree

Ph.D.

School

Psychology

Advisor

Steven Little

Abstract

Applied behavior analysis (ABA) is considered an applied science under the umbrella of behavior analysis and was accepted into the mainstream science in the mid-1900s. An increase in the prevalence of autism gave rise to the need for evidence-based social skills curricula. Previous research indicated many children respond well to video modeling and positive reinforcement. However, literature on social curricula for children aged 7 to 10 years in a clinical setting versus a school setting was limited. The purpose of this quantitative study with a single-subject design was to examine the effectiveness of Superflex, a superhero social thinking curriculum, on social skills and maladaptive behavior in children aged 7 to 10 years diagnosed with autism spectrum disorder (Level 1 or 2) in a clinical setting. ABA provided the theoretical framework for the study. Secondary data were collected from a local ABA clinic in a small town in the central United States. Data were evaluated using visual inspection and percentage of nonoverlapping data. Effect size between baseline and intervention and baseline and maintenance was calculated using Cohen’s d. Results indicated the curriculum increased conversational skills and decreased maladaptive behaviors in Client 1 and Client 2. Findings may enhance positive social change initiatives through prompting of best practices for teaching social skills to children with autism spectrum disorder.

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