Lesson SOC 2
Task: Respond to others.
Prerequisites: None
Concept: This task is an extension of the skills in "respond to parent/primary care-giver" (SOC 1). Responding to the parent or caregiver is not a prerequisite, however, due to the occasional reality that the student may be more responsive to others. One aspect that needs to be considered in this task as well as in SOC 1 is that of tactile defensiveness, which occurs when the student finds touch to be unpleasant. In these cases, the student can be gently desensitized to touch aversion by repeated physical interaction. A firmer touch frequently is more pleasant than a light one. The actual training in this task is identical to SOC 1 except that various people, preferably those involved in the student's life, are used to elicit the response.
Behavioral Objective: The student will demonstrate some measurable response (such as those identified above) to other people to a 90% accuracy level over 20 trials.
Materials: Preferred toys, soft music, and a quiet environment.
Task Analysis:
1. After determining who the "other" people will be for the student (e.g., relatives, potential playmates), encourage them to interact with the student emphasizing input to all senses where reasonable using the materials outlined above.
2. Attempt to determine the specific action(s) that is (are) the most enjoyed by the student. Once determined, this action should not be performed except as reinforcement (reward) for the target behavior.
3. Continue Step 1, modifying the environment and objects presented. When a measurable positive response occurs, immediately perform the action identified in Step 2.
4. Continue until the objective has been met.