A Parent Training Program Combining Discrete Trial Training and Incidental Teaching in the Home Environment

This study examined the effects of a parent training program teaching discrete trial teaching (DTT) and incidental teaching (IT) methods using a parent training manual. Three families with children between the ages of 5-6 diagnosed with Autism Spectrum Disorder (ASD) participated. Both parents received parent training although Parent A received training from the experimenter and Parent B received training from Parent A. The parents taught their children one skill each from three categories: communication, self-care routines and a household expectation. This study sought to expand upon the literature in the realm of combining DTT and IT as well as adding the dimensions of training in home environments in a short period of time and examined the role of one parent training the other. Results showed that all of the Parent As were able to learn and apply DTT and IT in teaching their children. All Parent A\u27s were then able to teach Parent B\u27s how to use DTT and IT without additional training from the experimenter. The generalization effects of learning skills in multiple environments with different people was also examined and discussed