Promoting Play Date Interactions Between Children with Autism and Typically Developing Peers

Laurie Vismara, Grace W. Gengoux, Mendy Boettcher, Robert Koegel, & Lynn K. Koegel

Children with autism often exhibit difficulties in social interaction and friendship formation. Specifically, children with autism may demonstrate difficulty with appropriately initiating and maintaining conversation, as well as with engaging in interactive play with peers. Preliminary data will be presented to illustrate how a package, consisting of the use of mutually reinforcing activities and cooperative arrangements with natural reinforcers, may be successfully implemented in play dates to increase positive interactions between children with autism and typically developing peers. Data, analyzed within the context of a multiple-baseline design across participants, show how play dates may be one strategy to improve reciprocal social interaction and affect for these children. These results are discussed in the context of developing a comprehensive social-skills package to encourage and sustain friendship development among children with autism and their peers.