Abstract
Matching job tasks to the individual’s preferences improves job performance. Preference assessments, including paired stimulus (PS) and multiple-stimulus-without-replacement (MSWO) procedures, can be used to identify preferred vocational tasks for individuals with disabilities. However, there are few direct comparisons of the efficacy and efficiency of these two assessments for identifying preferred job tasks. We completed the PS and MSWO assessments for three participants who had limited vocal skills and analyzed correspondence between the assessment outcomes. We then assessed the validity of each assessment by evaluating engagement in the tasks identified as high- and low-preferred. Lastly, we asked teachers to watch videos of students engaged in high- and low-preferred tasks and rate student engagement, student happiness, and whether they would recommend the task. For all participants, both preference assessments identified the same high-preferred job task, but different low-preferred tasks. All participants remained engaged when completing the high-preferred task, but two participants were less engaged with the low-preferred tasks identified by the PS than the low-preferred task identified by the MSWO. All teachers suggested that they would recommend the task that was identified as high-preferred.
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Funding for this study was provided by the West Virginia University Center for Excellence in Disabilities.
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The study was approved by the West Virginia University Institutional Review Board and was performed in accordance with the ethical standards laid out in the 1964 Declaration of Helsinki and its later amendments, along with the requirements set forth by the American Psychological Association and the Behavior Analysis Certification Board.
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Parental consent and participant assent was obtained for all participants.
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Natalie J. Shuler is now at the Center for Pediatric Behavioral Health. Cory Toegel is now at Northern Michigan University. Stephanie H. Jones is now at Salve Regina University.
The authors thank the generous teachers who allowed us to conduct research in their classrooms, as well as Kinsey Brown and Justice Redman for their assistance with data collection.
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St. Peter, C., Shuler, N.J., Toegel, C. et al. Using Preference Assessments to Identify Preferred Job Tasks for Adolescents with Autism. Educ. Treat. Child. 45, 17–32 (2022). https://doi.org/10.1007/s43494-021-00061-3
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DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s43494-021-00061-3