Matrix Training for Expressive and Receptive Two-Word Utterances in Children With Autism

The present study examined the effectiveness of matrix training procedures for establishing adjective-object two-word utterances in children with autism. The procedure included training both receptive and expressive responses in one trial. Participants were 3 children with autism who were at the one-word production stage. A multiple baseline design across participants was employed. Participants were taught 3 of 9 receptive and expressive responses. The results showed that generalization to the untrained stimuli of the matrix was achieved by all the children. Furthermore, all the children demonstrated generalization to the matrix, including untrained objects. The intervention strategy, including both expressive and receptive training in one trial, facilitated both expressive and receptive responses to the untrained stimuli in these lower-functioning children with autism.