Effectiveness of Behavioral-Developmental Approach Intervention to Enhancing Verbal and Performance Cognitive Ability on Children with Autism Spectrum Disorders

Abstract

The purpose of this research to discover the result of an intervention using behavioral- developmental approach to verbal and performance cognitive ability of children with autism spectrum disorders. This study employed a within-group experiment using a single-subject A/B design. The intervention was given to two children under the age of four by combining learning activities whose curriculum was very well structured with play activities that could stimulate him to interact with others in a more natural setting. The intervention program was given by an educator and parents for 40 hours/ a week in twelve months. The results of the study revealed the behavioral-developmental approach is effective in improving both verbal and performance cognitive ability. this research are expected to become an alternative intervention to improve cognitive ability in children with autism spectrum disorders.