A Decision-Making Tool for Evaluating and Selecting Prompting Strategies

Literature has demonstrated the successful application of various prompts and prompt-fading procedures for teaching clients with intellectual and developmental disabilities. However, few practical resources exist to guide behavior analysts in the evaluation and selection of a prompting strategy for a given client and a targeted skill. In this article, we describe the development of a decision-making tool for selecting and evaluating prompting strategies, highlighting steps needed prior to evaluating clinical outcomes associated with the use of the tool. We used a multiple baseline across participants design to assess the ease with which graduate students could apply the decision-making tool with clients across a variety of skills. Results indicated that the participants learned to apply the decision-making tool with relatively limited involvement from a trainer. Social validity data collected from participants suggested that they found the tool helpful. Results contribute to the literature on the development of decision-making tools to guide behavior analysts in the selection of interventions to use with clients.

Supplementary information: The online version contains supplementary material available at 10.1007/s40617-022-00722-8.