An Analysis of the Onset of First Words in Toddlers with Autism during a
Verbal-Only versus a Pictorial Intervention

Whitney James Smith

The purpose of this study was: (1) to compare a verbal-only intervention to a pictorial augmentative intervention with respect to the number of verbal expressive words; and (2) to analyze functional verbalizations during intervention probes to assess intervention contingencies related to the acquisition of first words. Forty nonverbal toddlers with autism were randomly assigned in matched pairs to either a verbal-only or pictorial augmentative intervention.  Results showed that the children in the verbal-only condition produced more functional verbalizations. The results also indicated that if parents contingently rewarded functional verbalizations, the children produced more expressive words regardless of the intervention condition.  The results are discussed in terms of the clinical and theoretical applications for early expressive word acquisition.